 Ginowan mayor urges Okinawa governor to request government to remove Futenma base On September 13, Ginowan City Mayor Iha Yoichi made representations to Okinawa Governor Inamine Keiichi, urging him to demand that the Japanese government request the U.S. government to return the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Base site. Showing Inamine the resolution adopted at the September 12 Ginowan residents' rally, Iha said, "The aim of the 1996 Japan-U.S. agreement to return the U.S. Futenma air station site was to get rid of the dangerous base. The governor should request an immediate return of the base site to both the Japanese and U.S. governments instead of sticking to the plan to spend more than 10 years to relocate the base to the Henoko district." Inamine stated, "I will carefully listen to residents' concerns," but stopped short of referring to a possibility of reconsidering the relocation plan. Mayor Iha made the similar representations to the Foreign Ministry Okinawa Office. Only repeating what the government already stated, Ambassador Numata Sadaaki said, "The government's policy is to realize the relocation plan as soon as possible." (end) |