Press Releases
The inscription of “The Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region” on UNESCO’s World Heritage List (Decision at the 41st Session of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO)
(Statement by Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida)
July 9, 2017
- The Government of Japan is very pleased that today on July 9th (same day local time) at the 41st Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee held in Krakow, Poland, a decision was made to inscribe on the World Heritage List “The Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region”, which Japan had nominated as a candidate for the list.
- The Island of Okinoshima has continued to be the sacred places for worship since the ancient time, where remain archaeological items indicating the history of frequent overseas exchanges during the ancient time which have been preserved intact to the present. Given these reasons, I believe that the island of Okinoshima is globally unique and precious. As the Minister for Foreign Affairs, with wishes for the peace of the World through international exchange, I heartily welcome the inscription of this property. In addition to that, I sincerely respect all the people concerned who have sustained the tradition of the sacred Island since the ancient time.
- We will continue to promote dissemination appeal of Japan’s World Heritage sites including “The Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region” with initiatives that include overseas communication in cooperation with other relevant ministries and agencies so that people around the world will understand the value of the sites.