Contributing to Peace Building in Cambodia Through the Restoration

＜Reference＞

Contributing to Peace Building in Cambodia through the Restoration of Angkor Wat –Activities undertaken during the past 27 years towards Developing Human Resources for the Fostering of Self Reliance–

Ⅰ. The Principal Activities of the Sophia Asia Center for Research and Human Development 1. The primary consideration in the international cooperation undertaken with regard to work on the Western Causeway of Angkor Wat, is that the “restoration had to be carried out by Cambodians for the Cambodians.” Japanese construction techniques needed to be combined with Cambodian traditional ones, and thereby the work of restoration had to be carried out utilizing a methodology familiar to the local populace, what we may refer to as the “Sophia Model.” The work of restoration we put into practice in Cambodia is based on relationships of mutual trust, paying no heed to issues such as language barriers or the color of a person’s skin. 2. (1) Intensive Lectures at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh. Venue: Royal University of Fine Arts, Phnom Penh, (Duration: 1991~2013). Approximately 2800 students participated. (2) On-site training at Angkor Wat on Construction skills, and at the Banteay Kdei Monument on Archaeological Excavation: Specialized lectures were conducted at the Sophia Asia Center for Research and Human Development. Such on-site training has already been conducted 51 times from 1989 until now, and so far around 540 candidates for the post of conservationists have benefited from this training in the fields of Archaeology and Architecture. 3. (1) Project for the acquiring of degrees as Conservationists: From 1997 to 2009, 18 students received academic degrees at the Graduate School of Sophia University (Graduate Program in Area Studies). Seven received doctorates and eleven received Master’s degrees, and these degrees were attained after they had written their theses in English. On returning to their countries, their principal employment consisted in working as senior officials for the APSARA authority, as University Professors, as Vice Presidents of Phnom Penh University, as leading officials in the Ministry of Culture and Arts, and so on. (2) Individuals currently associated with the restoration work on the Western Causeway of Angkor Wat: The following three individuals who are senior officials linked to the APSARA authority are associated with this project. They have received doctoral degrees in Cultural Heritage (and they are fluent in Japanese). (i) Dr. Ly Vanna: A senior official in Heritage Preservation who received his doctorate at the Graduate School of Sophia University in 2003. He is responsible for the current work being done on the Western Causeway of Angkor Wat. (ii) Dr. Tin Tina: Deputy Director in the Bureau of Legal Affairs. He received his doctorate at the Graduate School of Sophia University in 2007 (iii) Dr. Chean Ratha: Deputy Director in charge of ruins found at locations remote from Angkor. He received his doctorate from Nihon University. 4. Examples from the Development of Human Resources in Cambodia:

1 (1) The results of work done on the restoration of the first phase of 100 meters of the Western Causeway of Angkor Wat (1996~2007). ① On-site training of experts in Architectural skills. (The individuals in charge were Professor Masao Katagiri of Nihon University and Research Fellow Satoru Miwa). The work lasted 12 years, and while offering training in stonemasonry, around 6000 pieces of sandstone and laterite were loaded on to the retaining wall. The cost of the entire work amounted to around 200 million yen. ② Training of Cambodian conservationists: Approximately 30 candidates were trained as conservationists, communicating technical skills was done for 5 executive trainees, and 25 were trained as stonemasons. By training architectural technicians, our aim was to see that the Cambodians carry out on their own the restoration and research concerning their nation’s monuments. ③ Professors in charge of architectural training at the sites: Professor Masao Katagiri of Nihon University (deceased), Professor Yutaka Shigeeda (Nihon University), Mr. Satoru Miwa (Research Fellow, Sophia University), Professor Emeritus Tomio Moriai (Tohoku Institute of Technology), Professor Yoshiyasu Matsumura (Tohoku Institute of Technology), Mr. Shozo Fukuda, (Director, Architectural Culture Research Institute), Mr. Byonha Choi (Nihon University), Mr. Takayuki Kosugi (Kosugi stone shop, high-skilled stone technician), Mr. Yasuyuki Furuyama (member of the Architectural Culture Research Institute), Professor Tsukawaki Shinji (Kanazawa University), Masato Yoshidome (formerly of the Taisei Corporation), Professor Tetsuya Waragai (Nihon University), Sam Peou (Archeologist, Sophia University). ④ The program ‘Challengers’ aired by NHK was broadcast on November 20, 2001, with the title “Bonds between the Master and Pupils who pledge loyalty to Angkor Wat.” It was rated highly and broadcast as a program on Japan Airlines. (2) Outcome of the Archaeological Training conducted on-site at the Banteay Kdei monument and the Professors in involved (from 1989 until the present time): ① Individuals involved: Professor Yoshiharu Nakao (Tezukayama Gakuin University), Professor Kunikazu Ueno (Nara Women’s University), Yasuharu Miyamoto (Research Fellow, Osaka City Cultural Property Association), Professor Tetsuo Hishida (Kyoto Prefectural University), Hisao Arahi [Lecturer, Sophia University, (deceased)], Professor Yukitsugu Tabata (Waseda University), Professor Masako Marui (Sophia University). ② In 2001, in the course of training Cambodian students of Archaeology, 274 statues of Buddha were excavated. This was viewed as a great discovery of the century, and it served to rewrite the history of the Angkor dynasty. In 2010 an additional 6 statues were excavated, making a total of 280, and in 2015, four more statues were discovered. We are in the process of training experts in Archaeology who will prove capable of carrying out their own excavation work. ③ These 274 Buddhist statues are currently exhibited in the Sihanouk–Aeon Museum in Cambodia. (3) Construction of the Sihanouk–Aeon Museum: This is the only permanent Royal museum for Buddhist statues in Cambodia, and it was received as a donation from the honorable Mr. Takuya Okada, President of Ion Co., Ltd. Sophia University

