politics

Gemba speaks with Clinton, S Korea's Kim by phone

9 Comments

Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba spoke by phone Wednesday with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and also with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung Hwan. It was Gemba's first discussion with his overseas counterparts since he took office last Friday.

According to NTV, Gemba and Clinton discussed the relocation of the U.S. Marine base at Futenma within Okinawa Prefecture. Gemba said the government will stick to the accord reached last year to relocate the base to Nago and assured Clinton that Japan's relationship with the United States remains the cornerstone of Japan's foreign policy.

In his talks with Kim, Gemba discussed the six-party talks on North Korea and trade issues, NTV reported.

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Less than two months ago, former Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa and the newly appointed U.S. Defense Minister Leon Panetta reaffirmed that "Tokyo and Washiongton will move forward with the plan to relocate the controversial Futenma base within Okinawa."

Yesterday, the Noda cabinet's newly-installed Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba assured U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that Japan "will stick to the accord reached last year to relocate" Futenma to Henoko, Nago. in northern Okinawa.

Gemba said at his inaugural news conference that he would do his utmost to persuade Okinawa residents and have them accept the bilateral accord. How would he do it?

Futenma was constructed toward the end of WW II with an aim of attacking mainland Japan by B-29's in order to end the war quickly. But the war ended before that plan was actually carried out. Futenma should have been returned at that point; instead, it has continued to be in the firm grip of the U.S. military all these years to this day.

Evidently, the U.S. military seized the land in clear violation of Article 46 of the Hague Convention, which states: "Family honour and rights, the lives of persons, and private property, as well as religious convictions and practice, must be respected. Private property cannot be confiscated."

The illegality of Futenma would not disappear even if it were to be moved to Henoko or anywhere else in Okinawa just like dirty money would not become clean how many times it might undergo laundering.

Both Gemba and Clinton must realize this and search for an alternative solution, that is, to move it outside of Okinawa, most preferably, to the U.S. mainland.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

..for someone with such a username, you are clearly uneducated on the matter. Futenma was already a Japanese base, when the Americans took control of the island, they paid the land owners rent. The entire island was under US control as AGREED to by the Japanese Government.

The US has been trying to close Futenma for over 15 years, it's always been the Japanese and Okinawan Governments that have not agreed on how to do it. The US even offered to move it entirely to Guam, but Tokyo still wanted some of it's capabilities within Japans area, so the current plan, which most people misunderstand, is to only move the rotary portion (helicopters) within Okinawa (Nago) with the availability of fixed wing capability in order to deploy Navy aircraft to the location in time of need. The majority of the current personnel and aircraft however, will move to Guam. Furthermore, the portion that is moving to Nago (Henoko) will just combine with the already existing base there. It's a large base with room to build the runways (they were already started years ago) without expanding the footprint of that base.

The Okinawans had already accepted this plan, although reluctantly, until Hatoyama came in and promised to move it entirely out of Okinawa. This stirred the pot, then he couldn't do it, so he resigned.

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To societymike:

How dare you say that Futenma Air Station was already there when "the Americans took control of the island"? Apparently, you are mixed up about Futenma with Kadena Air Base. The invading U.S. forces indeed took over the Imperial Japanese Air Force's Central Air Base (later called Kadena Air Base by the U.S. side) and expanded it manifold to the present size (19.95 km²) by expropriating the surrounding land mass - farmland, villages, family tombs and all -while the villagers of Kadena, Chatan and Koza (currently Okinawa City) were herded into concentration camps.

U.S. service members wrongly believe, or are indoctrinated to believe, that, when the Futenma air base was built, there was nothing in the area where it now sits except for barren wilderness. But that's not true.

There were five idyllic villages there before the war: Ginowan, Kamiyama, Nakahara, Maehara and Aragusuku, all ravaged during the Battle of Okinawa and then all forced to move outside of the base fences after the war, eventually becoming integral parts (districts) of today's Ginowan City. The old villages were swallowed up into the air base with a 2,700-meter runway, together with rich farmland.

The Futenma village, after which the base was named, was located just outside of the encroached-upon land and so narrowly escaped the ill fate of the incorporation into the base.

There are more than 30 U.S. military bases and facilities in Okinawa. The bulk of the lands these bases and facilities sit are private and so there are tens of thousands of land owners here. Now, you could imagine how these bases came into being. It's all the same story as Kadena and Futenma. Sometimes, lands were taken forcefully at bayonet point and by bulldozer from protesting farmers and wailing mothers.

The tragic irony is that today the Japanese taxpayers, not to mention Okinawans, have to pay rents for the lands because Japan must offer the bases to the U.S. military free of charge under the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.

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Japan did many many evil things to Koreans to Chinese and Japanese should show more appreciation to the USA for putting our lives on the line to PROTECT Japan this includes Okinawa so just imagine Japan under Chinese rule!!!Russian???

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

To Elbuda Mexicano:

As you say, "Japan did many evil things" to Koreans and Chinese, and even to its own nationals, in the first half of the 20th century. But that Japan you are talking about doesn't exist any more. It was retaliated against more than enough for what it did in pre-1945 days and crushed to the nail.

So Japan's past misdeeds doesn't justify America's post-war misdeeds in Okinawa, let alone this extraordinarily excessive military presence.

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Back on topic please.

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My dear VOO short for Voice of Okinawa I hear you but you know the Okinawan people are strong no matter what Tokyo or Washington DC say but the old evil racist Japanese are still alive look at the yakuza and the uyoku Japanese Right Wing in their big black loud trucks spewing hate for China and Korea the USA etc...

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Again to Elbuda Mexicano:

As you say, "Japan did many evil things" to Koreans and Chinese, and even to its own nationals, in the first half of the 20th century. But that Japan you are talking about doesn't exist any more. It was retaliated against more than enough and crushed to the nail.

So Japan's past misdeeds don't justify America's post-war misdeeds in Okinawa, let alone this extraordinarily excessive military presence. If you deny this, then the U.S. and the Japan of the past would both be part of the same gang.

Yes, there are remnants of ultranationalists who survived the war. But, believe or not, they've been the staunchest pro-American in post-war Japan. Apparently, this has something to do with the U.S. foreign policy toward Japan, encouraging the Japanese to renounce the Peace Constitutioin and fight global wars along with U.S. forces.

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Yes, there are remnants of ultranationalists that survived the war. But, believe it or not, they've been the staunchest pro-American elements in post-war Japanese society. Apparently, this has something to do with the U.S. foreign policy toward Japan that encourages the Japanese to renounce the Peace Constitution and fight global wars along with U.S. forces. In other words, these ultranationalists are identifing themselves with the U.S., thinking Americans are their ilk.

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