Japan Press Weekly

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2008 October 8 - 14 [OKINAWA]

Okinawa Prefectural Assembly refuses to fund pro-U.S. base governor’s trip to U.S.

The Okinawa Prefectural Assembly rejected a budget request to pay for Governor Nakaima Hirokazu’s trip to the United States.

The prefectural assembly on October 10 approved by a majority vote the deletion from the budget of about 14,610,000 yen requested for the trip on the grounds that it is incompatible with the assembly resolution against the construction of a new U.S. military base in Okinawa.

It is the first time that the Okinawa assembly rejected money for a governor’s trip to the United States.

Governor Nakaima had planned to visit the United States to request a steady implementation of the U.S. military realignment plan in Japan, which goes against the resolution the prefectural assembly adopted in June in opposition to the construction of a new US military base in the sea off Nago City.

Japanese Communist Party representative Maeda Masaaki spoke in favor of the deletion of expenses for governor Nakaima’s U.S. trip.

Pointing out that one of the purposes of the governor’s visit to the United States is to “request steady implementation of the planned U.S. military realignment in Japan,” Maeda said, “The governor’s trip is incompatible with the assembly resolution adopted in June expressing ‘opposition to the construction of a new U.S. military base off the coast of Nago City’.”

What the Okinawa governor should do is “to stand firm against the construction of a new US base in support of the prefectural people’s demand and to take a lead in the movement of Okinawans to remove all U.S. military bases from Okinawa,” Maeda said.