Japanese Culture, Politics To Blend At ECJAL Conference This Weekend

Green tea ice cream, Japanese dance and a speech by a framer of the Japanese constitution are just some of the things participants can enjoy at this weekend's East Coast Japan America League (ECJAL) Conference.

About 100 people are expected to attend the eighth annual conference, hosted on campus this weekend by the Harvard-Radcliffe Japan Society.

The conference features cultural events such as chado, Japanese dance and sushi-making workshops as well as panel discussions on media, women's rights and the Asian economic crisis.

First launched at Brown in 1990, the original effort aimed at creating unity among Japanese students and students of Japanese descent. It included students from 13 universities.

But non-Japanese students are "more than welcome to attend the conference," said Misasha Suzuki '99, co-president of the Japan Society, who is half-Japanese herself.

Among the scheduled speakers is Beate Sirota Gordon, the only female framer of the MacArthur Constitution--which was instituted in Japan after World War II--and a present-day activist. She is of Russian origin but made a mark on Japanese history when she wrote the provision that guaranteed "essential equality of the sexes" in Japan.

Gordon will speak at the women's discussion panel entitled "Women in Japan: A Look Back at the Constitution" tomorrow afternoon as well as at a banquet the same night.

The conference will kick off tonight with a Keynote speech by Professor Akira Iriye, after which conference goers can watch the film "A Taxing Woman Returns" while eating green tea ice-cream.

The bulk of the conference will take place tomorrow. In addition to the women's rights panel, there is also a panel entitled "Media in Japan: Trends and Tribulations" in the morning, focusing on youth trends within the Japanese media.

The Hawaii club will feature a "Make-your-own-sushi" workshop at noon tomorrow, alongside performances by the Jo Ha Hyu Performance Group and the Harvard Radcliffe Chado Society.

On Sunday morning there will be a Panel Discussion about the Asian economic crisis and Japan's pivotal role in the region, with Professor of Government Steven Vogel and Kaoruhiko Suzuki '71, a partner in charge of the Asia-Pacific Practice Group of the law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker in Los Angeles.

Harvard students do not have to have registered to attend the scheduled events, a complete list of which can be found on the Web at www.hcs.harvard.edu/~js/ecjal.html.