On July 21, China Eastern Airlines commenced a regular twice-a-week flight service connecting Hangzhou, China with Naha Airport. Shortly after 1:00pm, 151 passengers arrived on the first flight from Hangzhou to the international terminal of Naha Airport. At the terminal, members of the Okinawa Tourism Convention Bureau carried banners welcoming the passengers and passed out commemorative souvenirs.
Passenger Lu Chin, who was visiting Okinawa for the first time with her daughter, said; “I want to go to Cape Manzamo and the Churaumi Aquarium. I’m so glad that a flight service has started from Hangzhou, because now I can come to Okinawa frequently.”
Hangzhou flights will travel to and from Naha every Tuesday and Friday. The flights will use Airbus A320 planes, which have a capacity of 155 passengers. This is the second launch this year of a new regular flight service connecting Okinawa to mainland China, following the commencement of flights between Naha and Fuzhou on July 1 of this year.
Pink Dot Okinawa, an event promoting a society more accepting of sexual minorities, also known as LGBT, was held at the Tenbusu Square in Makishi, Naha on July 19. For the event, Naha City Government made a “Rainbow Naha Declaration,” which set out the city’s aims to publicly promote itself as a prefectural capital that actively supports LGBT diversity and awareness about LGBT issues. Naha has become the second administrative region in Japan to declare support for the LGBT community, following Yodogawa District in Osaka. Naha City Mayor Mikiko Shiroma declared, “Naha City Government will work with citizens to remove discrimination and prejudice against gender minorities and homosexuals, and aim to make an environment where everyone can live safely.”
With Shiroma’s declaration, the Naha city emblem was displayed on a big screen in pink with a rainbow flag. Co-representatives of Pink Dot Okinawa executive committee Hideki Sunagawa and Yuka Miyagi presented Shiroma with a rainbow flag, which is a symbol of LGBT pride and the LGBT social movement.
The city set up a Women’s Department in the late 1980s and has been making policies to create an environment where everyone can express their individuality and achieve their goals regardless of gender. Since 1997, the Naha City Women’s Center regularly held courses related LGBT. Support for the LGBT movement gathered momentum within the city government, which led to the Rainbow Naha declaration.
From the next fiscal year, the city will open a counseling corner for LGBT people. The city officials will discuss whether the new counseling corner will be exclusive or opened within existing counseling services. Counselors with LGBT knowledge will be available to support LGBT clients. The city government will also hold workshops for city officers.
At Pick Dot events, LGBT people and their supporters wear pink colored outfits or carry pink colored accessories to promote creating a society that recognizes sexual diversity. The events started in Singapore in 2009 and have spread to various parts of the world. The Pink Dot Okinawa events have been held three times since 2013. The Pink Dot Okinawa executive committee organized this year’s event, which was co-hosted by the Naha City Government. According to the organizers, about 1,100LGBT people and their supporters took part. Miyagi delivered a speech at the opening ceremony, stating smilingly; “A pink seed which was planted three years ago, has begun to sprout and the flowers will come out. I would like to share my joy with other people.”
The 22nd Miyakufutsu speech contest was held on July 12 at Matida Municipal Theater in Miyakojima.
Seven men and women from 27-year-olds to 66-year-olds performed their speeches on stage in Miyakufutu, the dialect of Miyakojima. With many stories of humor, the venue was filled with laughter.
Celik Kenan, a 27-year-old French researcher, who studies at Kyoto University Graduate School, won the Miyakojima Mayor’s Prize, the highest award.
Speakers captured audiences with their humorous Miyakufutsu speeches at Matida Municipal Theater in Miyakojima on July 12.
Kenan gave a speech with the title, “the golden words spoken by elderly people in Miyakojima”.
He captured the audience and drew them into a whirl of laughter with his skillful pronunciation, and a humorous and important topic. It seemed almost unbelievable to local people that the foreigner has only been able to speak fluently in their dialect for just over a year. He has learned the dialect by listening to elderly people on the island where he moved from Kyoto and currently lives.
Last year, he received the Miyakojima City Cultural Association’s President’s Prize at the same event.
Kenan said with a smile; “My learning Miyakojima dialect for one year really paid off. I’m happy to be able to reward local people for their help.”
“I think Miyakojima dialect is suited to speaking. By using it, one can easily express pleasant meaning and nuance. I would like to learn more to be able to speak expressive and beautiful Miyakufutsu.
The speech contest is held annually to deepen understanding of the dialect, which forms the base of culture, and to share the richness of expression of Myakufutsu with the next generations.
