International Human Rights Day
Sexual Violence by the U.S. Military
in Okinawa: What Can We Do?
December 10, 2012
Michiko Hase
Active Duty Forces Abroad
(12/31/2011)
U.S. Military Personnel in Japan
(3/31/2009)
•
•
•
•
Marine Corps 14,951
Air Force
12,490
Navy
6,766
Army
2,501
Total
36,708
＊ 68.4% are in Okinawa
U.S. Military in Okinawa
~Historical View~
1945 3/26—6/23(9/7) Battle of Okinawa
(one in four Okinawans died)
8/15 Japan surrenders
1952 4/28 Occupation of Japan ends
Okinawa -- US military rule (--1972 )
1972 5/15 Reversion of Okinawa to Japan
Today 74% of US military facilities in Japan are in
Okinawa (0.6% of Japan’s total area)
U.S. Military in Okinawa Today
Number of US military facilities
(3/31/2010)
34
Areas of US military facilities
(3/31/2010)
10.2% of total area of Okinawa
prefecture (18.4% of Okinawa Island)
73.9% of exclusive US military
facilities in Japan
US military personnel, civilian
employees, family members
(9/30/2009)
Total – 44,895
• Military personnel 24,612 (68.4%
of total US military personnel in
Japan, 35,965)
•Civilian employees 1,381
•Family members 18,902
Sexual Violence by US Military
in Okinawa
Most notorious cases:
• 1955 -- a 6-year-old girl was abducted, raped
and brutally murdered by a US serviceman
• 1995 -- a 12-year-old girl was abducted and
raped by 3 servicemen
• May 1972 ~ Sept 2011 144 arrests in 127
cases of rape or attempted rape
• But many more cases like Yumi’s in the film
Sexual violence by U.S. military
in Okinawa, 2012
• August 21 -- a woman was sexually assaulted
and injured by a marine corporal (arrested)
• October 16 -- a woman was gang-raped by
two sailors
-- Nov. 6 – prosecuted for rape and assault;
one of them also for robbery
• October 19 -- Night-time curfew (11:00pm to
5:00am) placed on all U.S. troops in Japan
Curfew is ineffective
• November 2 -- a heavily intoxicated airman broke
into an apartment and punched a junior-highschool boy; no arrest made by Okinawa police
perpetrator in US custody and not a “heinous
crime”
• November 18 -- a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant
trespassed in a room of a building
• December 1 -- US military in Okinawa bans
drinking outside bases (except in one’s own
home) at all times; drinking on bases banned
between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.
＊Curfew imposed in 2000 & 2008 but ineffective
Sexual Violence within U.S. Military
Marine Corps Report “Sexual Assault Prevention
and Response Campaign Plan 2012” (June 20,
2012)
• Okinawa: 67 sexual assault cases reported on
Marine bases in Okinawa (Oct. 2010 – Sept. 2011)
• Per capita rate is twice as high as that on Marine
bases in the U.S.
DOD Sexual Assault Response and Prevention
Report (April 13, 2012)
• FY2010--2617 persons reported; 190,000
estimated victims
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta
on sexual violence in US military
“The military stands for
and defends the values
of good order and
discipline; we’ve got to
make sure that women
are protected from any
kind of assault.”
(September 2012 interview)
Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA)
• A SOFA:
– Is a bi-lateral international agreement that
defines legal rights and obligations of the
parties
– Supersedes US and host-nation domestic law
– Provides “facilities and areas” for use by US
forces in host country
– Creates rights and protections for U.S. military
personnel & civilian employees
-- NO legislative consent (ratification) required
Jurisdiction of SOFA criminal cases in
Japan
“Official duty” protection
A SOFA member who is arrested off-base while
in an official-duty status cannot be tried by
the Japanese authorities U.S. military has
jurisdiction
“In official-duty status”: a person is doing
something on behalf of the U.S. government
(including commuting between home and a
work function)
Jurisdiction of SOFA criminal cases in
Japan – revised November 2011
1. Drunk driving – no “official duty” protection
(even if drinking took place at official function)
Japan has primary jurisdiction
2. Civilian employees in official-duty status --when
US authorities do not prosecute  Japan can
request to try the case (US still has primary
jurisdiction)
NATO
Environmental
cleanup of
closed bases
Children of US
personnel and
local person
U.S. is
responsible for
cleanup
Germany, UK,
Sweden have
individual
agreements
with US to
cooperate re:
child support
JAPAN/
SOUTH KOREA
No provision
No provision
12 MV-22 Ospreys＊ deployed to
Okinawa despite massive protests
October 1-6, 2012
＊Vertical take-off and landing transport aircraft
Dangerous Military Aircraft
• Crashes --7 crashes with a total of 36 fatalities
--April 2010 (Afghanistan) 4 killed, 16 injured
--April 2012 (Morocco) 2 killed, 2 injured
--June 2012 (Florida) 5 injured
• Noise
• Low-frequency noise
• Training in Hawai’i canceled (August 2012) 
possible impact on archaeological resources
by downwash generated by the aircraft
Okinawans Protest against
Deployment of Ospreys
9/9/2012
100,000 Okinawans protest
Police forcibly remove sit-in
protesters in front of a base gate
U.S. Military Budget
• Government estimates of military spending -Department of Defense budget only
• Military-related costs in other departments:
-- Veterans’ benefits (Dept. of Veterans Affairs)
-- Nuclear weapons & research (Dept. of Energy)
-- Interest on the national debt (mostly due to
military spending; U.S. Treasury)
• 2012 -- $1,372 billion, or 48% of the total U.S.
budget (War Resisters League ).
http://www.usfederalbudget.us/defense_budget_2012_3.html
2009 Fiscal Year
Total Outlays (Federal Funds): $2,650 billion
MILITARY: 54% and $1,449 billion
NON-MILITARY: 46% and $1,210 billion
http://www.warresisters.org/pages/piechart.htm
U.S. Military Spending vs. The World
• U.S. military spending – Dept. of Defense plus
nuclear weapons – is equal to the military
spending of the next 15 countries combined.
