Dear WMKA & EMKA Dojo Owners
I think you are busy and enjoying A Happy New Year. I pray the best for you in 2013. Everything is well in Okinawa too.
As I made a mistake in my previous letter to you concerning “Request for Dan Certificates”, I want to apologize and revise it. I misunderstood “The Agreement with Dojo Owner, Article 6” and asked you to submit your Dan Certificate Request prior to your testing date. However, according to “Article 6”, you need prior permission only for 5 th Dan and above.
It also stated in the note “Request for Dan Certificates” that “5th Dan and
higher requires prior WMKA approval.” Therefore, you don’t need to get prior approval from the WMKA for 4th Dan and lower. You may test your students
based on the required number of training years and testing guidelines as specified
in “Article 6”.
As I am not sure how you pronounce your student’s name, please find a Japanese person near you and ask him or her to write your students’ name in Japanese Katakana. This is so they can get the correct name in Japanese on their certificate. If there is no Japanese around you, I will do my best to write their names correctly in Japanese.
Is it possible for you to send your students’ pictures in a Karate uniform together with “Request for Dan Certificates” ? It helps us a lot to know them more closely. President Taira will then know to whom he is giving Dan Certificate. The conventional letter size paper picture is good enough for us. We don’t need special photo paper.
This is my own idea and not from the board members. Therefore, it is not a request but a desire.
Sincerely Yours
Riki Nomura
Overseas Manager in Okinawa
World Matsubayashi-Ryu Karate-Do Association