Japan to create park to mark 150th anniversary of Meiji Restoration

August 22, 2017

TOKYO- Japan's land ministry is considering turning a district in Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo, where residences of Meiji Restoration-related figures are located, into a memorial park to mark the 150th anniversary next year of the historical event, widely regarded as the start of the country's modernization, informed sources have said.

The park is expected to be utilized for passing down to future generations the achievements of their forerunners who contributed to the establishment of constitutional government, the sources said.

The ministry plans to seek funds for the project as part of its budget request for fiscal 2018.

The district of some 60,000 square meters in the Kanagawa town of Oiso has green spaces and hosts old residences of Hirobumi Ito, Japan's first prime minister, and other politicians, including Shigenobu Okuma, Munemitsu Mutsu and Shigeaki Ikeda.

The park plan is based on a report from a government panel of experts in June, which noted that it is important to emphasize not only the front-runners themselves but also places used by them in order to pass their achievements down the generations.

The report cited the district in Oiso as a possible model site, where the old residences of the key figures in the period are located within walking distance.

The buildings, including the residence of Ito, known as Sorokaku, are owned by private-sector companies. The government will consider whether it should buy the buildings for carrying out the park plan.

The government plans to work out other details in cooperation with the Kanagawa prefectural and Oiso municipal governments. Jiji Press