Opponent of US military bases wins Okinawa governor election

TOKYO – Denny Tamaki was declared the winner by local media in an election Sunday to become the next governor of Okinawa Prefecture in Japan, after a campaign to significantly reduce the US military presence on the island.

Uhinawa is home to about half of the 54,000 US troops stationed in Japan and is home to the largest US Air Force base in the Asia-Pacific region. The US military says its presence on the island is vital not only for Japan's defense, but also for peacekeeping throughout the region, from Taiwan to China, through the Korean Peninsula and the Philippines .

But the Okinawans feel that the US military presence in Japan represents an unfair burden on their small island. They complain about the noise of low-flying aircraft and the dangers of accidents, as well as the crimes committed over the years by US military personnel. Some also believe that the presence of bases could make their island a target in any regional military confrontation.

Tamaki, like former governor Takeshi Onaga, who died last month, wants a fundamental reduction in the US presence here, a position that will weigh on the US alliance with Japan.

He is the son of a waitress from Okinawa and an American sailor, whom he has never met. Although he speaks little English, he told voters that he was confident that the democratic ideals of his father's country would ensure that the Okinawa's will was respected.

[In Japan’s Okinawa island, U.S. military bases take center stage in election]

The main issue is Marine Station Air Station Futenma, which is located in the middle of residential areas of the city of Ginowan. Two decades ago, a plan was to move the base to a more remote site in Henoko, north of the island, and transfer nearly half of the island's 19,000 Marines on a base in Guam, Hawaii and Australia. The move was delayed largely due to local opposition.

Tamaki, like many here, is opposed to the expansion of the Henoko facility, known as Camp Schwab, and instead calls for a more radical redistribution of US forces from Okinawa to other parts of Japan. or abroad.

The central government in Tokyo insists that it has the constitutional right to decide on national security issues and wants to move forward with the resettlement plan. He won several legal battles against Onaga when he tried to block the move to Henoko.

But Tamaki's victory is yet another series of difficult negotiations and potentially more legal battles over the resettlement plan.

"I would like to promise that I will build on Governor Onaga's foundation and work with the people of Okinawa," he told a local television channel shortly after Japanese media reported winner. "What people can not accept, it's relocation to Henoko, and I will carry out the will of the people."

US military bases occupy nearly one-fifth of Okinawa's land. The supporters of the bases say that they are essential to defend Japan and contribute to the local economy. The island also receives significant compensation from the central government for hosting the US military.

Tamaki's conservative opponent, Atsushi Sakima, strongly supported by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said the relocation of Futenma should go ahead to ease the burden on Ginowan and free up vast expanses of land for the future. development.

The US military has worked hard to improve its image on the island, as the Marines have given up their free time to teach Okinawan English or clean up local beaches.

It also opens the doors of its bases for regular festivals that attract tens of thousands of people.

He moved artillery training off the island and said that he took as much training as possible on planes off the island to allay the concerns. without prejudicing combat readiness. For example, there are more restrictions on parachute training operations, low-level flight operations and night-time training than is the case in the United States.

However, several incidents have damaged the image of the military, including the rape of a 12-year-old schoolgirl by three Marines in 1995, and a helicopter accident in 2004 on the grounds of a local university. .

Local resentment against the bases also has deeper cultural roots, resulting from the feeling that this island, which was once the independent kingdom of Ryukyu and which traded with Japan and China, was despised by the rest of Japan.

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