Mayoral election announced in the city of Ishigaki in Okinawa: a joust between the incumbent who supports a Ground Self Defense Force (GSDF) deployment and his rival who questions it. (21fe22)

The mayoral election in the city of Ishigaki in Okinawa Prefecture was announced on 20 February. 2 candidates have declared their candidacy. Just now, the GSDF is advancing plans for a deployment there. The incumbent, who is supported by the administration of Fumio Kishida, approves of the deployment, and his rival, who is supported by Governor Denny Tamaki with the backing of the strength of All Okinawa, calls for a referendum of the residents to be held on the subject. It is a joust between the two.

With base construction already begun before the mayoral election, the results could have a bearing on the GSDF deployment and the autumn gubernatorial election. Ballots will be opened on 27 February. 39,330 voters are registered for the election as of 19 February.

Both candidates are running as independents. However, former City Assemblyman  Yoshiyuki Toita (52) is backed by All Okinawa among others and Yoshitaka Nakayama (54), seeking his fourth term, is supported by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and Komeito. 

The formal acceptance of the plan for the deployment of the GSDF to Ishigaki Island was announced by Mayor Nakayama in July of 2018. However in February of 2019, a group organized a petition of about 14,000 signatures, around 40% of eligible voters, directly requesting the enactment of voting procedures on the question. But, the City Assembly denied the petition. In June of the same year, an ordinance proposal following an assemblyman’s proposal was also denied. 

Toita is calling for the implementation of a residents’ vote and committing himself to respect the outcome. At the departure ceremony after announcing his candidacy, Toita called for support, “Shall we put an end to this self-righteous administration? This is the election where it will be asked, can we create a city administration that acts for the sake of the people of this city?”

Mayor Nakayama took the stance, “National defense is a right that belongs exclusively to the Nation!” Without alluding to a campaign promise on either the GSDF deployment or the residents’ vote,  at a street-corner speech that day, he kept central his attention on such matters as his measures in response to Covid-19.

　

In an effort to strengthen the defense of the Southwest Island Chain, the Japanese government is advancing a plan to deploy a total of 500-600 personnel from 3 units of the GSDF to Ishigaki Island and started construction of a base there in February of 2019. But opinions among the residents are still now divided.

On the subject of petition activity to request a residents’ vote, Manami Miyara (29)  observed, “If security is so important, why is there no polite explanation of the plans for us residents? Our region is just like empty air to them. They look right by us!”  She is perplexed that the base construction is proceeding without so much as asking if the city’s people are for or against.

Jun Aragusuku (=新城?) (80), a mango farmer, noted the Nakayama City Administration’s reputation for increasing the number of tourists and expects a rebirth in the economy cooled by Covid-19. However, on the thinking that the GSDF deployment is a “national policy,” he added,”You have to be suspicious about whether the residents' votes count, when the National Government does all the deciding.” 

Original Japanese article: Asahi Shimbun Digital,  published 20 February 2022 at 17:00. Byline: Shogo Mitsuzumi 

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/07da133d6d95abd85a72332c216b8ea7ceba1bd5

Translator’s note:

Denny in the News: news about Okinawan Governor Denny Tamaki.

Denny Tamaki is the governor of Okinawa Prefecture in Japan. Although Okinawa is important as an international tourist destination and a key element in strategic US Military Forces, its governor receives very little coverage in the Japanese press and almost none in the English language media. 

1. This blog hopes to  translate one news article a day on the governor.  It is unsponsored and unauthorized. The translator simply hopes to improve his skills and perhaps give the governor an English speaking audience. 

2. Any suggestion on improving the translation will be gratefully accepted. However, please leave political comments for another forum.

3. Where they occur, words and phrases in Ryukyuan (the Okinawan language) are rendered in italics and translated in parentheses. Names  whose readings are uncertain are rendered as Name (=Kanji?) as in Nagayuki (=長行?). Any corrections in such instances would be gratefully appreciated.