Funeral Held for Okinawa Gov. Onaga

August 14, 2018

Naha, Okinawa Pref.- The funeral of Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga, who died of pancreatic cancer on Wednesday at the age of 67, was held in Naha, the capital of the southernmost Japan prefecture, on Monday, with some 4,500 people attending the service.

Onaga was a staunch opponent of the planned relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air station in Ginowan, Okinawa, to the Henoko coastal area in Nago, another Okinawa city. He had demanded that the base be moved out of the prefecture.

"Onaga prioritized his faith over his health, and I believe his way of life will be handed down forever," former Okinawa Governor Keiichi Inamine said in a speech at the funeral.

"Your actions, in which you risked your life, have had a huge impact on the whole of Japan," he added, apparently referring to Onaga's battle with the Japanese government for blocking the planned Futenma relocation within the prefecture.

Okinawa's spirit for peace, which was respected by Onaga, will be passed to younger generations, Inamine said.

Onaga staked his life to demonstrate that issues in Okinawa are themes that must be considered by all Japanese people, said Konosuke Kokuba, head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's Okinawa prefectural chapter, which stood in opposition to Onaga.

Among other participants were former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and former Okinawa Governor Hirokazu Nakaima, who lost to Onaga in the Okinawa gubernatorial election in 2014. Jiji Press