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Japanese Emperor Akihito arrives in Philippines to boost ties amid protests

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Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko review honor guards upon arrival at the Manila International Airport, January 26, 2016. Emperor Akihito arrived in Manila on Tuesday for a five-day official visit. (REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco)

Japanese Emperor Akihito arrived in the Philippines Tuesday for a five-day visit to boost diplomatic ties seen aimed at blunting China’s expansionist moves in the region.

Akihito, accompanied by Empress Michiko, arrived amid tight security to begin their visit aimed at marking the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic ties following war-time Japan’s blitz in the region.

The visit is the couple’s second since 1962, and comes at a time of territorial disputes in the South China Sea region stemming from China’s recent expansion that other smaller claimants, such as the Philippines, see as plain bullying. China and Japan are also separately wrangling over islands in the East China Sea.

Japan is the largest source of Official Development Assistance (ODA) and is a key security partner of the Philippines, sharing information and exchanging intelligence on piracy, terrorism and maritime security.

President Benigno Aquino is expected to roll out the red carpet for the couple at the presidential palace Wednesday, where they are to have a private meeting. Akihito would then lay a wreath at the tomb of Jose Rizal, Manila’s national hero, before being accorded a state reception dinner.

During the visit, the emperor is also expected to visit a memorial to fallen Japanese soldiers and Filipino fighters outside of Manila, an international rice research facility as well as meet with Japanese businessmen and residents.

The visit however is also being used by sex slaves who suffered under Japan to demand reparations. There are approximately 174 “lolas” or grandmothers who have been documented as “comfort women”, but about a hundred of them have passed away with only a handful actively fighting for apology and just compensation.

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Alleged Filipino “comfort women” Narcisa Claveria, 85, left, and Hilaria Bustamante, 90, display Origami paper cranes to symbolize peace during a forum to demand justice, compensation and apology from the Japanese government for their alleged WWII ordeal in the hands of Japanese Imperial forces Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 at suburban Quezon city, northeast of Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

The women are demanding “public apology, historical inclusion and compensation” for their sufferings. They are expected to hold a protest action later in the week.

The “lolas” are calling on Japan to also acknowledge its war crimes, put it into history books and allow the surviving sex slaves to talk about their experiences.

“With Japan’s refusal to apologize for war time sexual slavery, there is no guarantee that a new generation of comfort women will not be employed, especially in areas where there are joint naval exercises, just as the US is propping up a whole system of women prostitution in areas where they are stationed,” said Joms Salvador, secretary general of Gabriela, a women’s activist group.