On June 4, Okinawa prefectural police raided the home of entomologist Akino Miyagi after she dumped waste she'd found in a Yambaru forest, an area destined to become a UNESCO World Heritage site, at the front gate of the U.S. military's Northern Training Center in April.

Miyagi, who has been studying the forest, said the gesture was a form of protest, since the area is littered with debris — some of it hazardous — discarded by U.S. forces that used it for training in the past. When she complained to police about the garbage, they ignored her, hence the protest.

The raid, during which police confiscated Miyagi’s phone and computer, was cited by journalist Shigeru Handa, who often covers defense issues, on the web program Democracy Times as he discussed a new law that, for the sake of national security, purportedly restricts the sale of properties to foreign parties. The law was passed on June 16, but when Handa discussed it it had yet to get through the Upper House, where he was scheduled to appear as an expert. Though the bill ostensibly targets foreign agents, Handa said its real purpose is to allow the government to monitor the actions of Japanese. Had the law already been in effect, Miyagi could have been subjected to an investigation even before she deposited the American military’s trash on its doorstep.