Okinawa seeks review of US forces pact after Marine killing

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 9 Oct, 10:37 · Archive

Okinawa's assembly has called for a review of the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement after a US Marine was accused of killing a local woman.

The Okinawa prefectural assembly adopted the resolution on Friday, calling for the agreement that governs the stationing of United States military forces on the island to be revised. The call came after the Marine was accused of killing a local woman. The assembly sent the resolution to the US embassy, with a statement also addressed to the Japanese government.

Ryotaro Odo, who heads the assembly's special committee on US military bases, said the US military was "not functioning as an organisation", pointing to failures in training and discipline. He called the killing "extremely heinous and despicable" and urged the military to cooperate with investigators and discipline those responsible. Some assembly members opposed the resolution because it failed to demand the dismissal of the US military chief in Okinawa.

The case has sparked demonstrations in Tokyo and Okinawa. The US military paused its operations for 48 hours from Wednesday and imposed a 30-day curfew from midnight to 5am starting on Friday. Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has condemned the "heinous" crime, and Tokyo has called in the US ambassador and the US forces commander to protest. The island hosts the majority of the 54,000 US soldiers stationed in Japan, and crimes by US personnel have long sparked local protests.

Okinawa seeks review of US forces pact after Marine killing — Image: The Japan Times

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How it is being reported

Japan’s Okinawa calls for review of US forces pact after killingAssembly on the island, where tens of thousands of US soldiers are stationed, seeks change after Marine arrested.Al Jazeera · 9 Oct, 09:51
Okinawa resolution calls for revision of U.S. forces pact after murderThat 1960 pact is often accused of rendering U.S. military bases virtually extraterritorial and immune to Japan's domestic laws.The Japan Times · 9 Oct, 08:05

In this story: Okinawa · Japan · United States · Devin Jacob Ballard · Anna Yagi · Ryotaro Odo · Sanae Takaichi

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