Four Filipinos to receive Japanese decorations for strengthening ties

Four Filipinos, including former Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and former Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo, will be honored with Japanese decorations for their contributions to strengthening Philippines-Japan relations.

Lorenzana will receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, for enhancing the defense cooperation and exchanges between Japan and the Philippines from 2016 to 2022, a period credited for the participation of the Japan Self-Defense Forces in joint exercises between the Philippines and United States military.

Romulo is set to be awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun for his contribution to the formulation of the Japan-Philippines Joint Statement, which became the basis for the two nations' "Strategic Partnership".

Other honorees include former National Telecommunications Commission chief Gamaliel Cordoba, who will receive the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, for his significant contributions to advancing cooperation in the field of telecommunications, specifically for bringing Japan's ISDB-T digital television broadcasting standard to the Philippines.

Maritime anthropologist Dr. Cynthia Neri Zayas will be awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, for her collaboration with Japanese anthropologists in pioneering maritime anthropological studies in the Philippines, deepening the understanding of Japanese society worldwide.