TOKYO - Japan will hold a ceremony in November to mark the completion of restoration work on the main hall of Okinawa's Shuri Castle, the government said Tuesday, after a fire destroyed a large part of the complex in 2019.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara announced the Nov. 22 ceremony during a regular press conference in Tokyo, saying, "Shuri Castle is an extremely important structure that can be said to be a source of pride not just for the people of Okinawa, but for the whole nation."
The ceremony to be held on the grounds of Shurijo Castle Park in the southern island prefecture comes after a predawn fire in late October 2019 gutted the Seiden main hall and much of the castle complex. Local authorities have been unable to determine a cause of the fire.
In response to the fire, the government established a meeting of relevant Cabinet ministers to work with the Okinawa prefectural government toward restoring the structure. Works to restore the main hall began in 2022 and are projected to end in the fall.
Kihara, who spoke to reporters while wearing a traditional short-sleeved Okinawan kariyushi summer shirt as part of an annual Cabinet initiative in June to promote "Cool Biz" light work attire, said the government will "continue to work as one in advancing efforts toward the restoration."
Shuri Castle was once the political and cultural center of the Ryukyu Kingdom (1429-1879) until Okinawa was annexed by Japan. It has burned down five times.
Before the 2019 catastrophe, the castle was last destroyed during the Battle of Okinawa which started following the U.S. military's 1945 landing on Okinawa's main island. The structure was rebuilt in 1992.
The castle ruins were registered as part of a World Heritage site in 2000.
