Head's Up: Obama appoints Pesticide Lobbyist as USTR Chief Ag Negotiator--disappointing fair trade, organic & sustainability advocates worldwide

Disappointing millions of fair trade, organic, anti-GMO and sustainability advocates in the U.S. and worldwide, President Obama appointed Islam Siddiqui as the Chief Agricultural Negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. Siddiqui was one of 15 people Obama recess-appointed to government posts last weekend to bypass Senate approval hearings.

More than 80 environmental, small-farm and consumer groups opposed the GMO advocate's Senate confirmation. Siddiqui was vice president for agricultural biotechnology and trade for CropLife America, a trade group of biotech and pesticide companies, including Monsanto. CropLife fought popular initiatives seeking to ban GMO food in California--claiming that pesticides positively impact endangered species. CropLife also lobbied the Bush administration for human and child testing of pesticides, and wrote a letter to Michelle Obama urging her to use pesticides in the organic garden at the White House.

Siddiqui also worked for the Clinton Administration at U.S. Department of Agriculture as Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, Senior Trade Advisor to Secretary Dan Glickman and Deputy Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs.

Paula Crossfield at Civil Eats covers the story in "Pesticide Lobbyist Gets Posted as Chief Agricultural Negotiator." More at a great organic blog, Living Maxwell.

What does this mean for Japan and the rest of Asia?

It means that the USTR will be pushing GMO, non-organic, unsustainable practices (on behalf of industries)--as it did under the Bush administration. Asia is a region where governments have more respect for citizen concerns about the health risks of GMO (with notable exceptions like China's recent acceptance of GMO rice and India's acceptance of GMO cotton). The Japanese government has particularly listened to citizens' voices on this matter.

More than ever, grassroots organizations and consumers are going to have to encourage and support government efforts to maintain health and consumer standards that the USTR may falsely label "trade barriers."

4,000 people rally to protest proposed U.S. Marine & helicopter transfer from Futenma to Tokunoshima island

A post borrowed from our partner, Martin Frid, at the Kurashi--News from Japan "Eco-Blog":

Beautiful slideshow from Tokunoshima Island with music by award-winning Okinawan folk singer Rimi Natsukawa--"Shima No Uta (Island Song)."

This is a small island in the south part of Kagoshima prefecture, as close to Okinawa as you can get.

Calling this a "relocation" from Okinawa is a joke. A rude, cruel joke.

Contrast that with the amazing scenery, the lovely sea, the beaches and the wildlife and biodiversity - and the people.

This is another island in Asia that does not need US military helicopters or Marines.

Asahi: "Tokunoshima eyed for U.S. helicopters"

More than 4,000 people attended a rally on Tokunoshima island in Kagoshima Prefecture on Sunday to protest its possible use as a relocation site for some of the functions of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture.

Sources said Tokunoshima was mentioned by Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada and Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa in their respective discussions Friday with U.S. and Okinawa prefectural government officials in which the central government's proposal was explained.

Tokunoshima has been mentioned as a possible site for helicopter training exercises as a way of lessening the U.S. military burden on Okinawa Prefecture.

Come on, someone please tell Pentagon it just is not going to happen.

Martin links to a "lovely version by Chinese star A-Mei;" an anti-war version by Miyazawa Kazufumi who lives in Brazil; and an English version released in 1992 as a single by the Japanese band The Boom that is dedicated to the people of Okinawa who suffered during the Battle of Okinawa during the Second World War.

The deigo flower has blossomed, and it has called the wind, and the storm has arrived.
The deigo flowers are in full bloom, and they have called the wind, and the storm has come.
The repetition of sadness, like the waves that cross the islands.
I met you in the Uji forest.
In the Uji forest I bid farewell to Chiyo.

Island Song, ride the wind, with the birds, cross the sea.
Island song, ride the wind, carry my tears with you.

The deigo blossoms have fallen, soft ocean waves tremble.
Fleeting joy, like flowers carried by the waves.
To my friend who sang in the Uji forest.
Beneath the the Uji, bid farewell to Yachiyo.

Island song, ride the wind, with the birds, cross the sea.
Island song, ride the wind, carry my love with you.

To the sea, to the universe, to God, to life, carry on this eternal dusk wind.

Island Song, ride the wind, with the birds, cross the sea.
Island song, ride the wind, carry my love with you.