2 carried out the construction, and the 274 Buddhist statues are currently preserved and exhibited in the museum.

II. Protection of the Environment surrounding the Angkor Ruins: Reception of Certification ISO14001 for the assistance offered in the Zero Garbage Movement— 1) Among the activities undertaken by Sophia University exterior to the campus, the university, in order to acquire the certification of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) (14001 Environmental Management), conducted with the cooperation of the Japan Quality Assurance Organization and Quality Assurance Institute, the following activities: The education of the APSARA working staff, the education of residents of the surrounding vicinity, and the education of primary school children. This education was oriented to the surrounding environment, and it resulted in the university’s reception for the first time of the certification of the ISO. Entrance tickets now have clearly inscribed on them the word ISO14001, and seminars to authenticate the certification are still in progress.

III. Sophia University’s Construction of the Center for Research and Human Development at the site (1996): In order to put into practice the aims of the Sophia Mission, we constructed at the site in Cambodia a two-storied structure covering an area of 4,800 square meters, and assigned two research fellows qualified in architecture as residents there on a permanent basis. It is equipped with facilities such as laboratories and preparation rooms for the training of students in Architecture and Archaeology, storehouses for excavated goods, warehouses, and so on. Sophia University is the only institute in Asia that provides and operates such a base for research and intellectual exchange. Of the universities of Japan, Sophia is the sole institution to construct a research base at the site. Just as the study of Astronomy requires that we construct an observatory, so also we constructed a research base in the vicinity of the site, in order to put into practice Area studies in Southeast Asia. Currently we are involved in creating a Southeast Asian Identity that would transcend regional and national barriers, and yet at the same time embrace the diversity of the Cultural Heritage, the Society, and the ethnic groups of Southeast Asia.

IV. Why does Sophia University have to restore Angkor Wat? – By introducing Cultural Heritage we shall proceed towards the creation of activities for peace building– 1. The Sophia Mission embraces acts of service undertaken by the university’s students, members of the teaching and administrative staff, and other related individuals. The spirit of our foundation is revealed in the words ‘Men and women for others, with others,’ and it is the maxim we uphold. Hence we go out to meet the ‘others’ of Asia in nations such as Cambodia, we establish neighborly links with them, and with these companions we have gained we undertake human resource development and other acts of solicitude and concern. 2. It was impossible for us to ignore the sufferings undergone by the Cambodian people as a result of the civil war that raged for 24 years. The civil war in Cambodia began in 1970 and ended in the genocide of over 1.5 million people. Refugees numbered around 2 million, people lost all they owned, and there was no one who had not suffered owing to its turmoil. 3. In 1979, before Shinjuku station in Tokyo, Sophia University began an appeal for assistance under the name ‘extend your hands of love to the refugees in

