Broome councillors to head to Japan for sister city visit

A delegation of councillors will head to Japan in April to visit Broome’s sister city.

Crs Sean Cooper, Melanie Virgo and Philip Matsumoto will head to Taiji alongside a group of students from St Mary’s College to take part in a “cultural, historical, social and educational exchange”.

The council’s sister city policy states that a delegation to Taiji should be considered every two years, comprising a maximum of three councillors.

The council last sent a delegation to Taiji in 2024, with the total cost of their travel coming in at $13,500, excluding GST.

Officers told councillors at December’s ordinary meeting they believed the costs for this year’s trip would be within the budget allocated to the Taiji sister city relationship of $25,000 a year, despite $8000 of that already being spent on a civic reception held in Broome in August.

In the December meeting agenda, officers said the principal aim of a delegation visiting the Japanese city was to “strengthen the historical relationship between the two towns by keeping alive the shared knowledge of each town’s history and culture, and by creating personal connections between councillors and Taiji’s local government and community”.

“Delegates will gain insight into Taiji’s significant historical influences on Broome and explore how our shared interests in tourism and pearling provide opportunities for mutual exchange of knowledge, council processes, and governance,” the officers wrote.

Under the “risk” section of the agenda item, officers noted there was a “low-level reputational risk associated with the international controversy of Taiji’s dolphin-related practices”.

The dolphin drive hunt is a practice in which the animals are driven into a small bay and their meat harvested.

“Some controversy remains and pressure continues to be exerted from outside of Broome,” the officers wrote.

“However, the Broome community understands the depth and importance of the 150-year connection between the two towns, and support for the Sister City relationship remains strong. It is noted there have been no issues after the 2024 delegation visit, or after the Taiji student visits in 2023, 2024, and 2025.”

The motion to approve the delegation and nominate the councillors to attend was carried unanimously.