From Kyodo:
Naha prosecutors have indicted a U.S. Air Force member in Okinawa Prefecture for allegedly sexually assaulting and kidnapping a girl under the age of 16 in December, local authorities said Tuesday, with this latest incident involving military personnel likely to further inflame local opposition to their presence.
From The Mainichi:
Unless the current situation in which Okinawa is forced to make sacrifices on the grounds of security is changed, the rift between the central and prefectural governments will only deepen. The national government must amend its stance of forcing decisions on Okinawa and engage in sincere dialogue.
This is a good explainer about the burden placed on Okinawa Prefecture by the central government and how the local people are basically powerless to stop it.
From The Mainichi:
A memorial service, attended by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, was held at the Peace Memorial Park in Itoman, the site of the final stage of the battle, where the names of 181 people were added to the list of the war dead inscribed on monuments, bringing the total to 242,225.
Attended by PM Kishida who stated that he was working on easing the burden of the presence of US military for the Okinawa people.
Rintaro Tobita from Nikkei:
Gen. Eric Smith, commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, told Nikkei on Friday that a new unit established in November on the Japanese island of Okinawa is designed to "counter PRC [the People's Republic of China] aggression" in order to protect Japan and others in geopolitically sensitive areas.
"It's designed to provide long-range sensing and long-range fire, using mobile missile batteries that are capable of striking adversaries' ships in the strategic sea lines of communication," Smith said in an interview in Washington, adding the unit's purpose is "to protect the Japanese home islands, in order to protect the Philippines, in order to protect [South] Korea."
So, assuming this new unit (stated in the article to be comprised of 2,000 troops) is new deployments to Okinawa, the planned relocation of other US military stated for December will be quickly replaced in this new initiative. The circle of life continues.
From Kyodo:
The story of a group of young women who were drafted from high school to the front lines of the Battle of Okinawa as Imperial Japanese Army nurses is being told through a traveling exhibition, with the many who tragically died serving as a lesson on the horrors suffered by Japanese civilians in the conflict.
Personal stories about civilians in a horrendous battle overshadowed by the atomic bombings just a few months later.
From The Mainichi:
Heavy rain battered wide areas of Japan on Tuesday, disrupting bullet train services between Tokyo and Osaka and prompting the weather agency to urge caution for landslides and floods.
From Kyodo:
The transfer of U.S. Marine Corps troops stationed in Japan's Okinawa to Guam will start in December, a Marines official said Sunday, the latest development in a long-agreed Japan-U.S. forces realignment plan aimed at reducing the southern island prefecture's base-hosting burden.
The plan to move 4,000 of the approximately 19,000 Marines currently in Okinawa, agreed upon in 2012, is set to be completed by around 2028, according the Congressional Research Service and other sources.
About 50 years too late and it is only a small portion of the total military based in Okinawa, but it will be a welcome improvement.
From The Japan Times:
The restaurant, located in the bustling Akasaka area of Tokyo, offers a unique “Okinawan kaiseki” — a fusion of Ryukyuan court cuisine and the traditional Japanese kaiseki multicourse dinner. It was opened in 1998 by culinary researcher and author Rin Takagi, who came up with a modern interpretation of the Ryukyu dynasty's cooking method, known as a secret to people’s health and longevity in the region.
In more positive Ryukyu news, a lovely survival story about a Michelin star Okinawan restaurant in Tokyo.
From Kyodo:
In the 48-seat prefectural assembly election, candidates who supported Gov. Denny Tamaki obtained 20 seats, while 27 were occupied by those who opposed him and the remaining one went to a neutral candidate. Before the voting, each side had 24 seats.
A blow to Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki's push against the Henoko base construction. The Okinawan people will continue to bear the defense burden of the country.
Voter turnout was the lowest on record at 45.62 percent, according to the local election committee.
Also worth noting considering Japan's overall low turnout rates in elections.
From Kyodo:
Kazuya Saito, a 34-year-old Tokyo resident, admitted to the theft, with police quoting him as saying, "Collecting women's uniforms is my hobby. I smelled it and wore it myself."