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At the Banks of the Amazon


Evangeline Anovilis

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While South America shared its name with the Northern part of the Americas, for most Japanese political considerations, the two were completely different. In terms of climate, culture and of course politically, South America seemed hardly like the other America. That was not to say, Japanese relations with the continent were any less ambivalent, with a history of cooperation and cultural ties, yet, the last time Japan was politically engaged in the region, it was under the flag of the American Imperium, holding an Imperial territory in Bolivia. Since then, the Japanese Empire had withdrawn from the shores of South America, though it had added a few thousand Japanese to the already large community of Japanese South Americans.

 

To Prime Minister Akiyama, the return of Pará was a welcome opportunity to open a new chapter in relations between Japan and the South American continent, and it was thus hardly surprising that Akiyama personally went to visit Pará, a meeting she placed great hopes in. Not only because Pará itself could be important, or because relations with Pará could be an important basis for general future relations on the continent, but also, because like so many of the conservative elite of Japan, Akiyama viewed Pará and south America as a bit of a land of opportunities. Here, development was still happening. Here, there were dreams and progress towards them. It was a chance... maybe it was an overly optimistic and idealised view of Pará, a nation that was suffering from a civil war, but even so, people like Akiyama believed in this romantic view of a land of progress and dynamic developments across the Pacific... a view that sharply contrasted with the view of Japanese elites of the American Commonwealth, which was as stagnant as it could be, uncultured and of flawed moral character.

 

The Paráense authorities would be informed of the visit and one of Japan's two official government aircraft would embark on a Trans-Pacific trip with the destination of Cruzeiro do Sul International Airport.

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Cruzeiro do Sul was not a particularly impressive town; it nestled quietly along the banks of the Juruá River, far from the hustle and bustle of the larger, deeper cities of Pará. Perhaps it was for that reason that it had gone largely unscarred by the rampant violence of the civil war-- oh, it boasted its share of war stories etched into the skin of the city, of course: no city in Pará could claim to have endured the conflict with nothing to show for it. Even here, reconstruction was being conducted-- damaged infrastructure was being patched up, relics of the old republic were being torn down to make way for a new breed of architecture, something appropriate of the nation's new guiding philosophy... and its new guiding force.

 

That force was Fernanda Murai, lounging in the back seat of the car that sat parked along the runway of the city's recently renovated airport. The windows of the car were externally tinted, but from within, she could watch as the plane bearing the Japanese delegate-- either the prime minister or a representative-- descended onto the tarmac. Whoever emerged from that plane in Japan's name, it would be Murai's first diplomatic venture, and she intended on guaranteeing a favourable outcome. Japan had quite a presence in the world, after all, and certainly had a history of a presence in South America... not one many South Americans were very avid about. Pará's failure to anticipate and respond to Japan's colonialist seizure of land in South America had provoked quite some ire amongst the citizens of the old republic towards Vieira-- arguably, it had been one of the primary impetuses for the civil war that erupted not long thereafter-- and the outlook towards Japan since then had not exactly been one of favour. Murai herself, as a Brazilian of Japanese descent, had certainly experienced her fair share of that animosity in certain parts of the continent since the occupation of so-called Minami-Kechua.

 

Well, they'd just have to see how this meeting went.

 

Murai turned her head as the door of the car was pulled open, to find Akiyama Kagami sliding into the seat beside her. The Chairwoman pulled her lips taut into a thin smile, and said, "Welcome to Pará, Prime Minister Akiyama."

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"Thank you, Chairwoman Murai. I am honoured to be welcomed by you personally to your country.", Akiyama replied with a friendly smile. "I'm hopeful that this meeting will improve the relationship between our countries."

 

Prime Minister Akiyama Kagami had preferred to travel alone, especially, given that it seemed the Japanese security was not all too great at doing their job, nor saw the Prime Minister any need for aides during the visit. Instead, Akiyama Kagami travelled on her own, carrying with her mainly a briefcase holding the documents necessary for the talks, as well as of course a few personal items, such as her wallet, identification and other official documents necessary.

 

Considering Akiyama's decision to not keep too great a security, it was thus quite a relief that Cruzeiro do Sul was at least a bit outside the active combat zone. It was however not too surprising, given that one would expect meetings to take place at the more quiet and peaceful locations. as Akiyama had thought about these matters during the approach of the runway, the notion that the rainforests of the Amazon could be a warzone did remind her of the fact that just about a decade earlier, it had already been a warzone before, when Japanese soldiers advanced through this area on their offensive towards Manaus. It was a strange feeling, to think how much times had changed... And while she had personally overseen changes in Japan, it seemed she'd now see the person that was responsible for quite a few changes in Pará.

 

It was with such thoughts, which she carefully hid behind a diplomatic smile and calm demeanour, that Akiyama had entered the car.

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