"Loss of the sea would mean death to Okinawa" -- Uruma residents rally against proposed U.S. military base in their prefecture

Uruma residents raise their fists during a rally Thursday night against the relocation of U.S. Air Station Futenma to an offshore area of the city. (Photo:Mainichi)

The Mainichi reported that residents of Uruma rallied last Thursday against the Japanese government's proposal to build a U.S. milittary base on an artificial island on their beach:

Residents of this Okinawa Prefecture city have held a rally to express their opposition to a government plan to relocate U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to an offshore area of the city.

More than 500 people attended the rally held at a hall in Uruma on Thursday night. The gathering was organized by a liaison council of citizens opposing the relocation that was formed by former prefectural assembly members and others...

Mitsue Tomiyama, co-leader of the council, expressed anger at the relocation plan. "How far will the government ridicule local residents?"

The rally attendees adopted a resolution stating that "we are protesting to the government for ridiculing Okinawa. The loss of the sea would lead to the death of Okinawa." They then demanded that the government withdraw the plan to relocate Futenma to an offshore area of the White Beach district of Uruma, and close down Futenma base.

On March 19, the Uruma Municipal Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution opposing the plan while Mayor Toshio Shimabukuro has also voiced opposition to the plan.

20 years and counting- Kyoto Action for a military-base free Okinawa

US for Okinawa Network members join Kyoto Action at a Saturday rally in January

Twenty years ago, when Keiko (pseudonym) started protesting the military occupation of Okinawa, she never would have believed how much media and governmental attention the cause of the Okinawan people in removing military bases from their lands would be garnering today. Keiko is a members of Kyoto Action, an organization opposing bases in Futenma, Henoko, and beyond that began holding Saturday rallies in the heart of Kyoto City in 2004 to distribute information about the military occupation of Okinawa, its members would never have believed

Kyoto Action member discusses the impact of bases in Okinawa with a passerby

The photos above are from a Kyoto Action rally in January which included members of the newly formed Kyoto Branch of the US for Okinawa Network. A Peruvian man of Okinawan heritage and several United Stations, joined Kyoto Action members of all generations, ages 19-82, in appealing for a base-free Okinawa. Long-time member Takeichi Tsuneo proclaimed that "only through collaborating internationally will we reach our goal of a base-free Okinawa." Although the group is specifically campaigning for Okinawa, it also calls for the removal of military bases from Guam, Hawai'i and island nations.

An excerpt from the Kyoto Action flyer states:

In Heneko, where the beautiful and plentiful ocean spreads along the beach and is home to endangered species such as the dugong, both the Japanese and U.S. governments are planning to fill up the sea to construct a new U.S. military base. In the local towns, old men and women who have survived the terrible Okinawa War are still leading sit-in protest actions. They have been conducting these protest sit-ins every single day for more than 10 years. Every day, with deep devotion, they start their canoes and ships to protect their beloved sea. And even, now a desperate protest action continues against construction imposed upon them by force by our government. Now Henoko needs many more people to come help take part in their protests. They need stronger voices for opposition for more people to pay more attention.

Here in Kyoto, we too object to U.S. military base construction in Okinawa. Some people might say they don't care about Okinawa, because they can not imagine what Okinawa is like. Well, we want to end their indifference. We don't want to live lives based on tormenting others. We invite you to join our action and raise your voice against the U.S. military base construction in Okinawa.

To join the members of Kyoto Action in their activities, email no_base@livedoor.com or join them every Saturday from 5pm-630pm in front of the shopping district at Kawaramachi Sanjo.


For more information about activities of US for Okinawa in Kyoto email Jennifer at teeter42@gmail.com and refer to the website for information about the Tokyo branch (http://us-for-okinawa.blogspot.com/)

Ann Wright & Medea Benjamin hold signs in solidarity with Okinawa, Japan, Guam, & Korea at U.S. Senate Hearing on the Pacific Command

Ann Wright, a Global Article 9 and Network for Okinawa member, & Medea Benjamin of Code Pink holding signs in solidarity with Okinawa and Guam at U.S. Senate March 26, 2010 hearing on the Pacific Command. (Photo: DMZ Hawai'i).

