Japan Press Weekly

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2010 November 24 - 30 [OKINAWA]

Japanese and US gov’ts must accept Okinawan’s consensus opposing new base construction within prefecture: Ichida

Japanese Communist Party Secretariat Head Ichida Tadayoshi late at night of November 28 made the following statement regarding the Okinawa gubernatorial election in which incumbent Nakaima Hirokazu was reelected:

Candidate Iha Yoichi was overwhelmingly inferior to his rival Nakaima Hirokazu in the strength of supporting political parties. However, because Iha during the election campaign consistently called for the closure and removal of the U.S. Futnma base and opposed the base relocation within the prefecture, the election turned out to be a close contest and Iha put up a good fight. The Japanese and the U.S. governments as well as elected governor Nakaima should seriously take this fact into consideration.

The election result does not mean that voters support the plan to relocate the U.S. base within Okinawa as promoted by the Japanese and the U.S. governments. This becomes apparent based on the facts that the ruling Democratic Party of Japan proclaiming a new base construction at Henoko in Nago City was unable to run a candidate, and that Nakaima in his election campaign promised to move the Futenma base outside the prefecture and could not say that he will promote the relocation within the prefecture.

The consensus of Okinawan people is to close and remove the Futenma base and to oppose the base relocation within Okinawa. Working together with Okinawan residents, the JCP will continue to call on the two governments to repeal their agreement on the new base construction and to close and remove the Futenma base, and oppose the base relocation within Okinawa.
- Akahata, November 29, 2010