P.R.O. using Keene's naturalization as an example

Keene's Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star

Yesterday I was at the clinic for my annual full day physical, waiting between sessions (eye check, ear check, x-rays, ultrasound, etc.), flipping through an English Time Magazine (Asia edition). In it, I noticed a full page color advertisement sponsored by the Public Relations Office of the Japanese government.

It's a good read, but what I found interesting was that the Japanese government was using his naturalization as an inspirational example even though he technically hasn't received permission to naturalize yet.

Given that it would probably be very embarrassing not just for Keene but for the Japanese government if he were to not be accepted for naturalization, I think it's safe to say that the odds of Japan rejecting Keene are now very close to zero.

If you're wondering if the government will give him preferential treatment, you don't need to. Even for an ordinary citizen that hasn't received honors and medals from the Emperor himself, the odds that a successfully submitted 帰化許可申請書 {kika kyoka shinsei-sho} (Application for Naturalization Permission) will be rejected by Japan's MoJ (Ministry of Justice) is statistically less than 1%.

Based on what I know about naturalization, the only requirement that he can't (yet) clear is the residency requirement. Even with 簡易帰化 {kan'i kika} (simplified naturalization), which he will probably be cleared to do, he still needs one year of residency in Japan to qualify at the bare minimum, with "one year" being defined as not being out of Japan for more than 100 days consecutively and 150 days total. News stories about Keene always say he lively a dual-continent lifestyle, with six months (over 182 days) spent in the States and six months spent in Japan. If that's the case, he would not be able to count those years as a "year of residency".

I suspect what they will do is hold onto his application, pre-checking and pre-approving it, and putting the official approval date and stamp on it the day after he meets the minimum residency requirement.

As Donald Keene is 89 years old, and the average lifespan of an American male is 75.6 years old, I think the greatest challenge to Keene's naturalization will be a human being's natural human mortality, not anything related to his qualifications. I've said that Japan, given the fact that he may qualify as a bone fide national treasure, should just grant him 大帰化 {tai-kika} (extraordinary naturalization), bypassing all the requirements and giving him naturalization by majority vote of both houses of the Diet, in order to expedite the process and eliminate the need to clear the residency requirement.

While Donald Keene waits for naturalization approval, he has been busy sharing his lifetime of contributions. He just recently donated much of his personal collection and library of literature and artwork to Tokyo's municipal central library in Kita Ward (where he lives): over 600 pieces in total. In appreciation, the library is creating a special section in his name to show and share the works with the public.

The full page advertisement had a link to a website: www.recoveryinjapan.go.jp. On that website, you can see the page about Donald Keene, with the full text and graphics that were also in the Time Magazine. Interestingly, the one language that the website is not available in is Japanese!