Japan Press Weekly

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2014 September 10 - 16 [POLITICS]

Okinawans rally to create a prefecture led by anti-base governor

Seeking to block the construction of a new U.S. base in Nago’s Henoko district in Okinawa Prefecture with the victory of an anti-base candidate in the upcoming gubernatorial election in November, a rally took place on September 13 in Naha City with 1,750 people participating.

At the rally, Naha Mayor Onaga Takeshi, who announced his candidacy for governor at the city assembly on September 10, again expressed his determination to win the election.

Pointing out that since the end of WWII, Okinawa has been forced to economically depend on U.S. military bases, Onaga said, “At present, the presence of U.S. bases in Okinawa is an obstacle to a sound development of the local economy. I will do my best to stop the construction of a new base in Henoko.”

He went on to say, “Governor Nakaima breached his election promise and approved the application for the Henoko reclamation work. The upcoming election will be a chance for voters to show their verdict on the governor’s decision.”

A man, who went to the rally with two children aged six and four, said, “I want to leave an Okinawa without U.S. bases to our future generations. I will work hard to promote efforts to block the base construction.”

Another man, who voted for Nakaima in the previous election, said that he cannot tolerate the governor who accepted the application for reclamation in exchange for beefed-up subsidies.

Japanese Communist Party parliamentarian Akamine Seiken, local politicians, business leaders, and Nago City Mayor Inamine Susumu also took part in the rally.