"The World and Japan" Database (Project Leader: TANAKA Akihiko)
Database of Japanese Politics and International Relations
National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS); Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia (IASA), The University of Tokyo

[Title] Message by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on the Inscription of "Hidden Christian Sites in Nagasaki and the Amakusa Region" on UNESCO's World Heritage List

[Place]
[Date] June 30, 2018
[Source] Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet
[Notes] Provisional translation
[Full text]

I am truly gratified at the inscription of "Hidden Christian Sites in Nagasaki and the Amakusa Region" on the World Heritage List.

Nagasaki and the Amakusa region are home to historic hidden Christian villages.

During the Edo era, their unique cultural characteristics, cultivated through adapting to Edo society and its cultural climate, have been handed down over several generations.

These sites convey the "shape" of a faith that is unique to Japan and they are truly unparalleled worldwide as heritage of humankind.

I wish to express my deep respect for all those who have been involved in conserving these sites over the years. As we carefully conserve these world treasures I intend to renew my determination to share their appeal broadly with the world.

Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan

June 30, 2018