National / Politics Jun 12, 2017
Masahide Ota, former Okinawa governor and noted historian, dies at age 92
by Reiji Yoshida
Former Okinawa Gov. Masahide Ota, a noted historian and survivor of the Battle of Okinawa, succumbs to pneumonia.
World / Crime & Legal Jun 10, 2017
Okinawa 'prisoner of conscience' to address U.N. about perceived abuses
by Jon Mitchell
Hiroji Yamashiro recounts six harsh months of POW-like detention he survived after being singled out for simple acts of civil disobedience recently in Okinawa.
Business / Corporate Jun 9, 2017
Seven-Eleven to open 250 stores in Okinawa around fiscal 2019
Seven-Eleven Japan Co., the nation's largest convenience store operator, will start opening outlets in Okinawa around fiscal 2019, extending its presence to the only area in Japan without Seven-Eleven stores, the president of the chain said Friday. President Kazuki Furuya told Okinawa Gov. Takeshi Onaga ...
National | OKINAWA BEAT Jun 9, 2017
Crowdfunding project kicks off to create manga promoting Okinawa history, culture
An Okinawa resident, originally from the U.S., is calling for donations to publish a manga book and an animated film through crowdfunding to promote the unique history and culture in the prefecture, which historically had been the independent Ryukyu Kingdom until the late 1800s. The ...
National Jun 8, 2017
Okinawa to file fresh lawsuit next month against work to replace Futenma base
The Okinawa Prefectural Government will file a fresh lawsuit against the central government next month to demand that work on the replacement for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma be halted, the governor said. The move will reignite the legal tussle between the prefecture and ...
National Jun 8, 2017
U.S. Osprey, F/A-18 make emergency landings in Okinawa and Miyagi; no injuries reported
Two emergency landings, one involving a U.S. Marine Corps Osprey and the other a fighter jet, took place Tuesday on an island in Okinawa and in northeast Japan, the Defense Ministry's regional bureaus said Wednesday, but no injuries were reported. According to the Okinawa defense ...
Commentary / Japan Jun 6, 2017
Freedom of expression under siege in Okinawa
by Taisuke Komatsu
With respect to democracy, rule of law and human rights, Japan is moving backward under the Abe administration.
National May 31, 2017
Government mulls special scholarship program for Okinawan students
The government is considering creating a scholarship program for Okinawa Prefecture, Yosuke Tsuruho, minister for Okinawa and Northern Territories affairs, said Wednesday. The government aims to increase the continuing education rate of Okinawan students as the proportion of children living in poverty in the prefecture ...
National / Politics May 25, 2017
U.S. Marine transfer plan might be reviewed, commandant says
The head of the U.S. Marine Corps says the plan to move Okinawa-based troops to Guam and Hawaii might have to change in light of North Korea.
Editorials May 20, 2017
Okinawa reversion, 45 years on
Nearly five decades after America handed Okinawa back to Japan, the prefecture continues to host a lopsidedly heavy U.S. military presence.
National / Science & Health May 19, 2017
Japan's oldest human skeleton found in Okinawan cave
A human skeleton thought to be the oldest in Japan has been found in a collapsed cave in Okinawa, a local museum said Friday, adding that it appears to be around 27,000 years old. The nearly complete skeleton, dating from the Old Stone Age, appears ...
Travel May 19, 2017
Slowing down time with a trip to Okinawa's Zamami Island
by Andrew Curry
Growing up in a small beach town on the west coast of Florida, much of my free time as a youth was spent in or around the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf was almost always warm, not unlike bath water, yet it provided the ...