ASIA PACIFIC
The research materials in this section zoom in on Okinawa, starting with the Battle of Okinawa and focusing mainly on the U.S. military presence on the island since WWII and related issues, especially Okinawa’s environmental degradation due to chemical contamination and uneven development since its 1972 reversion to Japan, while being affected by climate change.
Protected by neither the U.S. or Japan’s constitution prior to 1972, Okinawa became the ‘Keystone of the Pacific,’ serving as a launchpad for the U.S. military’s war efforts in Korea (1950-1953) and Vietnam (1954-1975). Okinawa served as the U.S. military’s logistics hub and practice ground for military training and fighting simulations prior to deploying U.S. troops to Vietnam.[1] A buffer zone between mainland Japan and China, Okinawa continues to be instrumentalized in maintaining Japan-U.S. security alliance–the cornerstone of Japan’s defense strategy and policy–with ongoing U.S. military presence in Okinawa since 1945. While Okinawa occupies an area only 0.6% of Japan’s total land area, it currently hosts 70% of all U.S. military facilities in Japan.
Okinawa’s geopolitically strategic location and militarized landscape put a heavy toll on the indigenous population, which has been coined by scholars as a bilateral ‘Okinawa struggle,’ the long-term economic, social, and environmental struggles. The materials below give an overview of the U.S. military bases in Okinawa and track the PFAS contamination in water and soil originating at U.S. bases from the 1970s until present, particularly MCAS Futenma and Kadena Airbase. While tracking the construction site of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) missile base in Ishigaki Island, Chung’s research also looks into the conditions of Shiraho coral reef in Ishigaki resulted from climate change and during the construction of New Ishigaki Airport (2006-2013). Additional materials from her research in Okinawa and Ishigaki will be added, which aim to exemplify the entanglements of nature, war, colonization, state-making, and extreme climate impact.
[1] Jon Mitchell, “Vietnam: Okinawa’s Forgotten War,” The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus, vol.13, issue 16, no.1, 20 April 2015, accessed on 30 August 2022.
*Interactive map: location and number of U.S. military facilities in Asia Pacific region. Maps & photos © 2023 tiffanychung, unless otherwise noted. [map data: David Vine, "Lists of U.S. Military Bases Abroad, 1776-2021," American University Digital Research Archive, 2021.]
History & Battle of Okinawa
Okinawa: The History of An Island People, (George H. Kerr), Tokyo | Rutland, Vermont | Singapore: Tuttle Publishing, revised edition, 2000.
Full-length monograph on the history of the Ryukyu Islands.
Okinawa Chronology, Okinawa: The Afterburn
Website featuring Okinawa chronology, WAM maps of bases & WWII comfort stations, interview with Maedomari Hiromori (Professor of Economics and Environmental Policy Okinawa International University) on the Battle of Okinawa, U.S. bases, base and military economics.
History Education in Japan: An Account of Domestic Policy Controversies Over the Past War, (Masako Shibata), Hand Book of Education Policy Studies, Springer Link
11 June 2020, book chapter on controversies over the policies of the Ministry of Education for history education in Japan regarding the Battle of Okinawa (March–June 1945).
Listening to the Bones: The Rhythms of Sacrifice in Contemporary Japan,(Christopher Nelson),Boundary2 2015, essay on the collaboration between photographer Higa Toyomitsu and the material remains of the dead from Battle of Okinawa in a creative effort to make sense of the sacrifices the nation demanded of its subjects.
Military 'forced' Okinawa mass suicides, Japan Times
28 November 2007, news article on civilian mass suicides forced by Japanese Imperial Army in Okinawa during the Battle of Okinawa, the Pacific War, 1945.
Terror in the Caves, (Abbie Jones), Chicago Tribune
13 August 1995, news article on Himeyuri Student Nursing Corps being forced into service during the battle of Okinawa and urged by the Japanese military to commit suicide rather than surrender.
U.S. Occupation (1945-1972)
260.12 Records of the U.S. Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR), 1945-72, National Archives
[From Records of U.S. Occupation Headquarters, World War II - Record Group 260], mostly textual records during the U.S. occupation of Okinawa.
