News / Interviews

Okinawans no longer want to host US forces: Analyst

Monday, 14 March 2016 2:37 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 14 March 2016 2:35 PM ]

People hold banners as they listen to a speaker during a rally against a new US military base in Okinawa, in front of the National Diet in Tokyo on February 21, 2016. (AFP photo)

Press TV has interviewed Michael Penn, a journalist and political commentator in Tokyo, to discuss the alleged rape of a woman by an American sailor on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: It seems that this quite appalling crime has happened at the most inappropriate time as well. Do you see this increasing the opposition to the presence of Americans on Okinawa?

Penn: Well there is really no doubt about that. First of all this is exactly sort of reason why the Okinawan people in large majorities have been saying that they no longer want to disproportionately host US forces and in fact the marine who has been accused of this rape is from the exact base where they are building the US air base, Henoko base, which is in the news all of the time and just a few days ago the government and the Okinawa prefectural government, the central government and the Okinawa prefectural government settled out of court and they are in deep negotiations about the next step, so it came at a very sensitive time politically as well.

Press TV: And can you just very briefly tell us what will happen to this US serviceman?

Penn: Well he will be of course …, there will be an investigation and it will be determined whether or not this rape actually took place or not. He is under the US status of forces agreement so he is going to be handled through US procedures, I believe, not through Japanese procedures which is one of the reasons why …, one of the many issues that the local people do not feel very good about.

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