An
American GI stands behind Japanese residents of Okinawa
who had surrendered, near the end of one of the fiercest battles
of the Pacific War, June 1945.
On Battle of
Okinawa Anniversary, Okinawans Feel Abandoned by Mainland (ChunichiShimbun, Japan)
“Has Prime
Minister Noda ever given a thought to the suffering of the Okinawan
people, their sadness at having lost relatives and friends in the war, their
anger toward the past U.S. occupation, and their indignance at having to continue
living alongside U.S. military bases? Reflecting on his Okinawan
policies up to now, it is highly doubtful.”
Residents of Okinawa and family members of those killed during the battle for the island during World War II mourn the victims, at the Okinawa Peace Memorial Park on Mabuni Hill.
About 150,000 local lives were lost as a result of the
fierce ground battle in Okinawa. After the war, a brutal occupation by the U.S.
military was forced upon the prefecture, and even after Okinawa’s return to
Japan [in 1972], vast military bases remain. Today is Memorial Day marking
the end of the Battle
of Okinawa, and we should all relate to the despair, bitterness and anger
felt by Okinawans.
On June 23rd, 1945, organized warfare on the part of the
Japanese Army ceased with the seppuku
of General Mitsuru
Ushijima, commander the “32nd Army”
defending Okinawa. It was almost three months after U.S. forces landed on
Okinawa. The severity of the battle is clear from the fact that a quarter of
the local population was killed, if one includes death by starvation and malaria.
The site of the last battle for the island took place on Mabuni Hill in southern Okinawa’s Itoman
City. A memorial service for all the Okinawan war
dead will be held today at the Peace Memorial Park in Mabuni.
Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda will be taking part and giving a speech. But what
will the prime minister have to say?
Has he ever given a thought to the suffering of “Shimanchu (the Okinawan
people),” their sadness at having lost relatives and friends in the war, their
anger toward the past U.S. occupation, and their indignance at having to continue
living alongside U.S. military bases? Reflecting on the Okinawan
policies of the Noda Administration up to now, it is highly doubtful.
In relation to the relocation of U.S. Marine air base at Futenma, the government has refused to budge from its
position that relocation within Okinawa to Henoko is
“the only effective way forward.”
Posted
by Worldmeets.US
This is despite the fact that Governor HirokazuNakaima has twice voiced his opinion on the
government’s Environmental Impact Statement, which is that such a move “would
be virtually impossible” in practice.
Why hasn’t it occurred to the prime minister that if the Futenma base needs to be relocated, building another base
in Okinawa, where 74 percent of U.S. bases in Japan are already located, will
result in an excessive overburden on the prefecture?
When will the Japanese government, who approved the
deployment, hear the voices of Okinawans who want to see the plan rejected?
Okinawa was sacrificed to buy time to prepare for the battle
for the mainland. Admiral Minoru
Ota, who commanded the Japanese Navy in Okinawa, sent a final telegram to
the vice admiral of the Japanese Navy before his death: “The Okinawan people have made great a sacrifice. For this
reason, I ask that you give special consideration to the Okinawan
people from this day forward.”
Under the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty, 40 years after Okinawa’s
return to Japan sovereignty, by hosting the largest number of military bases, Okinawa
continues to carry the heaviest burden. The facts show that the government and
those on the mainland have neglected to consider Okinawa’s special circumstances.
This Memorial Day, as we mourn the victims of war, we should
also ask whether the Japanese people have empathized and shown the requisite
consideration for their compatriots in Okinawa.