1960 Agreement regarding the Status of United States Armed Forces in Japan
USCAR Legislation 1957, Ryukyu Islands (United States Civil Administration, 1950-1972)
A Complete Collection of Outstanding Proclamations, Ordinances and Directives with Amendments Thereto Issued by The United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands and Its Predecessors Since 1945.
1951 US-Japan Mutual Security Treaty
The Origins of the Bilateral Okinawa Problem: Okinawa in Postwar U.S.-Japan Relations, 1945-1952, (Robert D Eldridge), London & New York: Routledge, 2016
First published in 2001 by Garland Publishing, Inc., the book is an in-depth examination of the “Okinawa Problem” in the postwar U.S.-Japan relationship since 1945, the context of bilateral and international political & security relations through the presence of U.S. military bases, as well as the complex social & administrative relationship between Tokyo and Okinawa, tracing back the early political and cultural history of the Ryukyu Kingdom and its relations with both Japan & China.
U.S. Military | Okinawa | Vietnam War | Japan | This Week | 1969, (John Edwards), Thames TV
29 May 1969, documentary film featuring journalist John Edwards traveling to the U.S.-occupied Okinawa, home of one of the largest US overseas bases, and speaking to the locals about their changing attitude towards the US military especially with the escalation of the Vietnam conflict.
B yen, Wikipedia
Entry on B-type military script used in postwar U.S.-occupied Okinawa between 15 April 15 1946 and September 1958.
"By Command of Major General Eagles”: Archival Documents and Lived Historical Experience, (Alan Christy), Medium.com
19 January 2016, article on The Gail Project at UC Santa Cruz, which reviewed about 9000 documents gathered from the National Archives on U.S. military-occupation Okinawa between 1945 and 1972, including an analysis of the American Military Government Directive No.9, ‘Declaration of Cameras and Photographic Supplies,’ which explains the non-existing photographs taken by locals in Okinawa from the period.
Photos Taken by American Service Members:
Okinawa Color Slides - Early 1950s
Remembering Okinawa History - Home page
Ernest Gordon Bradford Postwar Photography on Okinawa from 1949 to 1968
Infant Care in Taira, Okinawa | 1950-60’s
Stunning Photos Show Everyday Life Of Okinawa, Japan in the 1950s
Okinawa Special Collection: Okinawa Special Collection Digital Archives, University of Hawaii
Prange Collection on Postwar Japan, University Libraries, University of Maryland
Prange exhibit recalls Occupation's censorship, (Eric Johnston), Japan Times
31 May 1999, news article on Prange exhibit, Civic Censorship Detachment, 1945-1949
Revelations in Newly Released Documents about US Nuclear Weapons and Okinawa Fuel NHK Documentary, (Robert Wampler), the National Security Archive
14 May 1997, announcement of declassified U.S. documents obtained by NSA that shed important light on the role Okinawa and U.S. military bases there in U.S.-Japanese relations and American strategy in the Pacific, including NSSM 5, the National Security Council study produced in the spring of 1969 which analyzed the U.S. objectives and negotiating position on Okinawan reversion, with particular attention given to the question of the future of U.S. nuclear weapons based on the island.
Achieving Reversion: Protest and Authority in Okinawa, 1952-70, (Christopher Aldous), Modern Asian Studies Journal, Cambridge University Press
13 May 2003, journal research article on Okinawan struggle for reversion to Japanese administration.
List of Main Crimes Committed and Incidents Concerning the U.S. Military on Okinawa - Excerpts, Okinawa Peace Network of Los Angeles
12 October 1995, translation from the Okinawa Times detailing U.S. military related crimes/incidents in Okinawa before and after the 1972 reversion (1948-1995).
U.S. Bases in Okinawa & related issues
Maps of US Military Bases in Okinawa, George Washington University Libraries
United States Forces Japan, wikiwand
Comprehensive entry on USFJ'‘s history, social & environmental issues related to their presence in Okinawa, and lists of former & current facilities.
https://www.mod.go.jp/en/publ/w_paper/index.html, Japan’s Ministry of Defense
Defense of Japan Annual White Paper, 2014-2022
Camp Kinser / Makiminato Service Area / Supply Site, Global Security
Marine Corps logistics operations base in Urasoe City, Naha, spanning about one million square feet of warehouse space holding war reserve supplies on Okinawa that would support U.S. operations.