3 Indochina.’ Besides this we offered support to refugees in camps and dispatched volunteers to assist them. In the 1980s while the civil war still raged, the university supported the rebuilding of the nation and the revitalization of its culture, and with a view to encourage them we proposed that the Cambodians carry out the conservation and restoration of Angkor Wat on their own. Thereafter in 1996 we went to Cambodia, and established the Sophia Asia Center for Research and Human Development. Angkor Wat was constructed during an era of peace, and it is a stone temple that proclaims the prosperity of the people. Through the restoration of Angkor Wat we have been able to contribute to the cause of peace. In the Western Causeway that lies at the site, Cambodian trainees in conservation and restoration who symbolize the peace and rejuvenation of the people toiled hard and completed the first phase of the restoration, from 1996 to 2007. 4. On its renaissance as a kingdom in 1993, Cambodia had to confront five major issues. The first was healing the wounds sustained during the civil war, the second was returning to the international community, the third was de-socialization and the return to the market economy, the fourth was the re-establishment of the identity of the people (reconciliation between the four groups that were divided during the civil war), and the fifth was seeking ways to overcome poverty. In order to offer assistance regarding the fourth issue, Sophia University decided to get involved in the restoration of Angkor Wat. At the same time however, the restoration of the Western Causeway concerns the clarification of the history of an eminent people. Our activity offered support to those who encountered these five hurdles. 5. Concerning the Sophia Mission, which has been intent on serving the people of Cambodia since 1980, His Majesty King Sihanouk the former King of Cambodia made the following remark: “We should not forget those people who dug the first well.” With these words, he expressed his gratitude to Sophia University. Through human resource development our center has sought to realize at the site the aims of the Sophia Mission, and even today, by forging links of amity with Cambodian colleagues, it has continued to help with the work on the Western Causeway in a modest and unpretentious manner. In the restoration work now being done on the Angkor Wat Western Causeway (Phase 2, Zone 2 and Zone 3), while you observe the work of the Sophia Mission being realized with the cooperation of Cambodians, we would also like you to note that those who form the nucleus of these collaborative activities are Cambodian experts in construction techniques and restoration, who have obtained degrees at the Graduate School of Sophia University.

V. Cultural Heritage → Peace Building → Human Resource Development that will benefit the Self-reliance of Cambodia We of the Sophia Mission have so far engaged in our activities on the basis of the dictum that the restoration of Angkor Wat should be carried out by Cambodians. On account of the 24 years of political turmoil, we proposed that the restoration of Angkor Wat be carried out as a collaborative activity, viewing the monument as a symbol both of reconciliation and peace building. Since 1996, the area covering the first phase of the restoration of the Western Causeway of Angkor Wat has become an area for re-creating the identity of the Cambodians, as well as a place for them to study their history and culture and thereby regain their national pride.

4 For this reason we of the Sophia Mission traveled to sites in Asia, and through the preservation and restoration of monuments of cultural heritage (like Angkor Wat), we enabled the diffusion of ideas on peace building and reconciliation, and proposed a path towards the creation of a new Cambodian society of peaceful co-existence. Thirty-five years have elapsed since the fund-raising activity entitled ‘extend your hands of love to the refugees in Indochina’ was conducted in 1979, and Cambodia in the meantime has witnessed a magnificent resurrection. Specialists in restoration techniques are many, and the nation is now able to carry out restoration work on its own. It is these specialists who will inform the world concerning the pre-eminent cultural heritage of Cambodia, and I have hopes that they will develop into experts capable of conveying to all the history of the Angkor era and its culture.

VI. Plan for the Sophia Model of Cultural Heritage International Collaboration 1. We depart to sites in Asia, build bonds of friendship with the inhabitants, and cooperate in the training of human resources. 2. At the site, we develop both traditional techniques and new technologies, and we contribute to the development of the local communities by engaging in works of restoration, investigation, and research, along with local researchers. 3. Those with university degrees should be challenged to undertake on their own, activities of excavation, restoration, and research concerning their nation. 4. Opportunities should be provided for new experts on conservation to present the fruits of their research to the world, both within the country and abroad. 5. With regard to the restoration of cultural heritage, it would be advantageous to raise the academic level of Cambodia to international standards. 6. History has witnessed the fact that cultural heritage provides us with a means to grasp the identity (uniqueness) of a people. 7. An elucidation of history on the basis of the restoration of cultural heritage will provide people with ethnic pride, and besides, sociologically as well as culturally it will have a great ripple effect.