Japan’s Supreme Court has just ruled against an attempt by Okinawans to stop the construction of a new US Marine base in Henoko. This base is part of US efforts to contain China in the Indo-Pacific region and is replacing the Futenma air base which is dubbed the most dangerous in the world as it’s in a densely populated residential area.

72% of Okinawans voted against this new base in a 2019 referendum. Ever since, people in the Okinawa prefecture have been fighting through the courts to stop the construction of the base. There’s been years of mass protests and hunger strikes by the local community against this.

This base will cause huge environmental damage to Okinawa. The construction will destroy coral reefs and sea grass and endangers the 5000 species of marine life. The effect will be felt all over the island because Henoko, where the base is being built, has soft soil so massive amounts of soil will taken from elsewhere in Okinawa in order to build runways.

Okinawans have a terrible relationship with US military personnel on the island. US officers have been involved in hundreds of serious crimes in the area, including the ‘1995 incident’ in which three US marines kidnapped and raped a 12 year old Okinawan girl. This triggered mass protests and the subsequent plans to relocate the US base to the less populated area of Henoko.