Michael Jackson visits Tokyo children's home

A child hugs pop star Michael Jackson during Jackson's visit to an orphanage in Tokyo. Picture / Reuters

TOKYO - Pop star Michael Jackson visited a Tokyo children's home today and told a group of 140 excited children "I love you" in Japanese.

The 47-year-old entertainer, who appeared in public yesterday for the first time since his acquittal on sex-abuse charges last year to receive a music award, was greeted by about 100 fans as he arrived in a black van.

Inside the Seibi Gakuen children's home, Jackson watched a 15-minute performance of traditional music and dance by children in kimonos before speaking briefly on stage.

"I'm very happy to be here," said Jackson, wearing sunglasses and a white T-shirt under a black double-breasted suit with gold buttons and a single red armband.

"I'm happy to be with you lovely people," he told an auditorium of 140 children, ages 2-18.

In Japanese, he said "Aishiteru," meaning I love you.

Smiling, he later shook hands and signed autographs for the children, who called out "Michael, Michael" and tugged at his sleeve.

"He is very tall and very cool-looking. I don't know his songs but I've seen him dance on television," Eiho Omori, 13, said.

Teachers at the children's home said they were surprised when they had heard Jackson would be visiting.

"Everyone couldn't believe such a big international star was visiting us," said Kiyoko Mito, headmistress of the Christian-run school.

"The children only believed me after seeing the news yesterday that Michael Jackson was actually in Japan," she said.

Jackson's trip to Japan is the first in a series of planned visits to Asia. The star moved to Bahrain shortly after a jury cleared him last June of charges that he had sexually abused a young boy at his Neverland Valley Ranch in central California.

- REUTERS