Thousands protest in Okinawa over alleged rape by U.S. serviceman

Thousands of people gathered near the building site of a new U.S. military base in Okinawa on Monday to protest the alleged rape of a female tourist by a U.S. serviceman.

About 2,500 people protested in front of the U.S. Marine Corps’ Camp Schwab in Nago, according to organizers of the gathering. In parts of the base in Nago’s Henoko coastal area, Japan is building a replacement facility for the Marines’ Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, also in Okinawa.

“Incidents and accidents never cease to exist as long as there are bases here,” Nago Mayor Susumu Inamine said at the gathering, reiterating his opposition to the relocation project. “If the U.S. military were a good neighbor, this kind of incident wouldn’t happen. How long do we have to keep holding these gatherings?”

Earlier this month, police arrested a Navy sailor from Camp Schwab on suspicion of taking a tourist into his room after finding her asleep in the corridor of a hotel in Naha, and raping her there, sparking outrage among local people long frustrated by crimes committed by U.S. service members in Okinawa.

Sachiko Kudeken, a 64-year-old woman who participated in the protest with her 1-year-old grandchild, said a sense of anger among the people of Okinawa has reached a “boiling point.”

Suzuyo Takazato, head of a local support group for rape victims, said at the gathering that women in postwar Okinawa have long been victims of sexual violence. “Even if the U.S. military enforced discipline and took steps to prevent a recurrence, violence against women hasn’t been addressed,” she said.

Several days after the seaman’s arrest, Lt. Gen. Lawrence Nicholson, the top commander of U.S. military forces in Okinawa Prefecture, apologized to Gov. Takeshi Onaga for the alleged rape, expressing his “deepest regret and remorse” at the incident.

The case is being investigated by local authorities.

Okinawa hosts the bulk of U.S. military facilities in Japan and the local community has called for a reduction in their footprint, including crimes and accidents involving U.S. service members and civilians related to American bases.