Japan Press Weekly

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2017 October 11 - 17 [US FORCES]

Okinawa JCP demands contamination survey of radioactive materials at CH-53E crash site

Representatives of the Japanese Communist Party Okinawa Prefectural Committee on October 13 visited the Defense Ministry Okinawa Defense Bureau to demand that a contamination survey of radioactive materials be conducted at the U.S. military aircraft crash site.

Senaga Misao, a JCP prefectural assemblyperson, said, “When a USMC helicopter crashed onto the Okinawa International University campus in August 2004, the U.S. military immediately removed the soil around the crash scene, and Japan’s authorities could not conduct a soil contamination investigation at that time.”

An official of the local bureau, said in reply, “We’ll do what we can this time.”

Isa Masatsugu, a JCP assemblyperson from Higashi Village where the crash took place, said, “The farmer is worried about possible contamination of the grass in the pasture that is to be sold to livestock farmers as well as about reputational damage,” and demanded that the bureau also examine the environmental impact on a nearby dam and water sources.

Regarding the fact that the Okinawa defense chief accompanied the Liberal Democratic Party policy chair when this executive came to Okinawa to support an LDP candidate, the JCP group asked the official if the defense bureau is committed to candidates of a specific political party. The official answered, “We apologize for that appearance.” The local daily Ryukyu Shimpo dated October 13 also ran a critical article on this point.