Ryukyu Shimpo’s “Realities of U.S. Stationing in Okinawa” receives Ishibashi Tanzan Award

Ryukyu Shimpo’s “Realities of U.S. Stationing in Okinawa” receives Ishibashi Tanzan Award


 

November 2, 2018 Ryukyu Shimpo

 

Waseda University announced the award-winning pieces for the 18th Waseda Journalism Award in Memory of Ishibashi Tanzan on November 1.

This award is dedicated to the legacy of former prime minister and journalist Tanzan Ishibashi who graduated from Waseda University, and honors journalists who make contributions to society, culture, and the public.

A series of reports composed by Ryukyu Shimpo reporter Ryota Shimabukuro, which center around the “Realities of U.S. stationing in Okinawa,” won the Public Service Section of the Waseda Journalism Award.

This is the fourth time Ryukyu Shimpo’s work has received this award, and the first time it has done so in three years.

 

Waseda Journalism Award selection committee members assessed that the series, “Presents the reality that Japan has forgotten its independence and instead makes Okinawa scapegoat to the U.S.-Japan Status of Forces Agreement, which the Japanese government and many Japanese citizens see as a natural conclusion.”

The “Realities of US Stationing in Okinawa” series (which ran from November 19, 2017 through June 9, 2018) throws into relief the way in which Okianwans’ lives are threatened by U.S. influence such as incidents, accidents, aircraft noise, and environmental pollution.

Meanwhile, Okinawa is unable to exercise adequate authority in Japan to combat these problems.

The series even compares U.S. base issues in Okinawa to U.S. military involvement in other countries.

There were winners aside from the “Realities of U.S. Stationing in Okinawa” in the Public Service Section.

These were a series of reports by the Asahi Shimbun and Asahi Shimbun Digital that questioned the government’s approach to disclosure of information in regards to the Moritomo Gakuen and Kake Gakuen scandals, and an NHK special on the Battle of Imphal.

In the Grassroots Democracy Section, the selection committee chose a report by a group of experts on what the Self-Defense Force witnessed in South Sudan, based on undisclosed SDF daily logs.

In total there were 183 entries up for consideration for the Waseda Journalism Award in Memory of Ishibashi Tanzan.

 

(English translation by T&CT and Erin Jones)

 

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