Over 2,000 citizens and others join demonstration in Okinawa to protest the ongoing assaults by US troops. (18au24)
Splendor of Okinawa: Raintree, beachside Mihama, 9au24 With the ongoing sexual assaults by US troops in Okinawa Prefecture coming to light, citizen groups and others requesting a reduction in Okinawa’s base burden, held a protest rally on 10 August at an athletic field in Ginowan City. According to the organizers, over 2,000 citizens attended. The rally adopted a letter of appeal to the Japanese Government requesting control and reduction of bases and a radical revision of the US-Japan Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), pointing out its barriers in crime investigations. The participants raised placards bearing the slogan, “Don’t forgive US troop sexual assaults!”, as Governor Denny Tamaki took the stage to greet the crowd with, “Let’s get on with it, dauntless, and never giving up!” Chiemi Yonaha (52), a mother still raising 2 children, touching on the US Military aircraft crash accidents and sexual assault crimes that have occurred up to now, emphasized, “Schools and parks, that ought...