For Robert D. Eldridge's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Twenty-five years ago, on Sept. 4, 1995, a 12-year-old girl was abducted, beaten and raped in the village of Kin, Okinawa Prefecture, by three U.S. servicemen — two marines and a naval medic.
Organizations like schools and companies can stand ready to help each other immediately after a crisis hits.
Civilians always pay the highest price in war.
Like many aspects of Japanese society, and the mix of politics, money, and the underworld, we may never know what actually happened.
The global pandemic has left Okinawa's tourist industry reeling.
Petitions became protests, and demands became demonstrations.
The Hagerty Incident would affect Japan-U.S. relations for years to come.
Defense Agency Director-General Munenori Akagi opposed using the Self-Defense Forces to put down civil disturbances.
The rewards of volunteering are enormous for one’s self and community.
The true lesson of the Battle of Okinawa may be that civilian deaths in war can and should be kept to the absolute minimum.