Base-Related Data & Issues, Okinawa Prefecture Government, D.C. Office
Myth, Protest and Struggle in Okinawa, (Miyume Tanji), Sheffield Center for Japanese Studies/Routledge Series
2006 academic book charting Ryukyu Kingdom’s annexation to Japan in the late 19th century, devastation caused by WWII, direct occupation of post-war Okinawa and continued presence of the US military forces in the wake of reversion to Japan in 1972. Drawing on original interview material with Okinawan protestors and in-depth analysis of protest history, Tanji explores how the unity of the Okinawan community of protest has come to rest increasingly on the politics of myth and the imagination.
In Okinawa, Discrimination Has a Number, Jon Reinsch
14 October 2015, blog post on how Okinawa, with just 0.6% of Japan’s total area, accounts for 73.8% of the U.S. base presence in Japan, testifying the burden of military bases on Okinawa.
50th anniversary of Okinawa reversion: Okinawa is still saddled by U.S. military burden, (Mika Kuniyoshi), The Asahi Shimbun
14 May 2022, article contrasting the difference in the U.S. military burden on Okinawa vs. mainland Japan and the current decline of Okinawa’s economy.
Documents show concerns from Okinawa over US base presence, (Shokichi Kuroda), The Asahi Shimbun
13 January 2020, article on diplomatic records disclosed by the Foreign Ministry on 25 December 2020 revealing the detailed discussions between Tokyo and Okinawa over the 1969 Japan-U.S. joint statement concerning the island’s return to Japanese sovereignty, showing how Okinawa became home to so many U.S. military bases after its reversion to Japan in 1972.
Man captures Okinawa beauty in shadow of military project, (Amane Shimazaki), The Asahi Shimbun
17 January 2021, article on a castle of anemone fish in the Oura Bay, off the Hekono Dist. of Nago, the construction site for the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.
U.S. base project in Okinawa now in 3rd year amid more uncertainty, (Shinichi Fujiwara, Ryo Aibara), The Asahi Shimbun
14 Dec 2020, article compiled from reports on U.S. base project at Henoko District, Nago to relocate Futenma Air Station & related issues.
Henoko-Ōura Coastal Waters Hope Spot, Nature Conservation Society of Japan (NACS-J)
Facebook page with updates on activities of the NGO NACS-J to protect the coral reefs of Henoko and Oura Bay, including Save the Dugong campaign.
In Their Fight to Stop a New US Military Base, Okinawans Confront Two Colonizers, (Maia Hibbet), The Nation
16 May 2019, article featuring Yonaha-Tursi (Okinawan living in New Jersey) and the Henoko-Oura protest against the construction of a new base in Henoko-Oura Bay, Nago City.
A rocky way forward for Henoko base, (Temo Dias, Hina Murayama), Japan Times
27 February 2019, opinion article on Henoko base disputes, the area in Henoko-Oura Bay under construction to relocate Futenma Air Station. Disputes include:
Engineering tests (2014) that revealed the seafloor as “soft as mayonnaise,” with an N-value of 0, unable to stably hold the large military construction [including a large portion of the landing airstrips, fueling docks, and support facilities] without sinking (that would require a minimum N-value of 50).
Two active earthquake fault lines, along with a 50-meter depression and a danger of trench earthquakes underneath the bay.
In December 2018, the Abe Cabinet decided to reallocate funds for the seawall on the Oura Bay side, with no budget plans for it “until 2020 fiscal year or later” while the new construction plans are in limbo.
New design was revealed at the end of January 2019, with the plan to use a sand compaction method to solidify the seabed for the construction: driving casing pipes approximately 60 meters into the seabed, which are to be filled with sand that is slowly released and compacted to form pillars. Over 60,000 pillars are called for in the plans.
