Stop U.S. nuclear aircraft carrier from being deployed to Yokosuka

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Stop U.S. nuclear aircraft carrier from being deployed to Yokosuka

Akahata editorial

A citizens’ group in Yokosuka City, Kanagawa Prefecture, on April 11 submitted to the local Election Administration Committee more than 50,000 signatures bearing Yokosuka citizens’ call for an ordinance to hold a referendum on the planned deployment of a U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to the U.S. Yokosuka Naval Base in Tokyo Bay. The number of collected signatures is seven times the number required by law for a petition calling for a referendum to be accepted. It is also 10,000 more than the number collected in the last year’s effort. The mayor is called upon to propose to the city assembly a bill to enact a referendum ordinance.

Defiantly, the 100,000-ton U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier George Washington left Norfolk, Virginia on April 7. The aircraft carrier will reach Yokosuka on August 19.

Danger of nuclear accidents persists

The Yokosuka citizens' “Association for a Referendum on Pros and Cons of Homeporting Nuclear-powered Aircraft Carrier” is demanding that the city assembly agree to hold a referendum with the aim of giving citizens a chance to pass judgment to get the planned deployment cancelled.

Allowing a U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to use Yokosuka Port as its homeport means putting about 30 million people in Japan’s capital area, including 420,000 Yokosuka citizens, at risk of possible nuclear accidents.

The U.S. government has said that no accident has been caused by U.S. nuclear-powered vessels. This is not true at all. Both the Nimitz and the John C. Stennis, which are of the same type as the George Washington, have experienced a coolant leaks or an emergency shutdown of the nuclear reactor.

How is it possible for citizens to co-exist with the danger of nuclear accidents? If citizens are to constantly worry about the possible danger of nuclear accidents in everyday life, they are not protected by the constitutional right to live in peace. It is the Yokosuka citizens’ legitimate right to oppose allowing a U.S. nuclear-powered carrier to use Yokosuka Port as its homeport.

No. 12 berth at the naval base is said to be allotted to the nuclear aircraft carrier. The berth was extended when it took in the conventional aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. If the George Washington is to use the berth, the government is required to go through a procedure to change the purpose of using it.

It is possible to use the power of a “No” verdict in a referendum to force the Yokosuka mayor to refuse to allow the government to change the purpose of use and overturn the decision to allow the deployment.

Allowing Yokosuka to be used as the homeport for a U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier paves the way for enhancing the U.S. naval base’s strike capabilities. Unlike the USS Kitty Hawk which needs to be refueled every four days with heavy oil, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers can sail for 25 years without refueling. So a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier can transport fuels for carrier-borne aircraft, weapons, and ammunitions.

The USS George Washington’s deployment at Yokosuka will enable the U.S forces to deploy to any part of the world, dramatically enhancing their preemptive attack capabilities that threaten other countries that refuse to obey the demands of the United States. It is absolutely impermissible for Japan which ostensibly constitutionally renounces war, to play a role in facilitating U.S. preemptive wars.

What’s more, the Japanese and U.S. governments are attempting to use the Yokosuka base as a permanent homeport of U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. This will result in many U.S. soldiers being stationed permanently at the Yokosuka base and crimes by U.S. servicemen, like the recent murder of a taxi driver.

For a nuclear-free and peaceful Japan

The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki set the stage for Japan’s post-war politics. The two atomic bombs not only caused direct deaths but left survivors with life-long hardships due to A-bomb-related cancer and other diseases. Thus, it is logical for Japan to oppose not only the bringing-in of nuclear weapons to Japan but also the deployment of any nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that poses a danger of possible radioactivity-related accidents.

The important point is to prevent any nuclear-powered aircraft carriers from being deployed in Japan contrary to the Japanese people’s wish for a nuclear-free and peaceful Japan and to end the use of Yokosuka as homeport for U.S. aircraft carriers.

- Akahata, April 12, 2008