{"id":6494,"date":"2010-03-26T18:38:22","date_gmt":"2010-03-27T03:08:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/?p=6494"},"modified":"2010-03-26T18:38:22","modified_gmt":"2010-03-27T03:08:22","slug":"peace-philosophy-centre-posts-a-concise-chronology-of-the-futenma-replacement-facility-issue-in-okinawa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/?p=6494","title":{"rendered":"Peace Philosophy Centre posts a concise chronology of the Futenma Replacement Facility issue in Okinawa"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span>Mahalo to Satoko Norimatsu &lt;satoko@peacephilosophy.com&gt; for compiling this excellent concise chronology of events related to the Futenma Replacement Facility in Okinawa on her Peace Philosophy Centre blog.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">&gt;&gt;&lt;&lt;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/peacephilosophy.blogspot.com\/2010\/03\/this-is-history-of-development-of.html\">http:\/\/peacephilosophy.blogspot.com\/2010\/03\/this-is-history-of-development-of.html<\/a><\/p>\n<h2><span>Friday, March 26, 2010<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><a name=\"5952149381193392076\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3><a href=\"http:\/\/peacephilosophy.blogspot.com\/2010\/03\/this-is-history-of-development-of.html\">History  of the Development of &#8220;Futenma Replacement Facility&#8221; Plans<\/a><\/h3>\n<p>This is the history of the development of &#8220;<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_0\">Futenma<\/span> Replacement Facility&#8221; plans,  compiled from the information gathered from the following sources:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_1\">Miyagi<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_2\">Yasuhiro,<\/span> <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Miyagi-Yasuhiro\/2490\">&#8220;Okinawa and the  Paradox of Public Opinion: Base Politics and Protest in <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_3\">Nago<\/span> City, 1997  &#8211; 2007,&#8221; <\/a>The Asia-Pacific Journal, 2007<\/li>\n<li><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_4\">Sato<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_5\">Manabu<\/span>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Sato-Manabu\/2202\">&#8220;Forced to &#8216;Choose&#8217;  its Own Subjugation: Okinawa&#8217;s Place in U.S. Global Military  Realignment,&#8221;<\/a> The Asia-Pacific Journal, August 2, 2006<\/li>\n<li><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_6\">Miyagi<\/span>, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_7\">Yasuhiro,<\/span> <a href=\"http:\/\/miyagi.no-blog.jp\/nago\/2010\/02\/post_29b0.html\">&#8220;Eliminating  Bases from Okinawa on the &#8216;Zero-Base&#8217; Part I,&#8221; <\/a><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_8\">Nagonagu<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_9\">Zakki<\/span>, February  o5, 2010<\/li>\n<li><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_10\">Kikuno<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_11\">Yumiko<\/span> and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_12\">Norimatsu<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_13\">Satoko<\/span>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Kikuno-Yumiko\/3306\">&#8220;<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_14\">Henoko<\/span>,  Okinawa: Inside the Sit-In,&#8221;<\/a> The Asia-Pacific Journal, 8-1-10,  February 22, 2010.<\/li>\n<li>Makishi Yoshikazu, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Makishi-Yoshikazu\/1819\">&#8220;US Dream Come  True? The New Henoko Sea Base and Okinawan Resistance,&#8221;<\/a> The  Asia-Pacific Journal, February 12, 2006<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>1996<br \/>\n<\/strong><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.mofa.go.jp\/region\/n-america\/us\/security\/96saco1.html\">The  Japan-US agreement on the Special Action Committee on Okinawa (<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_15\">SACO<\/span>)<\/a> called for <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_16\">Futenma<\/span> Air Station to be shut down and returned to Okinawa by the end of 2003.  This agreement was made on condition that an alternative facility (&#8220;Sea  Based Facility&#8221;) would be constructed within Okinawa. However, it was  impossible to find a construction site that the US Military, Japanese  Government, Okinawa Prefecture, the municipal office and residents of  the local area would agree on.<\/p>\n<p>The following locations  were proposed: 1) The northwest forest area within the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_17\">Kadena<\/span> Ammunition Storage (cancelled due to local opposition); 2) The <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_18\">Kadena<\/span> Air  Force Base, within which the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_19\">Futenma<\/span> Air Station facility might  have been integrated (stalled due to opposition from the US Air Force  and from the three municipalities where <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_20\">Kadena<\/span> base is located); 3) Reclaimed  land on a coastal area adjacent to Camp <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_21\">Schwab<\/span> (proposed by the US side but  opposed by the Japanese government because of anticipated local  resistance). In September 2006, then Prime Minister <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_22\">Hashimoto<\/span> proposed construction of a removable &#8220;marine heliport&#8221; on <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_23\">Henoko<\/span> Bay  instead; 4) The White Beach coastal area (cancelled due to opposition  from the Prefecture and local municipal bodies).<\/p>\n<p>In the  end, the U.S. and Japanese governments agreed in the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_24\">SACO<\/span> final  report on a site: the coastal area adjacent to Camp <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_25\">Schwab<\/span>,  without specifying an exact location. Naturally, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_26\">Nago<\/span> citizens  were alarmed.<\/p>\n<p><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_27\">SACO<\/span> called for <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_28\">Futenma&#8217;s<\/span> return largely in response to huge anti-US base rallies the year before  in 1995, held in the rising sentiment after three US Marines raped a  12-year-old Okinawan girl. A total of 100,000 people participated in the  rallies.