Anti-military protest erupts at Okinawa Prefecture Hall
Date Posted: 2009-09-24
Peace groups, protesters and demonstrators opposed to Futenma Marine Corps Air Station have very vocally taken their case to the Okinawa Prefecture Hall.
“Let’s not make new military bases on Okinawa,” shouted many of the peace activists as they shouted, sang, raised their fists and broke out in a chorus of yells and chants. “Others demanded the U.S. “military go home. We support the new political power.” Still others insisted the Prefecture “close Futenma Air Station right now, stop the construction work at Henoko, and at Takae area’s helipad.” The protesters also demanded all environmental assessments be canceled.
“All Okinawan people have to recognize that political power has changed to our side,” says Hiroshi Ashitomi, “and it was made by us, and with our steady mass people’s campaign, military base construction can be stopped.” Ashitomi, leader of a heliport opposition union, says “we will try to stop the process of assessments, and we are going to publish the military’s hiding of facts that should be publicized.” He was referring to how lands were taken by the U.S. military after World War II by force, and how current bases continue to rely on the illegal confiscations of the past.
Source: http://www.japanupdate.com/?id=9805