Japanese consul vows to help promote Mintal
as premier tourist spot in RP for Japanese

The Japanese Consul in Davao City is fully supporting the declaration of Mintal as a Japanese heritage site and has promised to participate in any activity or committee hearing spearheaded by the City Council to achieve this objective.

“I applaud the committee’s efforts in recognizing the cultural and historical bonds between the people of Japan and Davao City,” Consul of Japan in Davao Koji Mitsui said in a letter addressed to councilor Rachel Zozobrado, chair of the Committee on International Relations.

Various sectors have signified their willingness to support Zozobrado and proponent Louie Villafuerte in coming up with a resolution declaring Mintal a Japanese heritage site the soonest possible time. The University of the Philippines and officials of barangay Mintal are planning to hold a photo exhibit on Mintal as Little Tokyo by August this year.

Mitsui said the Japanese Embassy in Manila does not have exact knowledge about the existence of such a heritage site in Mintal. Mintal barangay captain Ramon Bargamento confirmed there are a lot of Japanese burial grounds in the area and they get a lot of Japanese visitors who either visit the graves of their descendants in Mintal.

“Due to my sincere desire in strengthening the relationship between Japan and your city I will personally promote to the staff in charge of the Embassy of Japan in Manila to preserve and start recognizing the heritage site as one of the premier tourist spots in the Philippines,” Mitsui said.

Zozobrado has also enlisted the help of City Planning chief Louis Jacinto, Bargamento as well as Davao City Investment Promotion Center head Roberto “Bobby” Teo.

Council committee on Tourism chair Susan Reta, who is also supporting the project, said she has done prior research on the site and advised the committee to consider the protocols that should be observed involving the site since the Japanese consider it sacred ground and may not be willing to repaint or do some improvements in the burial grounds.

The area used to be an abaca plantation and was placed under Japanese administration even before the war started, Bargamento said, so there are indeed lots of Japanese descendants and Japanese graves in the area.