(born 1925) was a Japanese diplomat who was Japan's ambassador to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

from April 1985 to 1988, at the time of the

snap elections A snap election is an election that is called earlier than the one that has been scheduled. Generally, a snap election in a parliamentary system (the dissolution of parliament) is called to capitalize on an unusual electoral opportunity or to ...

that led to the end of the

Marcos regime Marcos may refer to: People with the given name ''Marcos'' *Marcos (given name) Sports ;Surnamed * Dayton Marcos, Negro league baseball team from Dayton, Ohio (early twentieth-century) * Dimitris Markos, Greek footballer * Nélson Marcos, Portugu ...

. He also served as Grand Master of the Ceremonies from 20 June 1989 until his retirement on 8 September 1995.

Life

Sumiya was born in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...

in 1925. In March 1948 he graduated from the

Tokyo Imperial University , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Law. That April he joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and was Deputy Director-General of the American Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs by 1952. In 1974 he was a Minister in the Japanese Embassy in Moscow and in 1976 he was Consul-General in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. In 1980 he was Deputy

Chief of Mission In diplomatic usage, head of mission (HOM) or chief of mission (COM) from the French "chef de mission diplomatique" (CMD) is the head of a diplomatic representation, such as an ambassador, high commissioner, nuncio, chargé d'affaires, permanent ...

at the

Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of Japan to the United States. It is located at 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., in the Embassy Row neighborhood. In addition to serving as Japan's diplomatic mission in the United States, the embassy pro ...

, where he met

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

. In 1981 he became Japan's Ambassador to

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

before returning to Japan in 1983 as Chief of Protocol, Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In April 1985 he became Japan's Ambassador to the Philippines. He was appointed Grand Master of the Ceremonies in 1989 and held that post until he retired in 1995. In that position he attended a dinner at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

for the Emperor and Empress of Japan and presented President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

with the Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Chrysanthemum is Japan's highest order. The Grand Cordon of the Order was established in 1876 by Emperor Meiji of Japan; the Collar of the Order was added on 4 January 1888. Unlike its European counterparts, the order may be conferred posthumously. Apart fr ...

. Sumiya's wife, Masako Sumiya, was president of Pag-asa, founded October 1989, an organisation supporting the education of street children in

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

, which was awarded the Philippines-Japan Society's Medal of Merit on 29 February 2008.

Awards

Many of the awards that Sumiya has received are listed in the Philippines-Japan Society's declaration when they awarded him their Medal of Merit, the society's highest award, in the year 2000. * 1983, Second Order, Egypt * 1983,

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav ( no, Den Kongelige Norske Sankt Olavs Orden; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II ...

, Commander with Star, Norway * 1984, First Order, Qatar * 1984,

Order of the Southern Cross Emperor Pedro I of Brazil founded the National Order of the Southern Cross ( pt, Ordem Nacional do Cruzeiro do Sul) as a Brazilian order of chivalry on 1 December 1822. The order aimed to commemorate the independence of Brazil (7 September 1 ...

, Grand Official, Brazil * 1987, Order of the

Knights of Rizal The Knights of Rizal is an Order of Chivalry from the Philippines, created to honor and uphold the ideals of Philippine national hero José Rizal. The civic organisation of the "Order of the Knights of Rizal" was established in 1911 by Colonel An ...

, Knight Commander, Philippines * 1988,

Order of Sikatuna The Order of Sikatuna ( fil, Orden ng Sikatuna) is the national order of diplomatic merit of the Republic of the Philippines. It is conferred upon individuals who have rendered exceptional and meritorious services to the Republic of the Philippin ...

of the Philippines, Grand Cross (Datu) * 1991,

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace ...

, Honorary Companion, Malaysia * 1991,

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

, Netherlands * 1991, The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand, Knight Grand Cross (First Class) * 1993,

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

, Knight Commander's Cross * 1993, Order of Merit of the Portuguese Royal House, Grand Cross * 1994,

Ordre National de la Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

, rank of Commandeur, France * 1994,

Order of Isabella the Catholic The Order of Isabella the Catholic ( es, Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order and honor granted to persons and institutions in recognition of extraordinary services to the homeland or the promotion of international relations a ...

second class, "Commander by Number", Spain * 1998,

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six classes, the lowest tw ...

1st class, Grand Cordon, Japan * 28 February 2000, the Philippines-Japan Society Medal of Merit

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sumiya, Kiyoshi 1925 births Living people Ambassadors of Japan to the Philippines Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1st class Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic Recipients of the Order of Orange-Nassau