• U.S. share of:
--Military spending : 47 % of the world’s total
--GDP: about 21 % of the world’s total
What Can We Do?
• Write to your representatives to Congress
--sponsor a hearing on sexual violence
committed by US military in Okinawa
--redirect of the use of tax money away from
the military
• Spread the word in your community
--Living Along the Fencleine
--Visit websites and blogs
• Follow news and write to news organizations
• Other ideas?
Thank you!
U.S. military spending
• In 2011, the United States spends 58 percent of
the total defense dollars paid out by the world's
top 10 military powers, which combined for
$1.19 trillion in military funding in 2011. With its
unparalleled global reach, the US outspends
China, the next-biggest military power, by nearly
6-to-1.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/06/defen
se-spending-fact-of-the-day_n_1746685.html
How the Network Got Started
1995 12-year-old girl abducted & raped by
3 US servicemen in Okinawa
1996 Okinawan women’s “peace caravan” –
SF, Washington, DC, NYC, Honolulu
1997 International meeting in Okinawa –
Okinawa, South Korea, Philippines, Japan,
continental U.S.
Past Network Meetings
• 1997 Okinawa
• 1998 Washington, D.C. – “East Asia-U.S.
Women’s Network against U.S. Militarism”
• 2000 Okinawa – Puerto Rican activist joined
the meeting  “East Asia-U.S.-Puerto Rico
Women’s Network against U.S. Militarism”
• 2002 South Korea – hosted by SAFE Korea
(new coalition of women’s groups)
Past Network Meetings - 2
• 2004 Philippines – hosted by Philippine
Women’s Network for Peace and Security
--Hawai’i joined South Korea, Puerto Rico, the
United States, and the Philippines
• 2007 San Francisco – hosted by Women for
Genuine Security
-- Guam/Guahan joined South Korea, Japan,
Okinawa, Puerto Rico, US, and Philippines
Past Network Meetings - 3
• 2009 Guam/Guahan –hosted by 9 local
groups
-- Women from Australia & Republic of Belau
joined Okinawa, South Korea, Puerto Rico,
Hawai'i, Philippines, Japan, U.S.
• 2012 Puerto Rico
Historical Context
• http://www.genuinesecurity.org/aboutus/timeline.html
• Puerto Rico, Philippines, Guam -- colonized by
Spain.
• 1898 Treaty of Paris (Spanish-American War)-ceded to the United States
• World War II -- Philippines and Guam were
occupied first by Japan and then by the United
States
Historical Context - 2
• Philippines – independence in 1946
• Guam & Puerto Rico – “unincorporated
territories” of US
-- US citizenship (P.R. 1917; Guam:1950 )
-- No voting rights in presidential elections
-- A delegate in House of Representatives with
limited voting privileges
Historical Context - 3
Japanese colonialism and militarism
• Okinawa, South Korea, Philippines, Guam -colonized or occupied by Japan
• Hawai’i was attached by Japanese warplanes
in 1941
Military Bases and Tourism
Commonalities among Guam, Hawai’i,
Okinawa (& P.R.)
• Climate & Vegetation
• U.S. military presence
• Tourism industry
Issues
• Military toxics & environmental
contamination
-- Radioactive materials
-- Chemicals
-- Noise pollution
• Health issues
-- Cancers (Vieques, P.R., Guam, Texas)
-- Cerebral palsy (Philippines)
Issues - 2
• Violence against women & girls
-- 1995 Rape of 12-year-old girl in Okinawa
-- 2005 Rape of Nichole J. (22) in Philippines
-- Many unreported cases (e.g., Yumi in film)
• Other crimes
-- 2002 US tank killed 2 junior high school girls
in South Korea
-- Military planes/helicopter crashes
-- Thefts, burglary, robbery
Issues - 3
• Amerasian children--Philippines, Okinawa,
South Korea
-- US soldier-father does not:
*acknowledge child
*provide child support
-- Discrimination in host countries
* esp. children of African American soldiers
-- No int’l agreement b/w US & host countries
Issues - 4
• Military budget
-- U.S. : 48% of federal budget
-- Japan: “sympathy budget” (Japan pays for
rent, Japanese employees, etc.) in addition to
“Host Nation Support”
• Military recruitment – ROTC, JROTC
• Distorted local economy dependence on
the military
Activities
• International meetings & reports back
• Education
-- anti-militarism fashion show (WGS, SF, Guam)
-- peace caravan (Okinawan women)
-- postcards (South Korea, WGS)
-- documentary films (South Korea, WGS)
• Campaigns
-- Support for Lolas, Nicole J (Philippines)
-- !000 letters to 1000 fathers of Amerasian children
(Philippines)
--Bumper sticker campaign (Guam)
Activities
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•
•
•
•
Research & publication
Five-language peace activist dictionary
Lobbying
Letter writing
Petitions/resolutions
-- Resolution demanding release of political
prisoner (Puerto Rico)
• Statements
-- Statement issued after 3.11 (less military
spending and more resources for relief)
Activities
• Work with prostituted women
--Training & job training (Philippines)
-- Alternative work & store (Philippines)
-- Counseling (South Korea, Philippines)
-- Health care (South Korea)
-- Art therapy (South Korea)
• Art – quilts, fabric art, mandala, collective
painting, dance, music
• Websites, Facebook
• Collaboration with other groups
-- Co-sponsor event with Code Pink (WGS)
-- Collaborate with the Occupy movement?