Japan resumes work at disputed site for US base relocation
TOKYO — Japan’s central government resumed work at a disputed U.S. military base relocation site on Thursday even though Okinawa residents overwhelmingly see the project as an undemocratic imposition on the small southern island.
The initial stage of landfill work at Henoko on Okinawa’s east coast resumed Thursday morning, following the central government’s decision this week to reverse Okinawa’s earlier ban on landfill work at the site, said Satoshi Shirakata, a spokesman at the Okinawa Defence Bureau overseeing the project.
Construction workers were setting up floats using a crane to mark the designated landfill area, making it off-limits to the public, Shirakata said. Opponents gathered in paddle boats nearby, while Coast Guard patrol boats blocked them from reaching the site, and dozens of other demonstrators rallied outside a nearby U.S. base to protest.
Okinawa Gov. Denny Tamaki said it was “extremely regrettable” the central government forced its way just weeks after he proposed dialogue with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and other officials in Tokyo. He said he was seeking another meeting with Abe.