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August 26 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
The Japanese government approved the second additional appropriation for the fiscal 2016 in a Cabinet meeting. The appropriation for Okinawa-related items was 17.6 billion yen. The government allocated 410 million yen for a “Patrolling Party for Okinawa Community Security,” which was set up in the wake of the rape and murder of a woman by a U.S. military contractor.
The patrolling party has drawn controversy because some of its members are...
August 25, 2016 Hideaki Yoneda correspondent of Ryukyu Shimpo
An eighty-year-old fisherman in Tokashiki Village has practiced skin-dive fishing on his home island for more than 50 years. His name is Takemitsu Shinzato, a member of the Tokashiki Fisheries Cooperative, and he is known as a master...
September 3, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
The Hawaii United Okinawa Association (HUOA), led by President Tom Yamamoto, will give its 2016 legacy award to National Living Treasure of Japan Choichi Terukina, 84, who lives in Naha City. The HUOA presents the legacy award annually to honor individuals who...
September 2, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
Six Japanese NGOs, including the Nature Conservation Society of Japan, jointly submitted a recommendation to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) on how to deal with invasive species that will be introduced during construction of a new base...
August 24, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
Ryukyu uranami janome, a butterfly species endemic to Okinawa prefecture and considered to be at risk of extinction, was found on the forest road next to the N1 zone gate to the U.S. military’s Northern Training Area on August 23. The area is a planned site...
August 29, 2016 Sadao Tome, Correspondent of the Ryukyu Shimpo
The Nisei Week Japanese Festival, which started over 100 years ago with the theme of celebrating Nikkei culture and the local community, was held for the 76th time (it was cancelled for the period around World War II). The festival...
August 30, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
On August 28 (August 29 Japan time), a 110-year commemorative ceremony for Okinawans who immigrated to Peru opened at the Okinawan Association of Peru Center in Lima, Peru. About 600 people of Okinawan heritage attended the ceremony.
Governor of Okinawa...
September 1, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
[Helipad coverage team] From 10:25 to 10:55 on the morning of September 1, the Okinawa Defense Bureau carried ten dump trucks of gravel through the gate to the N1 zone, one of the planned sites where new helipads are to be constructed as part of the plan to...
August 26, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
On August 25, TripAdvisor, the biggest travel review website in the world, announced the “Top 20 Japanese castles in 2016.” Nakagusuku castle ruins (covers Nakagusuku and Kitanakagusuku villages) ranked 10th and Katsuren castle ruin in Uruma City ranked 11th....
August 26, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
Governor Takeshi Onaga held a press conference on August 25 at the Okinawa Prefectural Office. At the conference he pointed out that, “Whether 500 or 800 officers are mobilized, it will certainly be excessive policing,” referring to the ongoing state of tension...
August 26, 2016 Ryukyu Shimpo
On August 25, Governor Takeshi Onaga announced that the eighth Okinawa Peace Award will be given to the Japan Association for Refugees (JAR), a registered NPO based in Tokyo and headed by Eri Ishikawa. The Okinawa Peace Award is presented to individuals and organizations...