<\/p>\n<p>The initial plans for the replacement base  called for a small, temporary facility, for helicopter use only, that  could be removed easily when it became unnecessary.<\/p>\n<p><strong>1997 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>On December 21, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_29\">Nago<\/span> Plebiscite was held. The  majority of the citizens were against a new base. On December 24, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_30\">Higa<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_31\">Tetsuya<\/span>, then <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_32\">Nago<\/span> Mayor,  expressed his support for the base with Prime Minister <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_33\">Hashimoto<\/span> and  announced his resignation right at the Prime Minister&#8217;s residence in  Tokyo.<\/p>\n<p><strong>1998<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>On February 6, two days prior  to the Mayoral Election, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_34\">Ota<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_35\">Masahide<\/span>, then Okinawa Governor  expressed his opposition against the replacement facility plan. In the  following Mayoral election, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_36\">Tamaki<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_37\">Yoshikzau<\/span>, whom the base opponents  supported, was defeated by pro-base <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_38\">Kishimoto<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_39\">Tateo<\/span> by a  narrow margin (<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_40\">Tamaki<\/span> 15,103 votes; <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_41\">Kishimoto<\/span> 16,253). The conflicting results of the 1997 plebiscite and the 1998  mayoral election have been referred to as the &#8220;public opinion paradox.&#8221;  While Okinawan voters opposed new military base construction in opinion  polls, when it came to election times, they placed greater importance on  economic rejuvenation brought by government subsidies provided to host  communities of military bases.<\/p>\n<p>The temporary heliport plan  changed drastically when <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_42\">Inamine<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_43\">Keiichi<\/span> became governor in 1998.<\/p>\n<p><strong>1999 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Governor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_44\">Inamine<\/span> announced plans for a  large-scale offshore airport. The airport would be for dual  military-civilian use for 15 years, after which it would become entirely  civilian. Part of the problem was that the U.S. government never gave  serious consideration to the 15-year military use cap. The estimated  construction time itself would have been 15 years. Such a base would  destroy the coral reef, and the massive land reclamation would kill off  the area&#8217;s <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_45\">dugongs<\/span> (endangered Asian manatees).<\/p>\n<p>Upon Governor&#8217;s  request, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_46\">Nago<\/span> Mayor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_47\">Kishimoto<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_48\">Tateo<\/span> also accepted this conditional plan. This plan with the above conditions  by Okinawa was approved in a Cabinet meeting as well.<br \/>\n<strong>2002<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Japanese Government, Okinawa Prefecture and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_49\">Nago<\/span> City  agreed on the construction of an airport (both for military and civilian  use) with a 2,000 meter runway by reclamation, about 2 kilometer off  the coast of <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_50\">Henoko<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2004<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In April, the Japanese government finally began an environmental  assessment, and got ready to bore into the sea bed surrounding the  proposed site. These moves were interpreted as the beginning of  construction, and opposition movements organized a heroic sit-in  campaign to prevent it. This nonviolent civil disobedience was hugely  successful. <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_51\">Henoko<\/span> has come to be a symbol of the peace and environmental movements.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2005<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Rather  than directly face off against the protesters as the Japanese  government did, the U.S. military had a different idea: Quadrennial  Defense Review (<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_52\">QDR<\/span>),  or global military transformation. Instead of letting <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_53\">Futenma<\/span> and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_54\">Henoko<\/span> be  political issues within Okinawa, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_55\">QDR<\/span> transformed these issues into  part of a global military realignment.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.mofa.go.jp\/region\/n-america\/us\/security\/scc\/doc0510.html\">On  October 29, 2005, Japan and the U.S. agreed <\/a>on a new plan to build a  1,800 meter-long runway inshore from <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_56\">Henoko<\/span>, partially on the peninsula,  instead of entirely offshore. This facility would have a military port  function.<\/p>\n<p>This way, Governor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_57\">Inamine&#8217;s<\/span> idea of an offshore  dual-use airport was abandoned without even nominal consultation.<\/p>\n<p>The  new base would be fundamentally different from <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_58\">Futenma<\/span> in its  capabilities . This is not a replacement of <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_59\">Futenma<\/span>, whose  main function is training. This is a new, different, upgraded facility  that U.S. Marines will receive for free and will use as a forward base  capable of attacking foreign territories, not just for training.