"Earth Hour" call around the world for a binding pact to cut greenhouse gas emissions

Millions of people concerned about sustainability are observing "Earth Hour" around the world--turning off their lights at 8:30 p.m.--in a call for a binding pact to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Video of January 30 Demonstration in Tokyo for Freedom & Democracy in Okinawa

Former Okinawan Governor Ota Masahide: Time for US to End the "Old War" in Okinawa and let Okinawans live in peace

Okinawa was returned to Japan in 1972, but the Okinawan people's hopes for peace were not fulfilled, and Okinawa was used to strengthen US military power. So, this monument is not an expression of joy nor victory.

-- Inscription on a monument at Kunigami Village, Cape Hedo, in northern Okinawa

Henoko's beautiful beach. (photo: LovePeace Music, taken during the Peace Music Festa held annually at Henoko)

Henoko, a small coastal town on Oura Bay near Nago City in northern Okinawa, home of pristine coral reefs and the endangered dugong, an Okinawan national monument. It's also the site of Camp Schwab. The US plans to close its Futenma Air Station in central Okinawa and move the troops to this ecologically sensitive area.

Yanbaru Forest. (photo: Japan Focus: "Okinawa's Turbulent 400 Years" by Gavan McCormack)

Yanbaru Forest is the name of the mountainous region in the northern part of Okinawa adjacent to Henoko. Yanbaru is known for distinct and irreplaceable biodiversity. Over 192 plant and animal (most are endangered and near extinction) species are unique to this area, such as the bird species Okinawa Rail and Okinawa Woodpecker; Itajii (Evergreen Oak); and the Jambar long armed scarab beetle (the largest beetle species in Japan). The US wants to build seven helipads in this natural forest. The sea life includes Taimai (Hawksbill turtles), dugongs, corals and tropical fish.

Villagers in Takae have organized a "No Helipad Takae" protest against the helipad plan which would destroy this biodiverse habitat.

Sign outside of Futenma Air Station, in central Okinawa. (photo: Futenma Henoko Action Network)

Women from Futenma went door-to-door in Henoko to warn residents that this will happen to them if the US continue its plans to expand Camp Schwab.

"The Kadena Air Base golf course belie US claims that land seized from Okinawans by the US military is being used for 'mission essential operations.'" (photo: Futenma Henoko Action Network)

Detail of Kinjo Minoru relief depicting the consequences of massacres which took place during the Battle of Okinawa. (photo: Futenma Henoko Action Network)

Many thousands of civilians died in the cross-fire between Japanese and Americans during the Second World War, a war Americans ostensibly fought for "democracy," but in Okinawa, the result turned out to be for US military colonial occupation.

Former Okinawan governor Ota Masahide, in a 2007 essay for Magazine 9, said the war is still not over:

In Okinawa, many people who went through extreme conditions under the war are even now experiencing extreme anxiety and depression.

The remains of 4000-5000 dead Okinawans have yet to be collected.

Unexploded bombs are all over, without being treated.

Some experts says that it will take 50-60 more years to complete the treatment of unexploded bombs of the battles in Okinawa.

Not only that, even after the war, at least 5,200 Okinawans have been the victims of crimes committed by American soldiers.

Thus the war is still going on for the people in Okinawa.

Why shall we start preparing for a new war, while the old war is not over yet

I truly don’t understand.

US military installations in Okinawa. (photo: Japan Focus: "US Bases, Japan, and the Reality of Okinawa as a Military Colony" by Yoshida Kensei)

Although the United States ended its postwar occupation of mainland Japan in 1952, it continued to rule Okinawa prefecture until 1972 to safeguard a vast American military complex that occupies 40 bases occupying over 20% of the island. Islanders have resisted U.S. military control of their island since 1945 when the US began confiscating land from Okinawan owners. Of the 47,000 U.S. troops stationed in Japan, more than two thirds (around 28,000) are stationed in Okinawa.

The US military in Okinawa not only creates environmental pollution and unbearable levels of noise, but also ongoing psychological and physical violence and trauma. This pattern of American military crimes against Okinawans--exacerbated by attitudes of racism and American superiority as well as violent mental states fostered by militaristic culture--started during the Second World War when American soldiers raped over 10,000 Okinawan women.

For over six decades, Okinawans have endured assaults, rapes, drunk-driving, hit-and-run accidents, and property damage by American servicemen. Almost all have gone unpunished because the U.S.-Japan Status of Forces agreement gives American troops legal immunity in Japan. On Nov. 10, Prime Minister Hatoyama asked the US to hand over the American serviceman suspect in a hit-and-run that killed an Okinawan.

