On the afternoon of August 11, Paul Martin, the policy director of Peace Action, one of the United States’ largest peace organizations, visited the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly. Martin exchanged opinions on the U.S. military base issues in Okinawa with assembly members of the ruling party. Receiving a request from the Okinawa Peace Movement Center, Martin visited Okinawa to learn about the current situation concerning base issues.
His plan was to meet Nago City Mayor Susumu Inamine and visit Henoko in Nago City. After the discussion, Martin said that his organization would like to collaborate with groups in Okinawa on peace activism.
Martin also said that collaborative work between Okinawa and the United States is necessary. He argued that it would help Okinawa influence government policy on the bases if more of the Japanese public opposed the budget allocation for the U.S. military. Martin continued that Okinawan leaders should call for the reduction of the military budget through peace organizations such as Peace Action in the United States. He also said it is important to request the relocation be stopped.
The meeting with the Assembly was not open to the public. After the meeting, vice director of the Okinawa Peace Movement Center Takashi Kishimoto reported there were suggestions to make use of media in the U.S.
Kishimoto said, “Martin pointed out that lobbying at the U.S. Congress and the Department of Defense could also be effective and that it is also important to expand grassroots networks and take various approaches.” Martin met Nago City Mayor Susumu Inamine on the 12th and took part in the sit-in protest in front of Camp Schwab in Henoko, Nago. On the 13th, he visited the U.S. military facilities and took part in a gathering for the eleventh-anniversary of a helicopter crash at Okinawa International University, which was held at the Ginowan City Office.
Eleven years ago, a CH-53D Stallion helicopter from the Futenma Air Station crashed onto Okinawa International University on August 13. A gathering was held at the university on August 13 at around 2 p.m., the same time the accident occurred, to reflect on Okinawa and the issue of Futenma Air Station.
President of the university Tamotsu Oshiro reflected on the ongoing risks to people’s safety.
“Another helicopter crash happened again on August 12. As long as the military aircraft are flying over Okinawa, accidents can happen in Okinawa anytime. With such happenings caused only because of the existence of the U.S. military bases, people of Okinawa gain nothing but anxiety, fear, and frustration,” he said.
Ginowan City Mayor Atsushi Sakima held a press conference and called for the early return of Futenma Air Station and the removal of its danger. Mayor Sakima referred to the helicopter crash, which happened offshore from Uruma City on August 12. He stated, “After watching the photos and videos of the destroyed aircraft, the citizens can not help recalling the scene from the crash from 11 years ago. I hope the authorities work on urgent return of the land.”
On the morning of August 16, at a hotel in Nago City, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and Nago Mayor Susumu Inamine held a meeting for the first time on the plan to relocate U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan to Henoko. After the meeting, Nakatani and Inamine spoke to reporters about their impressions of the meeting.
Nakatani was positive, saying, “I think the distance between us has narrowed. It was good that we sat down and listened to each other.” He declared his intention to continue discussions.
Inamine disagreed, “The distance between us has not narrowed. I am not convinced by his explanation.”
“I think the burden of the U.S. military bases on the prefecture’s people has not been reduced. The function of the U.S. bases in Okinawa has been strengthened,” the mayor said.
Nago Mayor Susumu Inamine answered questions from reporters, at 11:05 a.m. on August 16, at Busena Terrace Beach Resort in Nago.
“Five years and six months have passed since I took office, and meanwhile, the government has not given me an adequate explanation on this issue,” he said, criticizing the government’s approach.
On August 16, at the prefectural government office, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani met with Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga to gain his understanding on the plan to relocate U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan to Henoko, Nago.
At the meeting, the defense minister said that the government would advance the relocation plan in order to maintain deterrence in the region. In response to this, the governor strongly criticized the government, saying, “About 1.4 million people live in Okinawa, but you see it only as a part of territory.”
He criticized the government for treating Okinawa only as a military strong point.
Onaga urged the defense minister to consider moving the Futenma base to other prefectures or abroad. He referred to claims by former U.S. government officials and military experts that Okinawa, where the U.S. military bases are concentrated, would be vulnerable if targeted, because the islands are within range of China’s ballistic missiles.
However, Nakatani stressed that the government would maintain the current relocation plan in the prefecture to avoid a possible situation where there will be no military presence. He also said that they would strengthen the missile-defense system against missile attack.
After his meeting with the defense minister, the governor told reporters, “I felt that his focus was on Okinawa being required to defend Japan rather than paying attention to the people and the history of Okinawa.”
