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1,500 people gather to protest against Henoko lawsuit

1,500 people gather to protest against Henoko lawsuit

September 21, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

In a lawsuit brought by the Japanese national government against the Okinawa prefectural government over Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga’s cancellation of a permit to reclaim land in Henoko, Nago City, the presiding judge ruled it illegal for the governor not to abide by the rectification order. At Kenmin Hiroba in Naha on September 21, All Okinawa Kaigi (All Okinawa Coalition) held a protest rally against the court decision. According to the organizer,...

 

NGOs call for Japan to respect Okinawans’ freedom of expression at UN Human Rights Council

September 21, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

On September 19 at the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland, the International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR) made a statement delivered by its representative Taisuke Komatsu at the UN Human Rights Council. In the statement...

Okinawa appeals Henoko ruling; final decision expected by year’s end

Okinawa appeals Henoko ruling; final decision expected by year’s end

September 23, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

At 1:30 p.m. on September 23, the Okinawa prefectural government appealed a ruling by the Naha branch of the Fukuoka High Court that judged Governor Onaga’s cancellation of approval to reclaim land to be illegal. The ruling was the result of a lawsuit brought...

Excavated fishhooks show that Paleolithic people fished, ate well

Excavated fishhooks show that Paleolithic people fished, ate well

September 20, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

At the Sakitari cave (survey site 1) in Nanjo, Okinawa where the world’s oldest fishhooks were unearthed, other artifacts including roughly 10,000 Japanese mitten crab claws were also found. The Japanese mitten crab is related to the Chinese mitten crab, which...

World’s oldest fishing hooks from 23,000 years ago discovered in Sakitari Cave in Okinawa

World’s oldest fishing hooks from 23,000 years ago discovered in Sakitari Cave in Okinawa

September 20, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

The world’s oldest known fishing hooks from about 23,000 years ago were discovered at Sakitari Cave in the Valley of Gangala in Nanjo City, Okinawa. An infant’s bones from about 30,000 years ago were also found at the site. These are the second oldest human...

US base issues cast doubt on World Natural Heritage Site designation for Yambaru National Park woodlands

US base issues cast doubt on World Natural Heritage Site designation for Yambaru National Park woodlands

September 15, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

The meeting of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) that was held in Hawaii at the beginning of the month focused on the issue of invasive species. During the meeting the IUCN adopted a recommendation on protecting Okinawa Island against...

Plaintiffs’ groups for lawsuits over noise pollution from military bases in Japan condemn government’s attack against helipad protest in Takae

Plaintiffs' groups for lawsuits over noise pollution from military bases in Japan condemn government's attack against helipad protest in Takae

September 18, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

The National Liaison Council of seven groups of plaintiffs filing lawsuits over noise pollution from military bases held its 4th general meeting on September 18 at Akisihima City Hall in Tokyo.

The council adopted a resolution to oppose military bases’...

Yambaru National Park: Wild forest area in northern Okinawa designated national park

Yambaru National Park: Wild forest area in northern Okinawa designated national park

September 15, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Japanese government has designated 16,300 hectares of forest covering the villages of Kunigami,

Higashi, and Ogimi in the northern part of Okinawa Prefecture as its 33rd national park. Named Yambaru National Park, its designation as a new national...

Japan wins bronze medal in Wheelchair Rugby in Rio thanks to Nakazato, Norimatsu and other players’ good showing

Japan wins bronze medal in Wheelchair Rugby in Rio thanks to Nakazato, Norimatsu and other players' good showing

September 18, Ryukyu Shimpo

Masatoshi Inafuku reports from Rio de Janeiro

On the morning of September 18, (the afternoon of the same day in Japan), the last day of competition in the Rio de Janeiro Paralympic Games, Japan won the bronze medal with a 52-50 win to Canada in the third place...

Onaga urges LDP Secretary-General Nikai to give up new US base construction

Onaga urges LDP Secretary-General Nikai to give up new US base construction

September 14, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

On the morning of September 14, Okinawa Governor Onaga met Secretary-General Toshihiro Nikai of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) during his visit to Okinawa, at the Okinawa Prefectural Office. Onaga said, “Okinawan and Japanese governments have...

Breaking news: Okinawa loses Henoko lawsuit

Breaking news: Okinawa loses Henoko lawsuit

September 16, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo

At 2 p.m. on September 16, presiding judge Toshiro Tamiya handed down a verdict in a lawsuit brought by the Japanese national government against the Okinawa prefectural government over Okinawa governor Takeshi Onaga’s cancellation of a permit to reclaim land...