|
|
|
|
|
|
Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE July 12, 2005
|
|
| site design imagesparkle.com |
| December 28, 2003 |
Okinawa |
|
| |
 |
| Symbolic statues at the Yomitan Town Hall: Okinawa's legendary creature Seasur, and a statue on which the Article Nine of Japan's Constitution is engraved, declaring the permanent renunciation of war and military force as means to resolve conflicts. |
Okinawa, the southernmost island of Japan, was the first port of call of Peace Boat's 44th Global Voyage. In spite of its famous attractions for tourists: emerald green seas, delicious cuisine, sub-tropical climate, and friendly people, Okinawa is also known as a crucial geopolitical strategic point in Asia. As a result of the security treaty signed by the governments of Japan and the United States in 1951 in the midst of the Korean War, it is now home to 70 percent of all US military presence in Japan. |
|
|
 |
| A local guide gives a presentation on US bases directly in front of a base entrance |
Participants from Peace Boat first visited the Sakuma Art Museum. From the rooftop, we could look over into the Futenma US military base. Curator, Michio Sakuma, gave a presentation in front of the famous painting entitled, "View of the Battle of Okinawa." The powerful image, which reminds one of Picasso's "Guernica", was painted by Iri and Toshi Maruki who experienced the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and therefore empathized with the suffering Okinawan people experienced during World War II. Coupled with the lecture by Mr Sakuma, the painting offered a poignant reminder of the fact that innocent civilians are always the ones who suffer most from war. |
| |
Tragic stories surrounding the Battle of Okinawa abound. One such tragedy was the mass suicide in Chibichiri Cave, which took place as a result of government propaganda during World War II. Combining fear and nationalistic fervour, people were made to believe that they would be subjected to the most horrible abuses if captured and that it was better to commit suicide than to die by an American bullet.
Mr Shouichi Chibana, a statesman from the Yomitan Village who is famous for his active engagement in the movement to eradicate the US bases, talked to participants in front of the site where a mass suicide took place, telling the group how Okinawan people's minority status within Japanese society contributed to their decision to commit suicide and kill their own family members in this instance. They were attempting, Mr Chibana said, to prove that they were as Japanese as the people on the mainland were by clinging to wartime teachings and worshipping the Emperor till the moment of their deaths. Out of 140 people who were hiding from the US invasion, 83 Okinawans took their own lives. Survivors suffer from both physical and emotional scars, in most cases refusing to talk about their experiences in the cave to this day. |
| |
|
|
|
