Before he became the EU president, Mr. Van Rompuy was pretty much unknown, even as the Prime Minister of Belgium, but now he is renowned not only for his political accomplishments, but also for a haiku.
However, those that want to get a glimpse into Rompuy’s political agendas will be disappointed by the haiku, as it is more mystical in nature and according to him, a way to get away from the ‘glitter and sophistication of political life’ and more whimsical and carefree.
48 of Rompuy’s haiku’s compose his new book titled simply ‘Haiku’ each of which follows the rigid Japanese structure of five, seven, and five syllables per line that offer reflections based on his observations of his close family and the natural world.
The book will have an initial print run of 2,500 copies and will be published not only in Flemish-Dutch, which they were written in, but also offered in translated versions of French, English, Latin, and German.
The Japanese ambassador to the EU, Nobutake Odano, refused to commit on the literary merits of the haikus. Instead, Odano stated that Rompuy is not concerned with the reception of his poetry because he is more concerned with expressing his own ideas the way he sees fit.
As a form of honour, the foreign affairs ministry of Japan has commissioned a haiku contest with top prize allowing the winning author to read his poem at the EU-Japan summit next week in Tokyo.
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