This time, the lecture was held on the theme of “International cooperation” and “diplomacy.” We invited Mr. Tsuneo Sugishita, who is the President of the Foundation for Advanced Studies on International Development(FASID). He has been engaged in activities to support young people to become more aware and active globally. The students listened to his speech about the “required qualities to become an international person.”
Mr. Sugishita has been gathering on-site information in over 100 countries, mainly developing countries, as an international journalist, and reporting about poverty and refugees in Africa.
Mr. Sugishita talked about his own experiences that carried the weight of reality but were hardly reported on in the media—he was astonished by a massive refugee camp he saw that covered the horizon, for example. He also mentioned how impressed he was by the professional attitude of Médecins Sans Frontières’ staff. The students were absorbed into his speech.
Mr. Sugishita’s formative experience that led him to become a journalist was that he came across a scene in a refugee camp, and he was very shocked by it. On a very quiet night he heard a mother weeping. She was crouched down and holding her dead child. “What a precious thing life is…” he said with tears in his eyes, reminiscing about the scene.
“There are so many tragic facts in the world. What I have to do is to report them. I want Japanese people to know these facts.” In the airplane returning to Japan, he made his choice. He said that his sense of mission had driven him to “report,” while he had been working as an international journalist and even after he retired.
Mr. Sugishita gave a message, “Real international people never talk people down. They respect others, and after hearing others’ opinions, they state their own. The important thing is to combine others’ opinions and your own and improve each of them. I really hope that you will become good international people.” The message was etched into the students’ minds withso many of the real examples he gave.
At the end of the lecture, Mr. Sugishita encouraged the students in their future goals. “I’ll give you advice anytime.” He said.
Throughout the lecture the students understood the attitude that genuine international people should have. Impressed by Mr. Sugishita’s passion for reporting and his humanity.