Okinawans Oppose Government-Backed US Base Move in Non-binding Referendum, Nippon.com
25 February 2019, news article on the timeline of Futenma Base dispute.
U.S. Veterans (and the Okinawa Dugong) Reveal MCAS Futenma’s Infringement of U.S. Navy’s Safety Standards: Call for Immediate Closure of the Base, (Miyume Tanji, Daniel Broudy), The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus
15 April 2018, essay detailing the danger posed by Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Futenma in the heart of Ginowan City, with cases of incidents and crimes related to U.S. service members, and stressing how residents, schools, hospitals and other public facilities refused to bow, ‘clear out’ and make space for the occupying forces’ ‘clear zones’ policy.
Futenma: ‘The Most Dangerous Base in the World,’ (Douglas Lummis), The Diplomat
30 March 2018, article on ‘clear zones’ and the danger posed by MCAS Futenma in Ginowan City, calling for the base closure before the next big accident.
U.S. Military Base Construction at Henoko-Oura Bay and the Okinawan Governor’s Strategy to Stop It, (Hideki Yoshikawa), The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus
15 January 2018, academic paper on Okinawa anti-base struggle focusing on recent developments in the ongoing (20-year) contest between the people and government of Okinawa and the governments of the United States and Japan regarding the construction of U.S. base at Henoko-Oura Bay.
Object from US military helicopter falls onto elementary school in Okinawa, Mainichi Japan
13 December 2017, report of a window frame fell from a CH-53 transport helicopter at the Futenma No. 2 Elementary School in Ginowan, causing a stone to hit and injure a student.
Object, possibly from U.S. military plane, falls on Okinawa nursery school, Japan Times
7 December 2017, report on an object falling onto Midorigaoka Daycare Center in Ginowan City, several hundred meters from MCAS Futenma, as a U.S. military plane flew overhead.
U.S. military chopper bursts into flames on landing in Okinawa, Kyodo News
11 October 2017, brief news & video on a U.S. CH-53E transport helicopter from MCAS Futenma crash landed and bursted into flames in the Northern Training Area, a few hundred meters from a residential area of Higashi Village.
U.S. military to ground CH-53 helicopters after accident in Okinawa, Kyodo News
12 October 2017, article detailing the crash and USFJ’s inspection of the aircraft’s safety.
F-35 loses aircraft panel during training flight near Okinawa, (Valerie Insinna), Defense News
4 December 2017, report on a U.S. Air Force F-35 deployed to Kadena Air Base in Japan losing a panel during a Nov. 30 training flight over the Pacific Ocean.
US grounds Osprey fleet in Japan after aircraft crashes off Okinawa, (Justin McCurry), the Guardian
13 December 2016, article reporting the U.S. military grounded its fleet of Osprey aircraft in Japan after one MV-22 Osprey crash-landed in shallow water off the coast of Nago, Okinawa.
U.S. military helicopter crashes in Okinawa, Reuters
5 August 2013, report on a U.S. Air Force HH-60 rescue helicopter belong to Kadena Air Base crashing near Camp Hansen, Okinawa
Background Brief on CH-53 Helicopter Accident, U.S. Embassy & Consulates in Japan
27 August 2004, transcript of a briefing on a Marine Corps CH-53D heavy-lift transport helicopter crashed at Okinawa International University in Ginowan City while attempting to make an emergency landing at MCAS Futenma on 13 August 2004.
Camp Gonsalves, Wikipedia
Also known as the Northern Training Area - a Marine Corps Jungle Warfare Training Center, the largest U.S training facility in Okinawa across the villages of Kunigami and Higashi, located in the Yanbaru forest protected area. In 1958, the early years of the Vietnam War, the Northern Training Area was established as a counter-guerilla school.
Okinawa women join fight to protect Ritidian, stop militarism on Guam and Okinawa, (John I Borja), Guam Pacific Daily News
25 October 2017, article on a plan to build a new Marine Corps Base on Guam in preparation for the relocation of approximately 5,000 Marines from Okinawa, comparing similarities between local efforts to protect Ritidian, Guam & neighboring lands from the planned live fire training range complex, and the resistance against military helipads surrounding Takae and the Yanbaru Forest in Okinawa.
