2023年6月20日「世界難民の日」にあわせて、岡山城に掲揚された「#世界難民の日 こいのぼり」
© UNHCR/Takuma Kimura
[English follows below]
今回、第2回目を迎える「グローバル難民フォーラム」は、世界各国のリーダーをはじめ、民間企業やNGO、難民の背景を持つ人々などが一堂に会し、「社会全体で取り組む難民支援」について議論する場です。
日本は他4カ国とともに共同議長国を務め、3日間にわたるフォーラムでの議論や、その後の取り組みをリードしていくこととなります。
そうした日本の継続的な支援や連帯の象徴として、会場に掲揚されるこいのぼりは、ミャンマー出身で、自身も迫害により故郷を追われた経験を持つファッションデザイナーの渋谷ザニーさんと、1947年創業の「株式会社徳永こいのぼり」（岡山県和気郡）の出会いをきっかけに誕生しました。
一つひとつ職人の手で仕上げられたこいのぼりはUNHCRブルーに染められ、「人を守る、人の手」の意味を持つUNHCRロゴから着想を得たモチーフがあしらわれています。
毎年、5月5日の「こどもの日」や6月20日の「世界難民の日」などには日本各地で掲揚され、故郷を追われたすべての子どもたちの幸せを願い、支援を呼びかけるメッセージが込められています。
デザインを手がけた渋谷さんは「難民のいない世界」を思い描きながら、幼い頃の自身と同じような境遇にある子どもたちが「いつの日か自由に、それぞれが望む世界で夢を掴むことができるようにという願いを込めて、こいのぼりを難民の希望の色に染めました」と語ります。
徳永こいのぼりの徳永夕子 代表取締役は「当社が製作したこいのぼりが『グローバル難民フォーラム』で掲揚されることになり、心から感謝しております。このこいのぼりを観た方が、難民問題への理解と共感を促進し、協力の大切さを感じていただけると信じています」と話しました。
▶「#世界難民の日こいのぼり プロジェクト」に関する詳細はこちら
▶「第2回グローバル難民フォーラム」についてはこちら
Global Refugee Forum Carp streamers ‘koinobori’ express hope for all Children Forced to Flee.
Carp streamers are flying at Geneva’s Palexpo throughout the Global Refugee Forum, 13–15 December. They can be found displayed outside exit “E3” of the main entrance hall. If you are in Geneva, please take a photo with them and tag #RefugeeForum and #WithRefugees.
Distinctive looking looking carp streamers have flown at various locations around Japan since World Refugee Day (WRD) 2022, raising awareness of the dire situation faced by refugee children and their families. During the Global Refugee Forum these carp will fly at Palexpo in Geneva to symbolize Japan’s co-convenorship and to express hope that people everywhere work together on solutions so millions of displaced children can find a safe place to call home.
The carp streamers known as Koinobori in Japanese were created by Zarny Shibuya, a fashion designer and former refugee from Myanmar, in collaboration with UNHCR Japan and Tokunaga Koinobori, a famous carp streamer company.
Shibuya, who as a boy fled to Japan with his family to escape violence in his homeland, is a long-time UNHCR supporter who hopes to inspire young people facing similar challenges. In 2022, while on a visit to Okayama prefecture, Shibuya shared his story with Tokunaga craftsmen, who, moved by his experience, decided to collaborate with him on this special project. Together they created a large-scale Koinobori in UNHCR blue to represent the hopes and dreams of refugee children around the world.
The design embodies Shibuya’s hopes for “a world with no refugees”, and his wishes for all children forced to flee: to thrive and to be able to freely pursue their hopes and dreams, just like how he was able to do in Japan.
Tokunaga Koinobori’s president, Yuko Tokunaga, said “Our hearts are full of gratitude to have our carp streamers displayed at the Global Refugee Forum. We hope that everyone who sees them will deepen their understanding and empathy towards refugees, and acknowledge the importance of solidarity”.
About the Carp Streamer design
The UNHCR logo inspired Zarny to create a hand motif, symbolizing a world free of forced displacement due to war or persecution. The design also incorporates many traditional Japanese patterns. It took a lot of trial and error for the craftsmen to complete the koinobori project given the scale and unique design. After many prototypes, they successfully reproduced UNHCR blue and handcrafted a number of koinobori.
What is Koinobori?
Koinobori translates roughly to “carp streamer,” with “koi” meaning carp and “nobori” meaning flag. Celebrations using koinobori date back to as early as the 1600s, during the mid-Edo era. Today, landscapes across Japan are decorated with koinobori from April to early May, in the lead up to May 5 Children’s Day, a day to wish for the happiness of children in the hope that they will grow up healthy and strong.