Other winners are as follows: Superintendent Award of Education Board, Geoge Kakinohana, President Prize of City Cultural Association, Seikichi Shimoji, Miyako Mainichi Shimbun Prize, Katsunori Sunagawa, Miyako Shimpo Award, Atsushi Yonaha, Miyako TV Award, Yukiyo Tamayose, and President Prize of Miyakojima Tourism Association, Kumiko Kinoshita.
An advisory panel has submitted to Govenor Takeshi Onaga its final report tabling legal flaws found in the former governor’s approval of the landfill in Henoko, Nago. The landfill is part of the plan to build a new base to replace U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma. On July 17, Nago Mayor Susumu Inamine remarked; “It will become a very big force to help us towards what we have struggled for [blocking construction of the new U.S. base.]”
Inamine said; “The content of the report was what I had assumed.”
When he was asked what action Governor Onaga should take in response to the report, the mayor said; “It is cancellation or withdrawal of the former governor’s approval of the landfill that Okinawan people have sought. I also expect the same result.”
The creator of the now nationally famous Taco Rice,Taco-rice founder Parlor Senri, in the town of Kin in northern Okinawa, closed on June 29 after 31 years in operation. While fans lamented the store’s closing, they also expressed excitement about tasting the same flavor at chain restaurants across Okinawa Prefecture.
A total of seven King Tacos outlets serve the same Taco Rice dishes as those of Parlor Senri.
Parlor Senri was founded in 1984 by Matsuzo Gibo, who died last December at age 85. Due to a serious staff shortage, the restaurant had recently only been open from Friday to Monday. Parlor Senri operators decided in early June to close the original branch in order to increase personnel at the chain outlets and at factories also in need of help. Gibo had also thought that the restaurant’s closure would become inevitable if maintaining it became a burden for staff members.
“We wanted to keep the restaurant, which is full of memories of struggle and success for our family, but we decided to prioritize our staff members’ wellbeing. We want to continue serving affordable and generous portions of Taco Rice at chain restaurants,” said Sayuri Shimabukuro, 39, granddaughter of the founder and head of King Tacos.
Thirty-six-year-old singer, Junbo, who performs with Zuka, a music band from Kin, jokes that he has been working to achieve a greater level of fame than Taco Rice. “While I was in high school, I bit my tongue during club activities. Even when my tongue was hurting, I polished off Taco Rice,” he said, referring to the spicy dish. “I am grateful to Senri for making Kin famous through Taco Rice.”
“Even though the restaurant no longer exists, I do not feel sad, because I think about the fact that Parlor Senri’s Taco Rice has become part of my body,” said Hiroki Nagahama, 28, of Naha city, who won a Taco Rice speed eating contest in 2007.
On July 17, the Japan Post Network Okinawa Branch released sets of Iriomote wild cat original stamps. The launch of the new stamps onto the market commemorates the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the animal, a special national treasure, which is found only on Iriomote Island, Taketomi Town. Part of the profit from sales will be donated to the Iriomote Wildlife Protection Fund.
Seventeen post offices, including those in Yaeyama, Naha, and Chinen, plan to sell 1,500 sets of stamps. The captivating photographs of the wild cat were provided by the Ministry of Environment’s Iriomote Wildlife Protection Center. A set of five 52-yen stamps and five 82-yen stamps costs 13,000 yen including tax.
At the presentation ceremony held in Taketomi Town Office, a ranger from the Wildlife Protection Center, Yuri Sagamihara remarked, “I will be happy if many people learn more about the rare wildcat through these stamps. I hope the coming year contributes to its protection.”
With controversial security bills being forced through the Lower House, Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga has given a severe critique of the Japanese government. Onaga said, “It is extremely disappointing the bills were passed forcibly while it should have been discussed thoroughly. The attitude of a government that aggressively pushes forward important legislation without citizens’ understanding cannot be easily accepted.”
Onaga talked about the overloaded burden of the U.S. military bases in Okinawa. He further stated, “Due to experiences of the previous war, the people of Okinawa are feeling growing anxiety towards the change in the nation’s security policies.” He indicated there was increasing fear among Okinawan people in response to the lower house of parliament passing the bill, which approves the use of the right to the collective self-defense.
Onaga claimed, “The government should thoroughly explain the impact of the legislation to Japanese citizens after thoroughly discussing it in parliament.”
The 22nd Miyakufutsu speech contest was held on July 12 at Matida Municipal Theater in Miyakojima.
Seven men and women from 27-year-olds to 66-year-olds performed their speeches on stage in Miyakufutu, the dialect of Miyakojima. With many stories of humor, the venue was filled with laughter.
Celik Kenan, a 27-year-old French researcher, who studies at Kyoto University Graduate School, won the Miyakojima Mayor’s Prize, the highest award.
