Okinawa's Base Issues

My Scholarship entry - Nuchidu takara / Life is a treasure

JAPAN | Saturday, 22 November 2014 | Views [375]

Children play in the waters of Oura bay, while protesters take to kayaks in an attempt to block sea drilling. The new base at Henoko is set to become one of the largest in Asia, with a double v-shaped runway extending 200 meters into the ocean. Many people are worried that it will significantly impact an area that is renowned for its natural beauty, and pristine coral reefs that are an important habitat for sea turtles and the endangered dugong.

Tags: water, nature, children, activism, protest, military, japan, okinawa

An activist outside the construction site of a new U.S. military base addresses a crowd of over 5,000 protesters. Okinawa is Japan's southernmost prefecture and although it only makes up 0.6% of Japan`s total land mass it houses 75% of the country's U.S. military base presence. The newest base is currently under construction in Henoko, Northern Okinawa, as part of a relocation deal to close down the controversial Futenma Air Station in the densely populated Ginowan City. However, many Okinawans are opposed to the plan and want the base moved out of the prefecture altogether. Mr. Onaga, a strong opponent of the relocation plan won the recent prefectural elections by a significant margin campaigning on an anti-base platform.

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The local elders are some of the strongest opponents of the U.S military presence in Okinawa. Many seniors were alive to experience the Battle of Okinawa, in 1945, which killed a quarter of the civilian population and was the starting point of USA's military build up of Okinawa. A group of elders have been peacefully protesting outside the Henoko site every day for over 10 years.

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Okinawa's Base Issues

My Scholarship entry - Nuchidu takara / Life is a treasure

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