Okinawa Vows Peace on 73rd Anniversary of Ground Battle End

June 24, 2018

Itoman, Okinawa Pref.- Okinawa residents renewed their pledge for peace at a memorial service for the war dead on Saturday, the 73rd anniversary of the end of the Battle of Okinawa in World War II.

During the memorial service, held in the Peace Memorial Park in Itoman, Okinawa Prefecture, Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga criticized the planned relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma air station from a congested area of Ginowan to the Henoko coastal area in Nago. Both cities are in the southernmost Japan prefecture.

The plan "goes against the trend of easing tensions in Asia," Onaga said, urging the central government to review the relocation, which is based on a Japan-U.S. agreement.

The memorial service was attended by 5,100 people, including Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the heads of both chambers of the country's parliament.

Attendees offered a minute of silent prayers for war victims at noon (3 a.m. GMT).

Referring to the first-ever U.S.-North Korea summit this month, Onaga said, "The security environment surrounding East Asia is dramatically changing and moves toward easing tensions are in progress."

"I wonder whether the relocation to Henoko, under an agreement reached more than 20 years ago, can be regarded as the only solution to the Futenma issue," Onaga said. "My resolve to prevent the construction of a new base in Henoko is with the residents of the prefecture and will never waver."

The governor also called for national discussions on the current situation surrounding bases in Okinawa and the system of the Japan-U.S. security alliance.

A vocal critic of the heavy U.S. military presence in Okinawa, Onaga wants the controversial Futenma base to be moved out of the island prefecture altogether. Okinawa hosts the bulk of U.S. military installations in Japan.

In an address, Abe explained his government's achievement of moving forward with the return of U.S. base sites to Japan. "Under our policy of doing all we can, we'll make every effort to reduce Okinawa's base-hosting burden," Abe said.

Rinko Sagara, a 14-year-old junior high school third-grader from Urasoe, recited a poem she composed, calling for a world where all people can lead ordinary lives.

On June 23, 1945, organized fighting during the Battle of Okinawa, the fiercest ground battle on Japanese soil during World War II, are said to have ended. Numerous civilians were caught up in the battle. In the prefecture, June 23 is designated as a holiday.

On the Cornerstone of Peace, a monument in the park in Itoman, the names of 241,525 war victims are inscribed, with the addition of 58 names this year. Jiji Press