Onaga told the defense minister, “We cannot deepen our discussion if the government clings to its stance that it will advance the plan based on the Japan and U.S. agreement that Henoko was the only solution to the Futenma issue.”
He said to the defense minister, “The Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga and I have discussed the issue of deterrence and reducing the base burden, but this meeting has not further deepened our discussions.”
At the beginning of the meeting with the governor, Nakatani mentioned the U.S. army helicopter crash that took place off the coast of Uruma City. He said, “It is very regrettable. I have asked the Okinawa area coordinator for U.S. Forces Japan to investigate the cause of the accident and prevent recurrence of such accidents.”
The governor said, “We have felt a sense of futility. Okinawa’s prefectural governors and municipal mayors have protested to the U.S. military officials and requested they investigate the cause of accidents and take preventative measures, but the military has responded with pedantic replies that focus on technicalities such as “operational reasons”.”
Nakatani met with the heads of districts near Henoko and the mayors of the municipalities that host the military bases in the northern and central parts of the island.
On August 12, officials from the Japanese government and the Okinawa Prefectural Government met at the Okinawa Prefectural Building to conduct the first in a series of intensive discussions to be held during a one-month period in which construction related to the relocation of United States Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko has been suspended. Governor Takeshi Onaga and three prefectural officials represented the Okinawan side, while Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga represented the Japanese government. The two sides clashed over the origin of the “Futenma issue,” with Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga stating that the issue started with the 1996 agreement between former Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and U.S. Ambassador to Japan Walter Mondale to close Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and relocate it within Okinawa. Governor Onaga disagreed, arguing that the issue went back much further, originating with the forced seizure of Okinawan land during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. Governor Onaga also made reference to the current deliberations in the Japanese Diet over new national security legislation, stating, “From my perspective, the Cold War era was a much harsher time than today. It makes no sense to start expanding military bases in this day and age. If the justification for the US bases in Okinawa extends as far as the Straits of Hormuz in the Middle East, that is just too far out of touch with the sentiment of the Okinawan people. Such estrangement from popular sentiment is intolerable.”
After the meeting, Governor Onaga was asked by reporters if he would consider, during the course of deliberations, accepting relocation of the Futenma base within Okinawa at a location other than Henoko. He responded that he intends to stand firm on insisting that Futenma be relocated outside of Okinawa, and rejected the possibility of accepting relocation to any alternative location within Okinawa.
Governor Onaga told reporters that during the meeting he raised specific doubts as to the deterrence effect of the US military and the role of the U.S. Marine Corps. He stated, “If all the U.S. bases are forced onto the single prefecture of Okinawa, other countries will not feel that the entire nation of Japan is prepared to protect its own national security.” Furthermore, he pointed out, “The Ministry of Defense claims that the reason for basing the U.S. Marine Corps in Okinawa is because of their mobility, their rapid responsiveness, and their cohesiveness. However, the Marine Corps in Okinawa don’t have a landing ship, so they aren’t able to achieve any of these functions.”
Naha Airport Building Co. Ltd. (NABCO) and Okinawa Prefecture will build a covered pedestrian bridge to connect the Domestic Terminal and the International Terminal. They aim for it to be open by June 2016. Currently, there is no sheltered access aisle to shield customers from sun or rain, and many tourists have complained that they their suitcases could get wet.
After receiving complaints from customers, NABCO began a free bus service operating between the Domestic and the International terminals in May 2014, and started distributing plastic covers for baggage carts in May 2015. NABCO expects that the installation of the pedestrian bridge will solve the inconvenience and improve tourists’ satisfaction.
The construction of the bridge begins this month on the second floor of terminal buildings. To enhance convenience, the bridge will also be connected to a new parking structure, which is currently being built, and the tourist bus station.
The Prefectural Government is subsidizing approximately 742.5 million yen of the total project cost.
There is also a plan for the construction of a terminal building connecting the Domestic and the International buildings. NABCO executive stated, “We need to come up with solutions for the inconvenience that tourists experience.
In 2014, 7,169,900 tourists entered the Okinawa region, which is 9.0 percent more than the previous year. The number of foreign tourists was a record high of 986,000, which is 57.2 percent more than the last year. With the growth in tourist numbers, some problems have been pointed out such as the small size of the International Terminal and its distance from parking lots.
