Japan Press Weekly

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2016 July 27 - August 2 [POLITICS]

Okinawa Assembly submits to defense bureau statement calling for halt to helipad construction in Takae

A group of Okinawa Prefectural Assembly members, including Japanese Communist Party members, on July 26 submitted to the Okinawa Defense Bureau a written opinion which criticizes the central government for forcibly carrying out construction work of U.S. military helipads in the Takae district in Higashi Village and demands the cancelation of the work.

Receiving their statement, a Defense Bureau official said in response that the helipad construction was decided in accordance with the 1996 agreement of the Special Action Committee on Okinawa (SACO) and stated that the central government will move forward with the construction.

JCP assembly member Toguchi Osamu pointed out, “The SACO agreement does not include Osprey operations and the environmental assessment report in regard to the helipad construction lacks any assessment on the use of Ospreys.” He demanded that the government halt the construction without delay.

Higa Kyoko, another member of the representative group, said that two helipads were already completed in Takae and have brought about severe noise pollution. She added that the plan to construct four other helipads is totally unacceptable.

Kayo Sogi, a JCP member of the prefectural assembly, stressed that local residents earnestly hope for an Okinawa where they can live without anxieties, but the government is destroying that hope.

The assembly members submitted the same written opinion to the Foreign Ministry Okinawa Office as well.

Past related article:
> Okinawa assembly adopts statement demanding cancellation of US helipad construction in Takae [July 22 & 23, 2016]