Mayor Hsieh's Japan Tour/謝市長日本城市外交紀要
The plan of putting Kaohsiung Harbor under the Kaohsiung City's administration will be realized on May 19. To welcome this, Mayor Hsieh visited three harbor cities, Osaka, Tokyo and Yokohama to acquire experience in managing a harbor city. He also delivered a speech at Kyoto University.
Many city governments in Japan have published their own "White Paper." People can get a copy at bookstores and better know their city's future development. Seeing this, Mayor Hsieh has instructed the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission to draft "White Paper on Kaohsiung 2020" to provide Kaohsiung people with vision of the city's future.
Osaka Government and Citizens Gear Up for the Future
Mayor Hsieh's first stop was Osaka. He visited the prefecture government, prefecture council, and the Osaka International Convention Center.
Osaka and Kaohsiung have similar geographic features and are sharing the same fate: economic recession and enterprises' moving out. Therefore, they can help each other with the experiences gained. The Osaka prefecture councilors who are friendly to Taiwan are scheduled to visit Kaohsiung this April and sign a contract of amity.
Yokohama A City with New Constructions
Mayor Hsieh met his counterpart, Mayor Takahide Hidenobu, in Yokohama and received a warm reception. Yokohama has an international harbor, where ships from Taiwan frequently visit. Yokohama used to be a fishing port. The harbor became the largest one in Japan in 1959. It is now under the administration of the city government.
Last year, a division of the city councilors who are friendly to Taiwan allied with the City Foreign Affairs Promotion Committee of the Kaohsiung City Council. In fact, Kaohsiung is the only city in Taiwan to receive such a relationship with Yokohama. Some of the city councilors and Deputy Mayor Mr. Shimizu are scheduled to visit Kaohsiung on March 28.
Kyoto Mayor Hsieh Delivered A Speech
Invited by the alumni of Kyoto University, Mayor Hsieh delivered a speech there. More than 400 people attended the meeting. In the speech, Mayor Hsieh hoped that everyone should be more optimistic about Kaohsiung's future.
高雄「市港合一」預計今年５月19日可實現，謝市長年初日本行，訪問了大阪、東京、橫濱等三個港灣城市，並在京都大學發表演說。
謝市長指出，東京灣的橫貫公路經過前後19年研究、施工才完工通車；橫濱港灣預計在2005年開發完成，整體規劃前後加起來達23年，讓他體會到許多重大的都市建設必須耗費10年以上的時間施工或規劃，施政者眼光必須放遠。
日本許多城市會將都市規劃白皮書出版，對外發售，民眾可以在書局購買並很清楚知道整個都市未來的願景及藍圖。謝市長指示研考會參考規劃「高雄2020」白皮書，擘劃20年後高雄都市願景。
大阪 府民同心 擘劃未來
謝市長第一站拜訪了大阪府廳及府議會，並參觀「大阪市國際會議場」。
大阪市政府為爭取2008年奧運，早在十幾年前開始規劃時即考慮屆時所需的軟硬體，並沒有因為政府輪替而使這項規劃有所影響，民眾也共同參與。大阪和高雄的條件十分類似，目前正面臨不景氣衝擊及企業外移的困境，和高雄應有很多可以分享的經驗及合作空間，大阪府議會日華親善議員聯盟將於四月率團抵高雄簽約。
橫濱 市港合一 積極建設
謝市長在橫濱拜訪了市政府及市議會，橫濱市長高秀秀信親自接待，充分表達對台灣與謝市長的善意。
橫濱與高雄市均為國際港灣都市，台灣的船舶經常利用橫濱港，橫濱與台灣的關係其實很密切。橫濱原是一個漁港，1959年成為日本第一大港，目前市港合一，由市政府統籌管理，橫濱市與日本中央政府間的關係只有稅收。去年七月間高雄市議會外交促進委員會和橫濱市議會日華親善聯盟結為友好關係，這是橫濱市唯一和台灣城市締結友好關係，日華親善聯盟也將於今年３月28日訪問高雄市，橫濱副市長清水君屆時亦將同行。
京都 應邀發表演說
謝市長此行應京都大學校友會之邀，在京大會館發表專題演講，共有京大師生及校友會等 400 餘人參加。謝市長希望，大家應對「高雄價值」更樂觀，更有信心，高雄發展成為全球運籌中心一定可以達成，重要的是我們要按部就班去實現。他指出，看到大阪經濟不景氣已有十年的時間，經濟蕭條和產業出走的問題相當嚴重，然而大阪市民仍然有夢，為了一個共同的夢想，結合官方及民間的力量，推動所有大型建設。謝市長希望高雄市民能和他一樣樂觀，借取大阪建設規劃城市的氣魄，高雄的未來是一片光明。