Japan Press Weekly

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2017 July 26 - August 1 [POLITICS]

Saga residents want their local airport to stay free from fisheries-threatening Ospreys

A delegation of democratic organizations, trade unions, and Japanese Communist Party members in Saga visited Tokyo on July 26 to make a representation to the Ministry of Defense, urging the state authorities to not deploy Osprey aircraft to a local civil airport.

Along with local prefectural and city assemblypersons, JCP members of the House of Councilors Nihi Sohei and of the House of Representatives Majima Shozo and Tamura Takaaki also took part in this action.

The ministry is planning to station the Ground Self-Defense Force’s Ospreys at Saga Airport. JCP Upper House lawmaker Nihi asked a defense official in charge if the ministry has local fishermen’s and landowners’ approval. The official answered, “I think the ministry has not yet gained their consent.” He at the same time said, “We’ll provide an explanation to obtain their understanding,” implying that the central government is going ahead with the Osprey deployment to Saga Airport with or without local approval.

JCP member of the Saga prefectural assembly Muto Akemi told the bureaucrat that local fishermen and landowners in addition to many Saga residents have continued to declare that they cannot accept the Osprey deployment. Other petitioners again demanded that the ministry give up using the local civilian airport for the stationing of Ospreys by saying, “The aircraft would threaten the livelihoods of fishermen,” and “We don’t want our airport to be used as a military base for wars.”

Past related article:
> Saga citizens and JCP protest against promotion of Osprey deployment to local Airport [July 5, 2017]