Ginowan, Japan - August 10, 2024

More than a thousand Okinawans gathered in Ginowan on Saturday afternoon to express their strong dissatisfaction with a spate of sexual assault cases by U.S. servicemen that only recently came to light.

Sexual assault cases by U.S. servicemen stationed in Okinawa Prefecture, home to a number of U.S. military bases, trample on the human rights of women and are absolutely intolerable, according to the rally participants.

According to Japanese media reports, an airman belonging to the U.S. military's Kadena Air Base sexually assaulted a girl under the age of 16 in December last year. In May this year, a U.S. Marine in Okinawa allegedly sexually attacked and injured an adult woman. The Naha District Public Prosecutors Office indicted both servicemen on charges including sex without consent.

The two incidents came to the surface through media reports in late June, only after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's visit to the United States in April and the Okinawa Prefectural Assembly election in mid-June.

According to Okinawa Prefectural Police, the number of cases where U.S. military personnel and civilian staff were criminally accused has been on the rise, reaching 72 cases in 2023, a record high over the past 20 years.

Regarding the Kishida government's attempt to upgrade the Japan-U.S. military alliance and seek relaxation in military regulations, Okinawan people also expressed their strong opposition.

Shotlist:
Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan - Aug 10, 2024:
1. Various of people gathering at rally to protest slate of sexual assault cases by U.S. servicemen;
2. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Rally participant (starting with shot 1):
"I came here hoping to let more people know Okinawans are angry and feeling hurt over the criminal cases.";
3. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Rally participant:
"Decades have passed, and yet crimes by the U.S. troops stationed in Japan continue unabated. In these sexual assault cases, neither the Japanese or the U.S. government has apologized to the victims, not even a single word of apology. This makes me extremely angry.";
4. Various of people at rally;
5. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Rally participant:
"As Okinawans, we have repeatedly said 'no' to the station of the U.S. troops, but the Japanese government never heeds our opinions. Even now, the Japanese government is still covering up the sexual violence by the U.S. soldiers. In the current Japanese political environment, human dignity is being exploited, and the dignity of women is being compromised. I believe such things should not happen. They are totally wrong.";
6. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Toshio Ikemiyagi, lawyer:
"Such crimes by U.S. troops in Japan happen frequently, which is absolutely intolerable to us Okinawans.";
7. Various of rally in progress, participants;
8. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Kunio Arakaki, member, House of Representatives:
"The Japan Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. army attempt to turn our southwestern islands into military fortresses, deploying missiles and inciting military tension. They fabricate lies and conceal facts to stir up military tensions among the public, so as to get Japan involved in war.";
9. Various of rally in progress, participants.

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