Kiyoshi Uehara, an 81-years old survivor from the Tsushima Maru ship that was sunk in 1944 by the US military while carrying school children evacuating the expected battle, conducted a memorial service on the ocean. The ceremony was conducted around the offshore Uken village, Amami Oshima in Kagoshima Prefecture, where many bodies of the victims drifted to. Tomihiko Matsui vice Mayor of Uken village put a lantern in the water as a prayer offering for the victims. This is the first time Amami Oshima has held a memorial ceremony for the Tsushima Maru on the ocean.
One week after the ship was sunken around the Akuseki Island in Tokara archipelago on April 22 in 1944, many survivors and the bodies of victims drifted to the west shore of Amami Oshima. One hundred and five bodies washed up on Yakeuchi Bay at Uken village.
Uehara put a lantern on a bamboo-made small boat with incense sticks during the ceremony on August 5. One thousand paper cranes made by students at Kainan Elementary School in Naha city, as well as snacks and toys were put together.
Uehara shared his thoughts.
“I’ve been longing to pray for the departed souls, but I feel very sorry that it took 71 years. I want to continue to tell people never to go to a war again,” he said.
After searching a rocky area at Imazato in Yamato village, Uehara was able to confirm the approximate area where he drifted 71 years ago. He also visited the Funakoshi beach where the village is planning to build a memorial monument. Uehara plans to visit Imazato in Yamato village on August 6.
The 27th Tobinsu Haninsu Kachashi Contest was held on August 9 at Ginowan Seaside Park in Ginowan.
Forty-nine individuals and 23 groups took part in the contest, with people of all ages participating, from children to the elderly. The performers and the groups captivated the audience with their clever costumes and choreography.
The performers and spectators danced together for the finale of the event.
The Oasis team won the grand prize for the fourth consecutive years. The team, which consists of one hundred performers, showed off its dance moves in perfect unison.
Ken Higa, a member of the team, said, “The largest number of performers we’ve ever had showed off their kachashi dance. We are happy to win our fourth consecutive grand prize. We want to win next year.”
Okinawa City (former Koza City) hung a banner on August 4 marking the milestone of the city’s population growing to 140,000.
The city is located near U.S. Kadena Air Base. In 1974, two years after Okinawa’s reversion to Japan, Koza City and Misato Village merged to form Okinawa City. In 1970, the total population of the two municipalities was 82,781(Koza City was 58,000 and Misato Village 24, 123).
On July 27, six newborn babies were registered in the city. As of August 1, the city’s population stood at 140,041. The city office will hold a commemorative event in October.
The city has set a target population of about 145,000 people for 2020.
Mari Moriguch, a section chief the city office, made the following comment, “According to the census data, Okinawa City’s population growth is the third largest in the prefecture. The proportion of the population aged between 0-14 years of age is high. The population target could be achieved.”
A U.S. soldier landed on a field outside a fence around the military facility on Ie Island during a parachute drop training on August 5.
Ie Village Mayor Hideyuki Shimabukuro and the Village Assembly Chairman Yoshinori Shimabukuro met with Deputy Director of the Okinawa Defense Bureau Maki Koyanagi on August 10. They urged the Defense Bureau to ensure the U.S. military takes stricter safety measures.
Koyanagi said, “The area where a soldier has landed is a place where local people are able to enter. We again want to ask the U.S. military to take further safety and preventative measures.”
The assembly chairman told reporters, “Regardless of how big or small the incident is, it is important to request improvements to safety every time. It will help prevent potential accidents.”
August 13, 2015 this story compiled from articles of Ryukyu Shimpo
At 1:46 p.m. on August 12, in the southeastern waters off the coast of Ikeijima Island, Okinawa, an MH-60M Black Hawk helicopter belonging to the U.S. Army’s Special Operations Aviation Regiment crashed on a Navy cargo vessel.
U.S. Forces Japan said the chopper made a “hard landing during training.”
Six injured service members were taken to the U.S. Naval Hospital.
Two of the injured belong to a Japanese special response unit called the Central Readiness Force, according to Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force. The two took part in the exercise to observe U.S. military training.
A Japanese military expert Tetsuo Maeda pointed out, “This training exercised the right to collective self-defense in advance of the security bills being passed. The bill is currently being debated in the Upper House.”
Okinawa Prefectural Government asks Defense Bureau to prevent recurrence of U.S. military’ accidents
On the morning of August 13, at the Prefectural Office, Masaru Machida, director general of the Okinawa Governor’s Executive Office, met with Maki Koyanagi, deputy director of the Okinawa Defense Bureau, and Daisuke Nakano, deputy director of the Okinawa Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He urged them to ensure the U.S. military takes more thorough safety measures, particularly to prevent recurrence of accidents.
Webcam(Kokusai Street)