The US refuses to allow any Marines to be tried in Japanese courts. Perpetrators are sent back to the US or transfered to another foreign base. Okinawans have protested against this injustice for decades to the Japanese government.

Following the Sept. 4, 1995 rape of a 12-year-old girl by three US military servicemen, 85,000 people rallied in Okinawa against the presence of U.S. military bases in Okinawa.

Outrage over the brutal kidnapping and assault of this little girl especially catalyzed women and senior citizens. In 1996, a group, Okinawan Women Act Against Military Violence, toured North America, to raise awareness about the human realities of the US military occupation of Okinawa among Americans. They spoke out again, in a public letter to the US president-- after another rape of a young girl in 2008--this time in solidarity with American and international women's peace groups.

Symbolic resistance and memorialization to heal collective trauma: "On Aug. 13, 2006, former Okinawa International University student Adachi Nako attaches a photo to the Futenma Air Station fence behind Sakima Art Museum, which hosted an exhibition of photographs she compiled to mark the second anniversary of a 2004 helicopter crash into the university campus."(photo: Futenmae Henoko Action Network)

(photo: Lovepeace.org)

Okinawan activism for genuine democracy and peace continues to strengthen--using the arts, literature, critical and reflective scholarship, and community solidarity bolstered by worldwide support (and, hopefully--if Martin Luther King, Jr. is right--by the arc of the Universe itself which always sides with justice and peace.) This year's Henoko Beach Peace Music Festa poster.

Local reggae musicians began the Peace Music Festa in 2006 in Henoko to raise public awareness of the US plan (funded in great part by Japanese taxpayers) to move troops stationed at Futenma Air Base to Camp Schwab, in Henoko. In 2007, the festival drew musicians from Japan as well. Smashing Mag, a website that covers Japanese music, reported that the Festa was one of the first gatherings involving music to protest US military colonialism and encouraged musicians and music fans raise their voices on a wide range of social issues. Oki Dub Ainu Band played at this year's festival in September.

In November 2009, more than 20,000 Okinawans participated at an all-prefecture rally against US bases. Protest has become a part of the calendar for Okinawans who are never going to give up their pursuit of democracy and peace.

This was first posted on November 14, 2009. Because of what's at stake in Okinawa, we are reposting these words of Ota Masahide and photos of Okinawa.

Proposed Navy Base Threatens Dolphin & Soft Coral Habitats at Jeju Island, S. Korea (Stunning Video of Dolphins Answering the Filmmaker's Call)

From Sung-Hee Choi at No base stories of Korea blog: "On March 18, cartoonist Koh who lives in Gangjeong village sent these two videos of the living creatures in the Gangjeong Sea."

Filmmaker Yang Dong-Kyu recorded the two videos in the summer of 2009.

The first video is of the hundreds of dolphins who annually circulate from Alaska through the North Pacific Ocean, visiting the Gangjeong Sea every summer, from June to September. The dolphins annually circulate from Alaska through North Pacific Ocean and visthe Jeju Island sea which is the only area the dolphins visit in the Korean ocean. The video is especially stunning towards the end when the dolphins jump into the air, answering the filmmaker's resonant call. If the proposed naval base construction proceeds on the Joongduk coast, the dolphins will lose their summer habitat, and will disappear, along with the soft coral ecosystem.


This video shows the soft coral habitat in the Gangjeong sea, which will be destroyed, if the proposed Jeju naval base proceeds.

Bruce Gagnon of Space for Peace has organized a urgent call for telephone messages and emails to the South Korean Embassy in Washington, D.C. on behalf of the Jeju Islanders of Gangjeong Village and the threatened dolphins and soft coral eco-system. Supporters have learned that the U.S. government is pushing the South Korean government to build the base--despite its destructive impact to Jeju Island's fragile environment.

My Lai Peace Park where U.S. Veterans, My Lai survivors, & Hibakusha gathered to pray for the end of war and for world peace

Children in My Lai, (Photo:My Lai Peace Park website)

The My Lai Peace Park was initiated by Quakers of Madison, Wisconsin and Vietnam war veteran Mike Boehm to help heal ongoing trauma from the Vietnam War experienced by Vietnamese civilians, veterans and American veterans.

Beginning with the My Lai Loan Fund, established January 10, 1994, the Madison Quakers have funded a series of projects in My Lai. They include the My Lai Primary Schools, My Lai Peace Park, medical supplies, and the Art Penpals project. Other projects funded by the Madison Quakers are loan funds in seventeen other villages (as of 2007), the construction of 'compassion houses', aid for ethnic minorities, the Sisters Meeting Sisters project and more.