Highest award Celik Kenan
Kenan gave a speech with the title, “the golden words spoken by elderly people in Miyakojima”.
He captured the audience and drew them into a whirl of laughter with his skillful pronunciation, and a humorous and important topic. It seemed almost unbelievable to local people that the foreigner has only been able to speak fluently in their dialect for just over a year. He has learned the dialect by listening to elderly people on the island where he moved from Kyoto and currently lives.
Last year, he received the Miyakojima City Cultural Association’s President’s Prize at the same event.
Kenan said with a smile; “My learning Miyakojima dialect for one year really paid off. I’m happy to be able to reward local people for their help.”
“I think Miyakojima dialect is suited to speaking. By using it, one can easily express pleasant meaning and nuance. I would like to learn more to be able to speak expressive and beautiful Miyakufutsu.
The speech contest is held annually to deepen understanding of the dialect, which forms the base of culture, and to share the richness of expression of Myakufutsu with the next generations.
Other winners are as follows: Superintendent Award of Education Board, Geoge Kakinohana, President Prize of City Cultural Association, Seikichi Shimoji, Miyako Mainichi Shimbun Prize, Katsunori Sunagawa, Miyako Shimpo Award, Atsushi Yonaha, Miyako TV Award, Yukiyo Tamayose, and President Prize of Miyakojima Tourism Association, Kumiko Kinoshita.
The Japanese government is carrying out preparation work in Oura Bay for construction of a new U.S. base that would replace the Futenma air base in Ginowan. On July 16, members of Diving Team Rainbow of the Helicopter Base Objection Association confirmed newly damaged coral. They were investigating the impact of typhoon Chan-hom on the coral and seabed of Oura Bay. Chains and concrete blocks that were installed to support buoys marking out a restricted area, appeared to have damaged the corals.
The members have confirmed damage traces and color changes, which they observed on coral, were caused by typhoon Chan-hom. In video footage taken on July 16, broken coral can be seen and the noise of construction chains damaging the coral can be heard. The team dived to depths as low as 10 meters and filmed around the buoys marking out the area.
A representative of the team, Osamu Makishi said, “The Japanese government needs to investigate inside the restricted area. I would like the central government to allow the Okinawa Prefectural Government to investigate.”
July 9, 2015 Shoichiro Yonamine of Ryukyu Shimpo reports from Hawaii
The Ryukyu Shimpo launched the Hawaii-Okinawa Press Photo exhibition at Hawaii Okinawa Centre in Oahu Island on July 8. The exhibition was held ahead of the Ryukyu Shimpo’s forum called “Kizuna Ichimadhin Future of Hawaii-Okinawa,” which marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of Hawaii-Okinawa sister-state relations.
About 40 photographs were on display, including those of the World Uchinanchu Festivals, mutual visits between Hawaii and Okinawa, portraits of first-generation Okinawan migrants, and other records relating to the Hawaii-Okinawa relationship.
Photographs of Okinawa taken in the 1960s and 1970s by Sadao Tomishima were also displayed at the exhibition.
On July 13, Hayao Miyazaki, anime film director and joint representative of the Henoko Fund, established with the aim of preventing the construction of a new military base in Nago City’s Henoko district, gave a press conference for reporters affiliated with the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan (FCCJ) in Tokyo. Mr. Miyazaki expressed his own opposition to the relocation of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko, stating; “I am opposed to the building of a base on reclaimed land in Henoko. The majority of Okinawan people are opposed to the base’s construction. It will be difficult, but we [at the fund] will continue to do everything we can [to stop the base construction].” He expressed readiness to cooperate in various ways to prevent the new base construction.
The press conference was limited to members of the FCCJ. The entire conference consisted of Miyazaki answering reporters’ questions.
Miyazaki choked up when describing his decision to take the position of joint representative of the Henoko Fund, saying, “In April of the year that Okinawa was returned to Japan [1972], an Okinawan friend who was very dear to me came to Tokyo to go to university here. He had to bring with him his passport and a medical form stating he had received the necessary vaccinations. When I remember that, I feel a deep sense of regret for the way Okinawans were treated. That’s why I decided to become a representative [of the fund].”
When asked what he most wanted to express to the overseas media, he said he wanted them to broadcast the Okinawan people’s wish for removal of the bases.
He further stated that the security bills currently under deliberation in the Diet are “the opposite of my own views. It is impossible to stop the rise of China using military force. I think the reason Japan’s peace constitution was established was to force us to come up with alternative methods.”
He criticized Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for trying to pass the security legislation quickly, saying; “He probably wants to leave his name in history as a great man who changed the interpretation of Japan’s constitution, but it’s despicable.”
Webcam(Kokusai Street)
