Obama's bow to the future
(From The Japan Times Nov. 29 issue)

要約
将来への関与を誓う米大統領のお辞儀

American diplomacy is never without controversy, but who would have imagined that the standard protocol of a bow to the Japanese Emperor from U.S. President Barack Obama would have caused such a fuss?

Apparently, many right-wing critics in America complained that Mr. Obama bowed too low to the Emperor. Those America-centric conservatives took Mr. Obama's bow as a signal of America's weakness. Japan and most of the rest of the world saw that bow for what it was — a sincere gesture of respect and a step toward healthier relations.

Those who know Japanese culture even a little would not interpret this type of bow as subservience, much less as any indication of America's low status on the world stage. In Japan, bowing is as natural as taking off one's shoes when entering a home, though with more profound meanings. The conservative American critics of Mr. Obama would surely have found fault no matter how deep he bowed.

The arrival of a U.S. president who is aware of the importance of symbolic meanings and diplomatic gestures comes as a relief to most countries after the Bush administration's scarcity of interaction on any but its own terms.

As Mr. Obama well knows, a bow could have many different meanings within Japanese culture. It can be an everyday greeting, a simple thanks or a deep apology. Mr. Obama's bow carried less of these meanings than it did a sense of engagement. Stepping into another country's cultural complexities shows strength of character and self-assurance. Unlike the "cowboy diplomacy" of the former Bush administration, Mr. Obama clearly recognizes cultural realities.

Mr. Obama was not deferring to "a foreign potentate," as conservative critics see it. Instead, the simple gesture of a bow was a fitting way to show respect for Japanese culture, in particular, and awareness of how other cultures work, in general.

This visit to the Asia-Pacific region brings fresh hope that America will interact with its allies and adversaries without belligerence and one-sidedness. Approaching foreign countries with respect is an essential step toward building relations based on enlightened self-interest, a key component of Mr. Obama's diplomatic approach. In Japan, as in most countries, respect is an essential precondition to greater communication and deeper understanding. After a calm, reasonable and culturally astute gesture of respect has been offered, real negotiations can begin. The bow may have been Japanese, but the attitude behind it would be welcome in any country.

In fact, Mr. Obama's gesture was not delivered as smoothly as are most of his speeches, which have become popular English-language study materials in Japan. Shaking hands at the same time as bowing nearly 45 degrees combines East and West in an uneasy single gesture. Usually, when East meets West, a bow precedes a handshake or vice versa, or one is simply dispensed with.

No matter, most Japanese probably would not know the correct way to bow to the Emperor either, and the politeness inherent in his gesture is the key point. Mr. Obama's bow also indicated recognition that Japan is a unique and sovereign country that holds a large proportion of U.S. government bonds.

The Bush administration's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, undertaken with blind disregard for those cultures' realities, are unlikely to serve as a model for economic revitalization or cultural exchange, much less for spreading democracy. More important than small gestures is the harder work of concrete decisions and sensible actions. Finding common agreements that mutually benefit all countries in the Asian region is now the main focus. Bowing was the easy part.

Lost amid this little controversy over the angle of bowing were two other recollections that Mr. Obama mentioned in his speech. From a boyhood trip to Japan, he recounted two other Japanese cultural experiences: eating matcha green tea ice cream and seeing the Great Buddha in Kamakura.

Maybe future generations will be able to build their diplomatic efforts on these kinds of small simple pleasures and powerful spiritual expressions. If so, they won't get tangled in the unproductive obsessions that have for too long kept one country from communicating with another in more nuanced and lasting terms.

米国の外交は常に議論を呼ぶが、オバマ大統領が天皇陛下に礼儀としてお辞儀をしたことが物議を醸すとは誰が想像しただろう。

低姿勢すぎる、米国の弱さを示したというのが米国の保守派の考えらしいが、日本を含め世界の多くの国が、その行為を心からの敬意であり健全な関係への一歩ととらえている。

日本文化に触れていれば、このようなお辞儀は従属や米国の地位の低さを意味しないことが分かる。お辞儀は日本では、玄関で靴を脱ぐのと同じく自然な行為だが、より深い意味をもつ。

象徴的な意味や外交儀礼をわきまえた米大統領の登場で、一方的な外交が主流だったブッシュ前政権時代を知る国々は安堵しただろう。

日本でお辞儀の意味は、日常的挨拶や簡単な謝意、深い謝罪まで多岐にわたる。今回の場合は関与を意味しており、他国の複雑な文化に入っていくことができるのは強さと自信の表れだ。

今回のアジア太平洋地域への訪問は、米国が好戦的・一方的態度を捨てて同盟国・敵国両方に関わることができるのでは、という希望をもたらした。敬意を示すことは、開かれた国益に基づく関係を築くための大切な一歩であり、オバマ外交の重要な要素でもある。

アフガニスタンやイラクの現実を無視して戦争を始めたブッシュ前政権は、経済活性化や文化交流、民主主義普及のお手本にはならない。

お辞儀騒動で、大統領がスピーチした少年時代の日本の思い出がかすんでしまった。当時彼が訪れた鎌倉や抹茶アイスクリームの話だ。

今後の世代は、こんなささやかな思い出の上に外交を築くことが可能かもしれない。そうなれば、国と国が微妙な違いを受け入れ対話を続けることを妨げてきた、不毛なこだわりを断ち切ることができるだろう。