NAGO, Okinawa Pref. -- This sleepy northern Okinawa city is gearing up to hold the first plebiscite in the nation on allowing the introduction of a U.S. military base, and the campaigns for and against the planned U.S. Marine Corps offshore heliport are getting heated.
The facility will be adjacent to the U.S. Marines Corps Camp Schwab, situated in the Henoko district, and would take over key functions of the Futenma Air Station in Ginowan. The Futenma base is to be relocated from its central Okinawa Island location in accordance with an agreement made last December by the Japan-U.S. special action committee.
The outcome of the Dec. 21 plebiscite could have a major impact on Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto's ability to live up to his obligations under the Japan-U.S. security treaty, because he has repeatedly promised not to build the facility without a local consensus. Taking advantage of the 25th anniversary of Okinawa's 1972 return from the U.S., Hashimoto recently attended a ceremony in the prefecture to unveil an Okinawa economic promotion plan for the 21st century.