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2006<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In  April, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_60\">Nukaga<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_61\">Fukushiro<\/span>,  Japan\u2019s Defense Agency chief at the time, told <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_62\">Nago<\/span> mayor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_63\">Shimabukuro<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_64\">Yoshikazu<\/span> about yet another new plan, this time to build a V-shaped runway. <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_65\">Shimabukuro<\/span> and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_66\">Ginoza<\/span> Mayor agreed. (Then Okinawa Governor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_67\">Inamine<\/span> did not agree, but later new  Okinawa Mayor <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_68\">Nakaima<\/span> supported <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_69\">Nago<\/span> Mayor.) In May, the Cabinet passed a resolution to build these runways,  with an even larger port facility &#8212; perfect for Marines.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.mod.go.jp\/e\/d_policy\/dp13.html\">May 2006 &#8220;<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_70\">Roadmap<\/span> for  Realignment Implementation&#8221;<\/a><br \/>\n&#8220;The United States and Japan will  locate the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_71\">FRF<\/span> (<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_72\">Futenma<\/span> Replacement Facility) in a configuration that combines the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_73\">Henoko<\/span>&#8211;<span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_74\">saki<\/span> and  adjacent water areas of <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_75\">Oura<\/span> and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_76\">Henoko<\/span> Bays, including two runways  aligned in a &#8220;V&#8221;-shape, each runway having a length of 1,600 meters plus  two 100-meter overruns. The length of each runway portion of the  facility is<br \/>\n1,800 meters, exclusive of seawalls (see attached concept  plan dated April 28, 2006). This facility ensures agreed operational  capabilities while addressing issues of safety, noise, and environmental  impacts.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>2009<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In September, a new  coalition government of <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_77\">DPJ<\/span> (Democratic Party of Japan), <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_78\">PNP<\/span> (People&#8217;s  New Party), and <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_79\">SDP<\/span> (Social Democratic Party of  Japan) is formed. The new government starts to review the whole <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_80\">FRF<\/span> plan.<\/p>\n<p><strong>2010<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>On  January 25, <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_81\">Inamine<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_82\">Susumu<\/span>,  the anti-base candidate wins the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_83\">Nago<\/span> Mayoral Election. This election  was viewed by many that for the first time in thirteen years since the  1997 plebiscite, the &#8220;public opinion paradox&#8221; &#8211; the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_84\">incongruence<\/span> between the public opinion and election results was resolved.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Miyagi-Yasuhiro\/2490\"><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_85\">Miyagi<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_86\">Yasuhiro<\/span><\/a> concludes, &#8220;At the time of the <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_87\">Nago<\/span> referendum in 1997, the new base  was going to take the form of a removable marine heliport. In 1999,  that was changed to a joint military-civilian &#8220;airport.&#8221; In 2006 the new  base was further widened to require coastal landfill. In the 10 years  of delay, the two governments have exponentially increased the capacity  of the substitute air base. &#8221;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Back to 1966&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Miyagi-Yasuhiro\/2490\"><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_88\">Miyagi<\/span> <\/a>also  refers to the two plans that were drawn up by the US Navy and the  Marine Corps in 1966 for an airport in <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_89\">Henoko<\/span>, very much like the plan in  the 2006 agreement. (See <a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanfocus.org\/-Makishi-Yoshikazu\/1819\"><span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_90\">Makishi<\/span> <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_91\">Yoshikazu&#8217;s<\/span> article <\/a>for details.) &#8220;It is no longer a substitute for <span id=\"SPELLING_ERROR_92\">Futenma<\/span> Air  Station, but it now appears that Japan is constructing what the US  military has wanted to build since the 1960s.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mahalo to Satoko Norimatsu &lt;satoko@peacephilosophy.com&gt; for compiling this excellent concise chronology of events related to the Futenma Replacement Facility in Okinawa on her Peace Philosophy Centre blog. &gt;&gt;&lt;&lt; http:\/\/peacephilosophy.blogspot.com\/2010\/03\/this-is-history-of-development-of.html Friday, March 26, 2010 History of the Development of &#8220;Futenma Replacement Facility&#8221; Plans This is the history of the development of &#8220;Futenma Replacement Facility&#8221; plans, compiled &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/?p=6494\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Peace Philosophy Centre posts a concise chronology of the Futenma Replacement Facility issue in Okinawa&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[2409],"class_list":["post-6494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-movements-resistance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6494"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6494"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6496,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6494\/revisions\/6496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dmzhawaii.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}