The objectives of these projects go beyond economic aid. For almost 40 years My Lai has been evoked only in the context of grief, anger and recrimination. Before beginning our first project in My Lai the Madison Quakers were resolved to break that chain of hatred and to find ways to re-humanize people who had been de-humanized; the Vietnamese people certainly, but also American veterans, anti-Vietnam war protestors and others. By breaking the chains of hatred which have kept us apart we begin to understand that we are more alike than we are different.

We have shown over the years that if we can sit down with humility and respect and a willingness to listen and learn from each other then anything is possible. If hope can rise from the ashes of My Lai it can arise anywhere.

In 2008, Nanzan University historian Hiroshi Fujimoto, together with Mike Boehm, accompanied a group of Hibakusha to My Lai Peace Park for the 40th anniversary of My Lai where they gathered with the survivors of the My Lai massacre on March 16 in a plea for the end of weapons of mass destruction and peace in the world.

The Madison Quakers have worked with the people of My Lai to build primary schools; to fund hundreds of My Lai women in small businesses, and to build simple "Compassion Houses" for families Agent Orange victims.

Mike Boehm's moving "Hope Rises from the Ashes of My Lai," the story of his journey from war in Vietnam to "homelessness," (a healing time of retreat), to working to heal trauma from the Vietnam War in himself, other veterans, and survivors in Vietnam and their descendants--shows how positive transformation in one human being has ripple effects to others and the larger world. In Boehm's life, this led to the flowering of healing and hope at My Lai Peace Park.

"Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all." -- Oscar Romero

Peace is not the product of terror or fear.
Peace is not the silence of cemeteries.
Peace is not the silent result of violent repression.
Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all.
Peace is dynamism. Peace is generosity.
It is right and it is duty.

-- Oscar Romero

My Lai & the continuing suffering of Vietnamese civilians & eco-systems from Agent Orange

On March 16, 1968, a platoon led by Lieutenant William Calley murdered 405 elderly men, women, children, and babies in a small Vietnamese village. Besides the brutal slayings of the My Lai villagers, three million Vietnamese civilians were killed in the Vietnam war, along with 58,000 American soldiers.

However, the war's legacy of suffering is not over.

The U.S. also destroyed the beautiful Vietnamese countryside. Observers called this intentional ecological destruction by indiscriminate bombing, use of herbicides (Agent Orange), and large-scale use of bulldozers a form of ecocide:

Among its other effects, the Vietnam War left a legacy of environmental destruction and contamination that has yet to be thoroughly examined. For example, some 80 million litres (ca. 21 million gallons) of herbicides were sprayed on the fields and forests of Vietnam, and an unknown amount on the countryside of Cambodia and Laos. Included in those chemicals as a by-product was dioxin, an extremely toxic substance that has been linked to several forms of cancer, the birth defect spina bifida, type 2 diabetes, and disorders of the nervous, immune and endocrine systems. There may also be links to several other birth defects and reproductive disorders

Another serious and persistent problem is the enormous quantity of landmines and other unexploded ordnance left behind from the war. The victims are often children at play or farmers tilling their fields, and the results are human tragedies that affect entire families and communities. Since the war's formal conclusion, there have been at least 50,000 such deaths plus countless injuries in the three affected countries. There will be many more, for generations to come.

Three million Vietnamese suffer from disorders caused by Agent Orange, yet have not received compensation from the U.S. government or the manufacturers.

Law professor Marjorie Cohn, in "Agent Orange continues to Poison Vietnam quoted Dr. Jeanne Stellman, author of a seminal article in Nature magazine:

...this is the largest unstudied environmental disaster in the world (except for natural disasters).

Cohn summarizes the U.S. perpetration of environmental and genetic violence against the Vietnamese people and the U.S. government's and courts' refusal to assist the victims:

From 1961 to 1971, the U.S. military sprayed Vietnam with Agent Orange, which contained large quantities of Dioxin, in order to defoliate the trees for military objectives. Dioxin is one of the most dangerous chemicals known to man. It has been recognized by the World Health Organization as a carcinogen (causes cancer) and by the American Academy of Medicine as a teratogen (causes birth defects).

