HONOLULU -- During a visit to Okinawa, which has long borne a disproportionate share of the U.S. military presence in Japan, I was peppered with questions about the impact of planned redeployments. Okinawans have high hopes that the moves will lighten their burden. I could not reassure them.
Okinawan people complain that their island, which makes up less than 1 percent of the Japanese land mass, hosts 75 percent of the U.S. military presence in Japan. Strictly speaking, that number is not correct: Okinawa hosts 75 percent of single-use military facilities. Add in bases that are used by both Japanese and U.S. forces and the "U.S. military presence" drops to just under 24 percent. That is still a hefty burden. More significant, in my view, is that U.S. bases take up 20 percent of the land on the island, crippling the economy and virtually ensuring that all Okinawans are burdened by the U.S. presence.
Okinawans have long demanded a more equitable distribution of that burden. That is not to say that they all want the Americans out. Many profit directly from the bases; many more benefit from the money the Tokyo government directs their way in compensation. Moreover, most Okinawans know that U.S. forces help bring stability and security to East Asia. Still, they feel that they bear a disproportionate share of the presence -- and that burden feels even weightier when crimes are committed, which has happened with alarming frequency.