Message from Takae , Youtube
29 January 2017, documentary movie about Takae, Okinawa and sit-ins protested U.S. military helicopter landing zones
Okinawa: NGO Appeal to the United Nations and to US Military and Government over Base Matters, December 2015 and December 2016, (Hideki Yoshikawa, Gavan McCormack), The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus
15 December 2016, journal article on the struggle of Okinawa under the other two bilateral frameworks, the U.S. Japanese Security Treaty and the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), exemplifying in the construction of helipads in the Yanbaru forest for the return of half of the U.S. military’s Northern Training Area to Okinawa according to SACO agreements, detailing how the construction of helipads and a new base have been carried out by the Japanese government, and the various forms of human rights violations involved.
A Letter from Takae, Okinawa, (Hiroyuki Hamada, Ikuko Isa), Counterpunch
31 August 2016, news article with a letter from activist Ikuko Isa protesting the relocation of helicopter landing zones in Takae, the Yanbaru forest protected area.
What US Citizens Can Do for Takae, Project Disagree
22 July 2016, article on the Special Action Committee on Okinawa (SACO) agreement, stipulating the 3,987ha (or 9,852 acres) land handover concerned the Northern Training Area with the condition that the relocation of "helicopter landing zones" from the areas of handover to the remaining part of the Northern Training Area.
VIETNAM: OKINAWA's Forgotten War, (Jon Mitchell), The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus
20 April 2015, article detailing Okinawa as the forgotten Pentagon’s launchpad for the war effort in Vietnam.
Environmental issues
Resilience of the Community against Environmental Pollution: The Knowledge Production Process of Local Activism on PFAS Contamination on US Military Bases in Okinawa, (Keisuke Mori), Okinawan Journal of Island Studies
2022, academic article on how local communities have recognized and responded to the perand polyfl uoroalkyl substance (PFAS) contamination caused by US military bases in Okinawa Prefecture and how they have shaped PFAS pollution control as a public issue.
Toxin blood levels up to 14 times national average among Okinawa residents near US bases, the Mainichi Japan
5 November 2022, news report on blood levels of potentially cancer-causing organic fluorine compounds among residents of Okinawa Prefecture, where toxic chemicals have been detected in high concentration in rivers and springs near U.S. military bases, found to be up to 14 times the nationwide average in 2022, followed a study conducted in June & July by a citizens' group, consisting of an environmental scientist and others in Okinawa.
U.S. Military Accountability for PFAS Contamination on Bases in Okinawa, (Craig T. Donovan), American Bar Association-ABA
18 February 2022, publication on PFAS [per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances] contamination originated from MCAS Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa, with the release of approximately 64,000 liters of wastewater contained fire-fighting foam into the municipal sewer system on August 26, 2021.
U.S. MILITARY HID FUEL PIPELINE FLAWS FROM PUBLIC IN OKINAWA, (Jon Mitchell), The Intercept
20 December 2021, article on a leaked 2014 report produced under contract for the Defense Logistics Agency Energy (DLA-E) that supplies fuel to military facilities, detailing significant deficiencies and leakages in the pipelines used by U.S. military to shuttle fuel to U.S. Marine Corps and Air Force warplanes in Okinawa, some of which run beneath civilian communities.
Was Agent Orange Used in Okinawa?, Hill & Ponton P.A.
18 August 2020, article on the U.S. military usage of Agent Orange to clear dense foliage and trees in Vietnam from 1962 to 1971 and the release of an 82-page report (under the Freedom of Information Act - FOIA) prepared by the United States Army, Navy, and Marine Corps regarding previously unknown data about Agent Orange exposure in Okinawa, as well as additional evidence proving the existence of Agent Orange on Okinawa military bases.
PFAS Contamination from US Military Facilities in mainland Japan and Okinawa, (Jon Mitchell), The Asia-Pacific Journal Japan Focus
15 August 2020, article assessing the most serious environmental threats to Japan and Okinawa associated with PFAS and other chemicals originating at U.S. bases, with internal reports obtained under FOIA revealing that U.S. military operations have been polluting Okinawa and mainland Japan with PFAS via three principal pathways: (1) firefighter training; (2) accidental leaks of AFFF; and (3) disposal of AFFF. Contamination dates from the 1970s and is ongoing; PFAS has spread into neighboring communities, impacting drinking water supplies, and the problem has been exacerbated by negligent handling and disposal of AFFF stocks.