Between 2.5 and 4.8 million people were exposed to Agent Orange. 1.4 billion hectares of land and forest - approximately 12 percent of the land area of Vietnam - were sprayed.

The Vietnamese who were exposed to the chemical have suffered from cancer, liver damage, pulmonary and heart diseases, defects to reproductive capacity, and skin and nervous disorders. Children and grandchildren of those exposed have severe physical deformities, mental and physical disabilities, diseases, and shortened life spans. The forests and jungles in large parts of southern Vietnam have been devastated and denuded. They may never grow back and if they do, it will take 50 to 200 years to regenerate. Animals that inhabited the forests and jungles have become extinct, disrupting the communities that depended on them. The rivers and underground water in some areas have also been contaminated. Erosion and desertification will change the environment, contributing to the warming of the planet and dislocation of crop and animal life.

The U.S. government and the chemical companies knew that Agent Orange, when produced rapidly at high temperatures, would contain large quantities of Dioxin. Nevertheless, the chemical companies continued to produce it in this manner. The U.S. government and the chemical companies also knew that the Bionetics Study, commissioned by the government in 1963, showed that even low levels of Dioxin produced significant deformities in unborn offspring of laboratory animals. But they suppressed that study and continued to spray Vietnam with Agent Orange. It wasn’t until the study was leaked in 1969 that the spraying of Agent Orange was discontinued.

U.S. soldiers who served in Vietnam have experienced similar illnesses. After they sued the chemical companies, including Dow and Monsanto, that manufactured and sold Agent Orange to the government, the case settled out of court for $180 million which gave few plaintiffs more than a few thousand dollars each. Later the U.S. veterans won a legislative victory for compensation for exposure to Agent Orange. They receive $1.52 billion per year in benefits.

But when the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange sued the chemical companies in federal court, U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein dismissed the lawsuit, concluding that Agent Orange did not constitute a poison weapon prohibited by the Hague Convention of 1907. Weinstein had reportedly told the chemical companies when they settled the U.S. veterans’ suit that their liability was over and he was making good on his promise. His dismissal was affirmed by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court refused to hear the case. The chemical companies admitted in their filing in the Supreme Court that the harm alleged by the victims was foreseeable although not intended. How can something that is foreseeable be unintended?..

Many ecosystems have been destroyed and Dioxin continues to poison Vietnam , especially in the several hot spots...

For many other Vietnamese and U.S. veterans and their families, the war continues to take its toll.

Several treaties the United States has ratified require an effective remedy for violations of human rights. It is time to make good on Nixon’s promise (to provide assistance to the Vietnamese people) and remedy the terrible wrong the U.S. government perpetrated on the people of Vietnam. Congress must pass legislation to compensate the Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange as it did for the U.S. Vietnam veteran victims.

Our government must know that it cannot continue to use weapons that target and harm civilians. Indeed, the U.S. military is using depleted uranium in Iraq and Afghanistan , which will poison those countries for incalculable decades.

U.S. says Okinawan base expansion plan must have local approval; hopefully the U.S. will extend that standard to its existing bases on the island

In a 180 degree shift from its previous position over the past 14 years--insisting that Okinawans accept an unwanted military base expansion in an ecologically sensitive area of northwestern Okinawa--the U.S. told the Japanese government that the local population must approve of the base.

The proposed expansion would have destroyed the only habitat of the critically endangered Okinawan dugong-- a federally protected national monument and cousin to the manatee. The prior U.S. insistence was like Japan asking Americans to approve of a Japanese military base inside the U.S. that would have destroyed the last habitat of the American symbolic bird, the Bald Eagle. Not surprisingly, Okinawans throughout the island--joined by millions of environmentalists around the world--forcefully protested the U.S./Japan expansion since its announcement.

Concurrent with its new stance on Okinawa, the U.S. might cancel its plans for military expansion in Guam--where 30% of the small island is covered with military bases.

This proposed expansion was another part of the U.S. plan for "Full Spectrum Dominance" in the Asia-Pacific, embraced by former prime minister Koizumi. The pro-U.S. neo-con initiated the integration of Japan's Self Defense Forces with the U.S. military. Koizumi's administration also made the 2006 agreement with the Bush administration to move forward on the controversial proposal expand the U.S. military base at Henoko, even after it had been successfully challenged by environmentalists in a U.S. court.

