On April 29, 2012, the Government of Japan announced that Dr. Lydia N. Yu Jose, Professor at the Department of Political Science and at the Japanese Studies Program in Ateneo de Manila University, was conferred a decoration of the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon.
Dr. Yu Jose has been recognized for her contributions to the enrichment of Japanese studies in the Philippines, and for promoting mutual appreciation and friendship between Japan and the Philippines.
She went to International Christian University in Japan from 1969 to 1971 as a research student of the Japanese Government Scholarship, deepening Philippines-Japan relations by forming linkages with other renowned scholars. She continued to visit Japan through other grants, and pursued joint research with other Japanese academicians. She has published various research on Japanese studies, including the authoritative Philippines-Japan Relations, a collaborative work which she co-edited with Dr.Ikehata Setsuho, the president of Tokyo University of Foreign Studies from September 2001 to August 2007.
In addition, Dr. Yu Jose is an active member in renowned academic organizations. She has been the executive director of Ateneo Center for Asian Studies (ACAS) since 2004, which promotes scholarly research in the field of Asian studies.
Dr. Yu Jose's academic career spans 44 years. She has been teaching in Ateneo de Manila University since 1967, which has one of the best programs for Japanese studies in the Philippines. She was Director of the Japanese Studies Program from 1989-1993, from 1995-1996, and from 2004 to 2007. In 2006, on behalf of the entire Japanese Studies Program of Ateneo de Manila University, she received a testimonial signed by then Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Taro Aso, on the occasion of the 50 th anniversary of normalizing diplomatic relations between Japan and the Philippines. The testimonial explicitly commends the Japanese Studies Program, for “having a marvelous achievement in promoting mutual understanding between Japan and the Philippines for many years by turning out excellent researchers in the field of Japan study and promoting understanding Japan, moreover, having contributed invaluably to advancing cultural exchange between Japan and the Philippines through exchanging programs with various universities in Japan”.
