Sexual Assault Cases Involving U.S. Service Members Strain Relations With JapanExBulletin

Allegations of sexual assaults by U.S. servicemen on women in Okinawa have been a source of irritation for the U.S.-Japan alliance, with several cases that had been kept secret now coming to light.

SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:

Before we begin this next story, we want to let you know that we're talking about sexual assault, including crimes involving a child. These are sexual crimes committed by U.S. service members in Japan. A Japanese court held a preliminary hearing today for a U.S. airman accused of abducting and sexually assaulting a Japanese minor. This case and other similar allegations are putting pressure on a key U.S. alliance in a strategic location. NPR's Anthony Kuhn reports.

ANTHONY KUHN, BYLINE: In court on the island of Okinawa, Airman Brennon Washington pleaded not guilty. He denied knowing the girl he picked up was under 16 and said she consented to sex. A total of five similar cases have come to light since June. Two of them resulted in arrests. Neither U.S. nor Japanese authorities reported the arrests to the Okinawa prefectural government. Denny Tamaki is the governor of Okinawa.

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DENNY TAMAKI: (Speaking Japanese).

KUHN: “If there is a lack of discipline within the United States military,” he told reporters, “it is a very serious situation, and I am furious.” Pentagon spokesman Air Force Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said the Pentagon was troubled by the allegations but…

(EXCERPT FROM ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PATRICK RYDER: The alleged behavior of these members does not reflect the core values ​​of the United States military, nor does it reflect the conduct of the overwhelming majority of Japan-based personnel that we have forward deployed.

KUHN: U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel expressed regret over the incidents but did not apologize. Okinawa is home to about 70 percent of Japan’s U.S. military bases on less than 1 percent of its territory, and sexual crimes involving U.S. service members have angered locals for decades. The Japanese government does not publish comprehensive statistics, but Harumi Miyagi, a researcher on Okinawan women’s history, keeps a tally of known cases.

HARUMI MIYAGI: (Through interpreter) We have counted the cases that have been revealed, and so far the total is nearly a thousand cases between 1945 and 2021.

KUHN: Many cases are never prosecuted, she adds, and the numbers don't tell the whole story.

MIYAGI: (through interpreter) The statistics do not reflect the fear and screams of women who have been raped.

KUHN: Some Japanese have questioned the central government's reasons for not informing Okinawan authorities about these cases. Fumiaki Nozoe is a specialist in U.S.-Japan relations at Okinawa International University.

FUMIAKI NOZOE: (Through interpreter) The Foreign Ministry claims that it did not disclose this information to protect the victim's privacy. But in reality, it was to protect the United States. The problem is that they did not inform the local authorities for political reasons.

KUHN: Nozoe discusses two possible scenarios: a summit in April between President Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and last month’s Okinawa prefectural assembly elections. Nozoe says Tokyo didn’t want the U.S. military issue to spoil either event, and it didn’t. But in 1995, the rape of a 12-year-old Okinawan girl by three U.S. servicemen led to a U.S.-Japan agreement to relocate some Marines from Okinawa to Guam. Nozoe says the circumstances today are different than in 1995.

NOZOE: (through interpreter) I don't think it will go that far. Today, with China's military rise and North Korea's nuclear and missile development, there is some support in Japan and Okinawa for U.S. military bases.

KUHN: But on Wednesday, the Okinawa prefectural assembly passed a resolution calling for a review of the U.S.-Japan agreement, which specifies which country has jurisdiction over U.S. military suspects. They added that the assembly was protesting with, as they put it, a fury that takes over our entire bodies.

Anthony Kuhn, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF SEX BRAIN SONG “CRY”)

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