An antiwar activist in Okinawa convicted of torching the Hinomaru flag at a 1987 national athletic meet in his hometown is determined to continue his battle for "peace and equality" in the island prefecture, where the U.S. military maintains a heavy presence 40 years after its reversion to Japanese sovereignty.
Shoichi Chibana, a 64-year-old Buddhist monk from the village of Yomitan, says there is a "grim reality" in Okinawa: The heavy U.S. military presence compared with other parts of Japan means islanders still suffer from "structural discrimination."
Chibana recalls crying on May 15, 1972, when Okinawa reverted to Japanese control, because local antiwar protesters' hopes for a prefecture without military bases had been dashed.