90-Year-Old Philippine-Born Woman Plans First Journey to Father’s Native Okinawa

A 90-year-old second-generation Japanese woman born in the Philippines, who was separated from her father in the tumultuous aftermath of World War II, is planning her first-ever journey to her father’s native Okinawa Prefecture by the end of this year. Adelaida Kakazu, alongside a dedicated support group, is actively appealing for public information to help locate living relatives in Japan whom she hopes to meet during the upcoming trip.

According to details provided by the Philippine Nikkei-jin Legal Support Center and reported by Jiji, Kakazu also harbors a deep desire to thank the individuals who looked after her father and stood by him during the final chapters of his life. Her planned voyage represents a poignant milestone in a decades-long family separation rooted in the global conflict of the mid-20th century.

Kakazu was born to a Filipino mother and her father, Noboru Kakazu, who was originally from Okinawa. Following the conclusion of World War II in 1945, Noboru Kakazu was repatriated to Japan alongside his eldest son, Shoichi. He ultimately passed away in Japan in 1951. Although Shoichi later returned to the Philippines during the 1970s, direct contact with any remaining relatives in Okinawa had completely faded by the time Shoichi died in 1992, leaving the family branches isolated across the sea.

The path toward Kakazu's upcoming journey began to take shape in June of last year. A grandchild of Adelaida Kakazu happened to watch a television program focusing on people of Japanese descent who had been left behind in the Philippines following the end of the war. Inspired by the broadcast, the grandchild reached out to the support group for assistance.

Following that initial contact, researchers and supporters uncovered vital historical documents, including the marriage records of Kakazu's parents. Backed by this documentation, a Japanese court formally approved the restoration of Kakazu's Japanese nationality in March of this year. With her citizenship restored, she made the personal decision to travel to Okinawa to meet potential relatives and pay her respects at her father’s grave.

Despite the successful restoration of her nationality and extensive archival searches, locating her living Japanese relatives has proven to be a difficult undertaking. Investigations conducted so far indicate that her father’s official registered domicile was located in the city of Itoman within Okinawa Prefecture. Records also show that Noboru Kakazu had an elder brother named Naoshi, who served as Adelaida's uncle.

While the search has established that this uncle had at least two children, researchers have not yet been able to pinpoint or contact any surviving relatives directly. Because the search has encountered these hurdles, Kakazu and the Philippine Nikkei-jin Legal Support Center have issued a public appeal for information to help bridge the decades of separation and reunite the extended family before her planned winter visit.