US bases finally provides samples of potentially toxic soil, The Asahi Shimbun
12 May 2020, news article on the U.S. military providing soil samples following requests from prefectural authorities and local government for access to the soil after the April 10 spill at the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan City. U.S. officials disclosed that about 227,000 liters of foam leaked, of which about 144,000 liters ended up flowing in a neighborhood ditch and released potentially harmful substances into the air.
US air bases blamed for fluorinated pollutants on Japanese islandinated-pollutants-on-japanese-island/3010607.article, (Rebecca Trager), Chemistry World
12 June 2019, article on chemical contamination in Okinawa’s waterways, with the detection of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) contained in firefighting foams around the U.S. Kadena Air Base and Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, which have long been used for training exercises at U.S. military facilities on Okinawa.
In Ishigaki, the construction of a Japanese military base is reopening old wounds, (Philippe Mesmer), Le Monde
15 May 2022, news report on the construction of JSDF missile base in Ishigaki island & local conflicting emotions and opinions.
As tensions in East Asia mount, Japan looks to beef up Okinawa defense, (Eric Johnston), Japan Times
1 March 2022, article on the construction of JSDF missile base in Ishigaki, part of a larger strategy of building up defenses in the Nansei Islands with numerous JSDF units, as tensions rise in East Asia with China’s assertiveness.
The Island Paradise Near the Front Line of Tensions Over Taiwan, (Ben Dooley, Hisako Ueno), NYT
16 December 2021, article on the new JSDF missile base in Ishigaki Island and a drastic shift in Japan’s views on China and renewed support for Taiwan.
Japan missile plan on Ishigaki island helps boost Taiwan defense, (Louise Watt), Nikkei Asia
20 August 2021, article on Japan’s plan to deploy anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles and hundreds of troops on Ishigaki island, 300 kilometers from Taiwan, amid a growing Chinese naval presence in the area and tensions between Beijing and Washington over Taiwan & other issues.
Shiraho Coral Reefs, Ishigaki Island
Coral reef off Okinawa island revived after starfish removed, (AMANE SHIMAZAKI/ Staff Writer), the Asahi Shimbun
30 March 2021, article with photos & video by underwater photographer Kazushige Horiguchi capturing some of the revived coral in waters off Sakieda Bay of Ishigakijima.
Are Coral Reefs Reacting to Climate Change, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology
WWF Coral Reef Conservation Research Center celebrates its 20th anniversary, WWF Shiraho Coral Village
22 April 2020, blog post reflecting on the center’s conservation efforts of the coral reef ecosystem in Shiraho.
Coral Conservation in Ishigaki, BonnieWaycott.com
21 November 2015, post on her travel to Okinawa’s Ishigaki Island for NHK’s travel programme, Journeys in Japan, on Shiraho’s underwater environment and efforts to cultivate and protect the coral reefs.
Overview and summary of survey results at Ishigaki Island and Shiraho Coral Reef, WWF Shiraho Coral Village
06 March 2012, detailed report on the results of various surveys since 2000 to clarify the current state of the coral reef environment, with data used as basis for the conservation of coral reefs.
Construction of New Ishigaki Airport and Shiraho Coral Reefs, Wikipedia
Japan Reverses Plan to Build A Runway Over a Coral Reef, the NYT Archive
27 April 1989, brief report on Japanese government canceling plans to build a new airport over the world's largest surviving blue coral reef at the southern tip of the Japanese archipelago after a long battle with residents of Shiraho, Ishigaki & environmental groups all around the world, moving the construction site to the vicinity of Karadake Mountain in northern Shiraho with the construction of a containment dam to prevent the runoff of red clay from entering the sea.
Coral Reef Imperiled : Airport Row Splits People of Idyllic Isle, (Karl Schoenberger), LA Times
21 July 1988, detailed report on Shiraho coral reefs, the world’s oldest & largest blue coral in danger of being destroyed by the plan for New Ishigaki Airport construction on Shiraho lagoon & Shiraho residents’ opposition to the plan in fear of the alleged government‘s secret plans of militarizing the island.
