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350 people protest Futenma Replacement Facility as Camp Schwab sit-ins enter sixth year

350 people protest Futenma Replacement Facility as Camp Schwab sit-ins enter sixth year

July 6, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

On July 6 about 350 people gathered in front of a Camp Schwab gate, demonstrating their opposition to the construction of the Futenma Replacement Facility (FRF) in Henoko, Nago City, for the relocation of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma (MCAS Futenma).

This was the first weekend following the announcement of the House of Councillors election, and attendees included supporters of the candidate endorsed by the FRF-opposing All-Okinawa camp, Tetsumi Takara....

 

Japan will not appeal ruling in Hansen’s disease family discrimination lawsuit, however declines commenting on compensation for those affected in pre-reversion Okinawa

Japan will not appeal ruling in Hansen’s disease family discrimination lawsuit, however declines commenting on compensation for those affected in pre-reversion Okinawa

July 9, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

Toyko – The Japanese government decided July 9 not to appeal a ruling by the Kumamoto District Court that recognized that as part of the government’s quarantine policy for those afflicted with Hansen’s disease, not only the afflicted but also the families suffered...

Prefectural government aims to pass ordinance this year to protect Okinawan scarce wildlife

Prefectural government aims to pass ordinance this year to protect Okinawan scarce wildlife

July 3, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Okinawa Prefectural Government (OPG) has decided to propose to the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly an ordinance to protect scarce prefectural wildlife, due to the poaching and exploitation of Okinawa’s wildlife.

Because there are many rare forms of wildlife...

U.S. military again removes residents’ protest tents near Northern Training Area N1 zone gate

U.S. military again removes residents’ protest tents near Northern Training Area N1 zone gate

July 4, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

Local residents who oppose Northern Training Area (NTA) helipads have set up tents, tent furnishings, simple toilets and other items as part of their opposition in front of the NTA’s N1 zone gate.

On July 2 the U.S. Marine Corps in Okinawa removed these...

“Okinawa’s kitchen” is open for business at temporary site

“Okinawa’s kitchen” is open for business at temporary site

July 2, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Makishi Public Market has re-opened on July 1, at its temporary location in Matsuo, Naha City, at a town square formerly known as the Nigiwai Hiroba. The temporary market houses 84 shops inside a two-story prefabricated building situated on a 1970-square-meter...

Sixty years after U.S. jet crash kills 18 elementary school pupils, Okinawans pray for peace at memorial ceremony

Sixty years after U.S. jet crash kills 18 elementary school pupils, Okinawans pray for peace at memorial ceremony

June 30, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo online edition

June 30 marked the 60th anniversary of the 1959 crash of a U.S. military jet from Kadena Air Base onto Miyamori Elementary School and the residential district of Ishikawa, Uruma City (Ishikawa City at the time), which killed 18 elementary school pupils....

After telling their story for 30 years, the Himeyuri Student Corps storytellers, now in their 90’s, to pass the baton to the post-war generation

After telling their story for 30 years, the Himeyuri Student Corps storytellers, now in their 90’s, to pass the baton to the post-war generation

June 24, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Himeyuri Peace Museum (Itoman) marked their 30th anniversary June 23, and around 350 of the former students and their descendants held a memorial service at the Himeyuri tower. The members of the student corps that survived the Battle of Okinawa are now in their...

Student’s web-available documentary highlights lack of information about Henoko in America

Student’s web-available documentary highlights lack of information about Henoko in America

June 26, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo
By Yukiyo Zaha

Kaiya Yonamine, a second-generation Okinawan-American high school student living in Portland, Oregon, completed a documentary titled “Our Island’s Treasure”. Her intent is to communicate the issues surrounding construction of the Futenma...

Battle of Okinawa memorial-goers say prime minister’s speech does not resonate

Battle of Okinawa memorial-goers say prime minister’s speech does not resonate

June 24, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

At the Okinawa Memorial Day ceremony on June 23, Governor Denny Tamaki gave a speech mixing Uchinaguchi (Okinawan language) and English with his Japanese, expressing opposition to the construction of a new base in Henoko, and calling for revision of the Japan-U.S....

Woman claims to be the iconic “trembling girl” in war footage

Woman claims to be the iconic “trembling girl” in war footage

June 23, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo
By Yosuke Anri

A girl trembles in fear at the sight of an American soldier—this girl appears in a video footage recorded by the U.S. troops, a clip often incorporated in films about the Battle of Okinawa. Sometime before June 22, Sueko Urasaki (nee Kakazu),...

Springer Nature ranks Okinawan graduate university as 10th best research institution worldwide

Springer Nature ranks Okinawan graduate university as 10th best research institution worldwide

June 20, 2019 Ryukyu Shimpo

On June 19 the global science publisher Springer Nature released its 2018 rankings of worldwide research institutions, ranking the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) which is located in Tancha, Onna Village, as first place in Japan...