First Lady Yoshiko Ishiba Makes Diplomatic Debut; Japanese Taiko Drum Beating Excites Audience

By Akihisa Ota / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

12:46 JST, January 12, 2025

BOGOR, Indonesia — Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s wife Yoshiko made her diplomatic debut in Indonesia as the first lady, accompanying him to the country and Malaysia.

On Saturday, she visited an exchange facility in Jakarta modeled after a Japanese izakaya bar area and watched a brass band and a taiko drumming team composed of Japanese and Indonesian performers.

Yoshiko played the taiko drum herself, which excited the audience.

“I hope that the relationship between our two countries will grow even closer through the warm overlap of exchanges through music and Japanese culture,” she said.