Okinawa dogs Japan-US relations

The car park where the alleged rape took place

By Charles Scanlon in Okinawa

Saturday night in Okinawa, and there is a raucous crowd out in the bars near the largest American base.

The mood is boisterous rather than threatening, but this part of town is largely taken over by US marines and airmen.

It should not happen anymore, but it happens, it happens and it happens. Why do we have to tolerate this kind of thing?

Japanese MP Mitusko Tomon

It is areas like these that have seen most of the violent incidents in recent years that have helped inflame local opinion against the American military presence.

A newly arrived marine has been surprised by the reaction by the locals.

"Some Japanese people are scared of us for some reason. I dunno why. Me personally, I'm a pretty nice person, but some people are just scared of me, I dunno why - cos we're American, I dunno... We're just trying to have a good time."

His friend, a relative veteran of 11 months in Okinawa, says a lot of the problems in the bars are blown out of proportion.

"If you get a bunch of people in a bar, you get a fight eventually. Even in the States, you know... Over here, if a marine breaks something, you know, gets in a fight with someone, it's gonna be like big news."

Local outrage

In the latest case, a woman in her twenties says she was raped in a car park near the air base.

For Mitusko Tomon, who represents an Okinawan constituency in the Japanese Parliament, it looks like another example of a young American serviceman out of control.

Okinawans want marines accused of causing trouble to be relocated

"Why does it happen so often? And always the Japanese Government promises and also American top officers promise us, 'yes, we'll try our best for this kind of thing not to happen...'

"It should not happen anymore. But it happens, it happens and it happens. Why do we have to tolerate with kind of thing?"

The American military authorities are trying hard to win over local people.

They put on a musical festival at the Kadena air base, and invited civilians onto what is normally a closed area.

Kinjo Minabu came here with some friends who were visiting from Tokyo.

"My personal feeling is just demolish the bases from Okinawa, because we don't need it," he said.

The base is just like a sprawling American suburb. It reminds locals just how much of their island has been taken over by the Americans.

Scepticism

The Japanese Prime Minister, Junichiro Koizumi, told Okinawans recently that he sympathised with their demands to relocate the marines who are accused of causing most of the trouble.

But local journalist Tomahiro Yara says he does not expect much action.

"I am very sceptical about that because Koizumi did not mention a specific policy about a solution of the Okinawa issue.

"Also [Foreign] Minister [Makiko] Tanaka told us she was going to find some way of reducing the training of marines, but the presence is still there."

And that is the nub of the problem. Okinawans believe the government in Tokyo puts its military ties with Washington above their interests.

The changes and redeployments proposed so far amount to just tinkering at the edges.

The marines have been here since they first waded ashore in World War II, and they look set to remain for the foreseeable future.