Denny in the News

The Prefecture announced 50 new Covid-19 infections among people between the ages of 10 and 99 on 30 December. The total was twice that of the previous Thursday and the first time the one day total of victims hit 50 in the 91 days since 30 September. The number of possible cases of the Omicron strain surpassed the previous 21 and reached 36. Governor Denny Tamaki confirmed his acknowledgement that the municipal-wide spread of Omicron contagion had begun, at an unscheduled press conference on 30 December.  He further shared his anticipation that, if large-scale contagion continues, he will increase the Prefecture’s warning level. The governor noted, “If the epidemic becomes larger as the new year begins, there’s a possibility that I will even have to request limitations on activities.” In addition, he again called for full preventive measures against the virus as the old year ends and the new one begins.  Currently, the prefectural warning level is 1 (epidemic caution). If infe...

On 27 December, Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki held a press conference. The number of Covid-19 cases is on the rise in places such as the northern part of Okinawa Island. The governor expressed his sense of wariness on the problem, “It’s thought to be on an upward trend at this point.” He added, “If the rise continues as is, we’ll have to ask that self-discipline be demanded when going outside.” He further noted that even stricter measures may be unavoidable, such as a move toward priority prevention measures, should the infection conditions worsen. Before the flow of people across the prefecture and the islands for homecoming begins, during the end of this and the beginning of next year, the governor is calling for full measures to combat the virus. He is requesting that the prefecture’s people who are planning homecomings to the offshore islands to participate in festivities, such Adult Day, during the New Year vacation and tourists from outside the prefecture as well get PCR tests be...

A new base is under construction at Henoko in Nago, Okinawa. Okinawa Prefecture revoked permission for it. However, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transportation decided to cancel the revocation. Claiming that cancellation is illegal, the Prefecture has filed an appeal requesting that the cancellation itself be revoked. On 28 December, the Prefecture made its final appeal on its dissatisfaction to the Naha Branch of the Fukuoka High Court for judgement. On 15 December, the Fukuoka High Court, without making a judgement on whether the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transportation’s decision was legal or not, had dismissed the Prefecture’s complaint. In response to press corps questions at the Prefectural Office, Governor Denny Tamaki offered this criticism, “It’s like they sliced off regional autonomy and trashed it.” The deadline for the appeal was 4 January 2022. Back in November, the Okinawa Defense bureau requested design changes to widen the landfill in the sea ar...

At a press conference on 27 December, Governor Denney Tamaki discussed the “Okinawa, Discover the Splendor Campaign, meant to stimulate demand for regional tourism by subsidizing a portion of travel expenses. He pointed out that he is considering restrictive measures in case the Covid-19 situation worsens in the prefecture. In response to the infectious conditions, three tiers of restriction standards will be established. Although the restrictions are just for guidance, there may be cases where businesses are shut down quickly in view of the infectious conditions. For the first tier, the prefecture is divided into three zones: Okinawa Island, Miyako and Yaeyama. Within the jurisdiction of each health department, the use of the campaign will be shut down if the number of Covid-19 cases in their region surpasses 25 out of 100,000 people. The campaign cannot be used for travel to the shutdown region or even within the island. For the second tier, new campaign sales will be halted if, thro...

On 26 December, Okinawa Prefecture reported confirmation of 1 person testing positive for Covid-19 with the suspicion that the infection is the Omicron strain. In an examination of screening specimens, the Delta strain showed up negative, but that brings the total of people suspected of having the Omicron strain to 4. The Prefecture is moving on to genome analysis and expects the results around 28 December. In the prefecture, 21 new cases of Covid-19 have been confirmed among males and females between the ages of 10 and 99. 18 of them have appeared since just last Sunday. By location, half were in northern Okinawa, with 9 in the town of Motobu where the virus is spreading. As for the new infections suspected of being the Omicron strain, the family of a base worker at the US Military Camp Hansen tested positive for the Omicron strain. At present, the Prefecture is not revealing where the family lives. Up until now in the prefecture, 10 people have been confirmed with the Omicron strain....

A huge cluster of Covid-19 has occurred at the US Military Camp Hansen base. Meanwhile on 25 December, the Naha Police arrested a US Marine corporal (24) stationed at the same base on suspicion of being in the act of violating the Road Traffic Law (drunk driving) by driving a motorbike while in a drunken condition.  Just after dawn on the morning of 21 December, a US Marine lance corporal from the very same base had also been arrested on suspicion of violating the Road Traffic Law (drunk driving). So, on 21 December, the Prefecture requested that all military personnel employed at Camp Hansen and their dependents be prohibited from leaving the base. However, the laxity of discipline on the base has once again become apparent. On hearing the news that a marine stationed at Camp Hansen was arrested in the act on suspicion of drunk driving, Governor Denny Tamaki issued this harsh criticism in a document, “Their military discipline is incredibly lax, coupled with what I can only call i...

In the early dawn of 25 December, Okinawa Prefectural Police announced they had arrested Corporal Jarett Michael McMahon, 24, stationed at the US Marine base Camp Hansen, in the act on suspicion of violation of the Road Traffic Law (drunk driving). Police said he partly denied the charge stating, “I drank alcohol, but I didn’t think enough was left in my body to get arrested for it.”  According to the Naha Police Station, just after midnight on 25 December, the Marine was suspected of driving a motor-bike while intoxicated on a city road at District 2 in Matsuyama in Naha.  In a breath analysis, McMahon’s alcohol level registered 3 times the legal limit. Police say he stated, “From about five in the evening until midnight, I was drinking beer and whiskey on and off at a bar in Naha.” A policeman spotted 2 people without helmets riding a motor-bike. He investigated and said he found the 2 were both Marines from Camp Hansen and had been drinking alcohol. The location was a bar d...

Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki: “It’s incredibly shocking. And from my own viewpoint it’s outrageous!” His response was to news that, after a cluster of over 200 troops at the US Military base Camp Hansen were diagnosed with Covid-19, it is now clear that the unit with the infected troops left the US and arrived in Japan without any PCR testing being done at either end.　 The US Military at the outset claimed that the troops had been tested. But really, the testing was not carried out on the premise that the troops had already been fully vaccinated. According to the US Forces in Japan Headquarters: “Sometime in September, the rule on testing before entry to Japan was lifted.” Moreover, it has become apparent that the troops under restricted movement could freely go in and out of base facilities inside Camp Hansen. Okinawa Prefecture Governor Denny Tamaki noted: “If, by chance, the virus spreads, they’ll have only their own actions to thank. When you consider it from the perspective of so...

For 10 straight years the national budget for Okinawa has been set at the 300 billion yen level, but, for 2020, the National Government’s plan is to reduce it to about 268 billion, a cut of about 33 billion yen compared to last year’s budget. On 22 December, in response to the news, Governor Denny Tamaki offered his take on the cut, “As a budget intertwined with the development of our new Okinawa Promotion at the outset of next year’s milestone 50th year since reversion to Japan, neither the prefecture’s people, nor indeed our municipalities can conceive of this being a response to the prefecture’s wishes.” Citing next year as the year initiating the new Okinawa Promotion for the benefit of the whole Japanese economy, governor Tamaki continued, “Huge wide-scale cuts of this magnitude,  and their cruel shamelessness, leave me speechless.” Within the budget is the lump sum grant to be used at the discretion of the Prefecture. This, too, is expected to receive a drastic cut of 21.9 bi...

On 21 December, the Cabinet Office submitted a Ministry of Finance proposal that will set next year’s Okinawa Promotion budget at 240.3 billion yen at the LDP Okinawa Promotion Enquiry Committee. On 22 December, Cabinet Secretary for Okinawa and the North Kosaburo Nishime and Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki are expected to decide on the budget amount after discussions. However, the reduction in the public budget, which has remained in the 300 billion range for the past 10 years, has become  huge. The Finance Ministry proposal is 60 billion less than this year's initial budget of 301 billion yen. Within the budget, the high lump sum grant has been reduced from this year’s 50 billion to 48.1 billion yen. In 2013, then Governor Hirokazu Nakaima received a promise to guarantee the Okinawa Promotion budget at the 300 billion yen budget until 2021 from then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in return for permission for the landfill at Henoko in Nago, Okinawa Prefecture. Since 2013, the budget ...

The new Omicron strain of Covid-19 has been confirmed among infected base workers and others from the US Military Camp Hansen one after another. In response, Governor Denny Tamaki, on 20 December, announced that he will confer by telephone on the morning of 21 December with the coordinator of  the four US forces in Okinawa, Marine Commanding General Lieutenant General James W. Bierman Jr. and Deputy Foreign Minister Kiyoshi Odawara. He will request that exits from Camp Hansen be prohibited and transfers from the US halted. Governor Tamaki explained, “I have an opinion from National Institute of Infectious Disease experts that they fear Omicron strain infections within the bases will spread widely.” The  4 items to be discussed will be that: (1) transfers of military people and their dependents from the US or elsewhere cease, (2) PCR exams be carried out on all military and military dependents, (3) the level of the health care system of US forces in Okinawa be raised and all mi...

Final discussions on Okinawa Prefecture’s Promotion Policy are in view.  The major points are the scope of cuts to the Promotion budget and the review of the term of the Okinawa Promotion Special Measures Law, due to expire at the end of this year. Looking ahead to next year’s election year, the battle between the National Government and the Prefecture is intensifying.  Chief Cabinet Secretary Mizuno held a press conference on a19 December visit to the town of Kadena in the prefecture. On the 2022 Promotion budget, he went only so far as to note, “The editing work on next year’s budget is moving along and it’s being decided within the budget.” Since 2013, the Promotion budget has been maintained at the 300 billion yen level. Back in 2013, Prime Minister Abe promised then Governor Hirokazu Nakai  that the 300 billion yen level would be guaranteed yearly until 2021, in return for his permission for construction work to relocate the US Military Futenma Airfield in Ginowan to...

At the US Military Camp Hansen Base in the town of Kin in Okinawa Prefecture, the huge cluster of Covid-19 cases is still rising. On 18 December, Okinawa Prefecture reported that the infection there had spread to 158 US Marines. Moreover, it has been revealed that a woman in her fifties associated with the US Military along with her Japanese husband in his sixties have had their infection with the Omicron strain of Covid-19 confirmed. According to the Prefecture, on 12 December, the woman associated with the Military and, on 14 December, the man showed symptoms such as a fever. An examination confirmed they had the Omicron strain of infections. The two live outside the base. Furthermore, PCR examinations were carried out on close associates of the Japanese male base-worker whose Omicron strain infection was confirmed on 17 December. It has been learned that one of them is also suspected of having the Omicron strain. There is a fear that the virus will become even more widespread. The P...