Japan Aff Michigan
Rape Kills Okinawa’s Autonomy
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- Rape Kills Human Rights
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Rape Kills Okinawa’s AutonomyRape in Okinawa represents victimization and violation of Okinawa’s territorial and political autonomy Hook* and Siddle**, 03-*Director of the National Institute of Japanese Studies and professor of Japanese Politics and International Relations, University of Sheffield, **PhD in the Social history of Japan, lecturer in Japanese Studies at the University of Sheffield (Glenn D. and Richard, Japan and Okinawa: Structure and subjectivity, ed. by the authors, p. 11) Massive Politicization of the base issue has turned not just the present, but also the past, into a site of contestation. For many, the bases are inextricably linked with a historical narrative of victimization that stretches back to the days of the Ryukyu Kingdom. This dominant narrative of Okinawan victimization begins with the Satsuma invasion of 1609 and is punctuated with keywords like Ryūkyū shobun, sotetsu jigoku (palm-tree hell - the starvation period of the 1920s), tetsu no arashi (the Typhoon of Steel - Battle of Okinawa) and fukki (reversion). It culminates in the kichi mondai (base issue) and Okinawa's 'unfair treatment' at the hands of the central government. The importance of this victim-centred narrative lies not so much in its validity or otherwise as historical 'truth', but in its utility as an ideational resource for the construction and articulation of a contemporary Okinawan identity politics. The 1995 rape of the schoolgirl, for instance, was such a powerful event precisely because it resonated within this narrative, the victim representing yet another 'sacrificed daughter' at the hands of a military occupation, as evocative a symbol as the pure and innocent student nurses of the Himeyuri brigade killed in 1945. In the event, the rape was appropriated as a metaphor for the violation of Okinawan territorial and political autonomy, and thus both the gendered nature of the crime and the pain of the victim were subsumed within a wider nationalist politics of protest (Angst 2001).
(Yoichi, Alliance Adrift, Council on Foreign Relations Press New York, page 298) Massive “The question of the bases has been approached from peace, land, and the environment. But has it ever been approached from the human rights of women? It is extremely difficult to know what exactly is going on with sex offenses by U.S. soldiers. There have been cases to date which have been hushed up. The rape of the young schoolgirl is a violation of the human right of all the women of Okinawa.” As she spoke, her voice cracked and tears rolled uncontrollably down her cheeks. Many of the people who were watching the live television broadcast were touched. Imperialism is Root CauseThe colonial mentality of imperalism that is behind expansion into Japanese territory justifies crimes against women and the land. Only the plan can solve. PSLweb.org, 08 (Laci Armodei, PSLweb.org, “Okinawan Women Fight Against GI Abuses”, 3-4-08, http://www.pslweb.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8600) Massive The recent cases of sexual assault are only the most well known. Unknown numbers of women have been the victims of sexual and other violence for the entirety of the U.S. presence in Japan. There are also many other incidents, such as murder, harassment, drunk driving and property destruction that are regularly carried out by U.S. military personnel around bases. The crimes committed by U.S. troops are a product of the colonial mentality instilled by the military to serve the needs of imperialism. They take place in the context of the current plans of the U.S. government to expand its military presence Okinawa, Iwakuni and Kanagawa, Japan. Only the removal of U.S. bases abroad can bring such atrocities to an end. A growing movement in Okinawa, the Japanese mainland and throughout Asia is voicing this demand. Imperialist soldiers commit violence against women as a result of deep rooted racism PSLweb.org, 08 (Laci Armodei, PSLweb.org, “Okinawan Women Fight Against GI Abuses”, 3-4-08, http://www.pslweb.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=8600) Massive It is a typical trend for U.S. military personnel camped out on foreign lands to abuse the local population. Such incidents rarely surface. Violence against women is a common offense committed by imperialist soldiers. Such recurring criminal acts are not merely coincidental nor do they spring from a handful of "bad apples" such as Hadnott. Violence against the local population near U.S. military bases abroad is the direct result of the racism each soldier is indoctrinated with, and women are particularly vulnerable. The Army does its fair share to create the conditions for such crimes. The U.S. military uses 7,000 Filipinas to serve its soldiers in Okinawa. During the first Gulf War, rest-and-recreation ships were reportedly floated for the U.S. servicemen with 50 Filipino women each. As of one year ago, 900 Filipinas worked for $200 a month at "massage parlors" inside U.S. camps and bases in Iraq. In that context, the November 2005 rape of a 22-year-old Filipino woman by U.S. soldiers in Olongapo City, Philippines may have been shocking, but was hardly surprising. When Lance Corporal Daniel Smith was found guilty, the U.S. government quickly negotiated his release into U.S. custody by threatening to suspend joint military exercises in the Philippines. Directory: files files -> Answer True False 2 points Question 2 files -> Integer programming and game theory files -> 4 Integer Programming files -> Bpa vehicle Window Repair Scenario #1 task: Procure vehicle window relacement. Objective files -> Pop Warner History files -> North Carolina Inclusion Initiative Mapping Where Children with ieps are Being Served Purpose files -> Fall 2013 Spring 2014 Program Data: Standard 1 Exhibit 4d files -> Hanban – asia society confucius classrooms network 2010 request for proposal files -> Northern England’s set-jetting locations Download 1.23 Mb. Share with your friends:
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