Okinawa Governor Kosa strongly protests the arrest of a US Marine on suspicion of robbery and murder

Okinawa Prefecture Governor Genta Koja said on the 4th that the arrest of a Marine assigned to the U.S. military base Futenma (Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture) on suspicion of robbery and murder was ``absolutely unacceptable, and I feel extremely angry.'' He responded to an interview with reporters at the prefectural office. As Okinawa continues to be burdened with an excessive burden on bases, Mr. Koja, who has just taken office, will be asked how he will respond to the base issue.

In response to the arrest of a Marine in connection with the discovery of a woman's body in a hotel in Naha, Koja said, ``This will have a huge impact on the prefecture's citizens, who are forced to live next to the base, and will cause new concerns.'' He called on the U.S. military to clean up discipline, and stressed that the prefecture would ``deal with it strictly.'' He announced his intention to come to Tokyo soon and protest directly to Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Prior to this, in the morning of the same day, Mr. Koxia had a telephone conversation with US Ambassador to Japan Glass, strongly protesting the incident and requesting that it be prevented from happening again. It was also confirmed that the US side would fully cooperate with the investigation. Okinawa has had a conservative governor for the first time in 12 years, and it is believed that high-level communication with the Japanese government and the U.S. side has become easier, and the focus will be on whether effective measures can be taken to reduce the burden on bases and prevent recurrence.

In Okinawa, where approximately 70% of the facilities dedicated to the U.S. military in Japan are concentrated, there is no end to incidents and accidents involving U.S. military personnel. Regarding reducing the burden on the bases, Koja said, ``It's not like we can remove them right away, but we have to talk with the US side.''

The prefecture plans to summon Masaru Murai, director of the Ministry of Defense's Okinawa Defense Bureau, and others to the prefectural office on the 5th to protest the incident.