The proposed Guam expansion would have included moving 8,000 Marines to that small island. This "build-up" met with resistance in Guam, was criticized by the EPA, and may be in reconsidered as well:

The Futemma transfer is part of a broader 2006 realignment road map for U.S. forces stationed in Japan, which also includes the relocation of 8,000 Marines to the U.S. territory of Guam by 2014.

The planned transfer of the Marines may be shelved if the Futemma facility is kept in continued use.

The U.S. troops in Okinawa are not there for any ongoing use involved in the defense of Japan and Okinawa.

Japan's Self Defense Forces is large, with the most sophisticated navy in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan ranked 7th in the world-- spending $46.3 billion on its military (3% of the world's total military spending) in 2008.

However, its military--as are all other national militaries worldwide--is dwarfed by the U.S., which ranked 1st--spending$ 607 billion (41.5% of the world's total).

China ranked 2nd--spending $84.9 billion (5.8%). France and the UK ranked 3rd and 4th--each spending about $65 billion (4%). Russia was 5th--spending $58.6 billion. Germany was 6th-spending almost the same amount as Japan.

Okinawans wait for the U.S. Marines to answer their urgent humanitarian call--to leave the island

(2005 video from Ginowan City, Okinawa))

Sixty years after World War II, US military base problems in Okinawa are still unresolved.
大二次世界大戦、終戦から六十年後の今でも沖縄県内の米軍基地の問題は解決されていま せん。

Our earnest desire is the closure of Futenma Air Station and its relocation outside of Okinawa and Japan.
私達の本当の願いはアメリカ海兵隊普天間航空基地の閉鎖と沖縄県からの移転です

U.S. military bases already cover 20% of Okinawa

(Image:Japanfocus.org)

Beyond War: Article 9 of the Japan Peace Constitution

Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes.

Jay Gilliam of US for Okinawa: Media discourse on US-Japan base expansion plan for Okinawa overlooks Article 9

In a letter, "Peace link to base relocation," to the Japan Times, Jay Gilliam of US for Okinawa points out that media discourse on the US-Japan plan to expand a U.S. military base in Okinawa overlooks Japan's Peace Constitution:

News coverage of discussions between Washington and Tokyo over the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, has curiously been silent on the connections with Japan's "peace" Constitution. As an American citizen and graduate student in conflict resolution at International Christian University in Tokyo, I am saddened that both countries are not working hard enough to re-imagine and re-orient East Asian security toward beaches and not bases.

Today, we — in Japan and the United States — have the chance to take an even stronger stance for peace in East Asia by rejecting arguments for regional security based on U.S. military might and by embracing confidently the peace-loving spirit of Japan's Constitution and its people, especially Okinawans, who have democratically voted against bearing the burden of living so dangerously close to military bases.

This year, during the 50th anniversary of the U.S.-Japan Security Alliance, both countries should not miss the opportunity to show that Japan and the U.S. will again hold their honored places in international society, striving to secure East Asia by more peaceful, nonmilitary means — not by bullying. Despite calls to honor the 2006 relocation agreement, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and U.S. President Barack Obama should honor the calls — from Okinawa to Oslo — for peace. This would be a more fitting way to bring the alliance into the 21st century.

Jeju Island, Korea soft coral habitat under threat of planned naval base construction

Jeju Island is a beautiful volcanic island south of Korea, with Mt. Halla--the highest mountain in all of South Korea--at its center. 12% of the island is covered by a Gotjawal Forest, a pristine, naturally formed forest habitat for unique and endangered plants and animals. Groundwater from Gotjawal is the main water source for the island's half millon residents.

In 2007, UNESCO named Jeju a World Heritage site:

Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes together comprise three sites that make up 18,846 ha. It includes Geomunoreum, regarded as the finest lava tube system of caves anywhere, with its multicoloured carbonate roofs and floors, and dark-coloured lava walls; the fortress-like Seongsan Ilchulbong tuff cone, rising out of the ocean, a dramatic landscape; and Mount Halla, the highest in Korea, with its waterfalls, multi-shaped rock formations, and lake-filled crater. The site, of outstanding aesthetic beauty, also bears testimony to the history of the planet, its features and processes.

Jeju is also a UN designated biosphere preservation zone with 137 designated cultural assets all over the island.

The southern coast of Jeju is home to the soft coral habitat in the video. In 2001, the Korean Cultural Heritage Administration designated it a national monument protection area. It appeared that the South Korean government recognized and valued the irreplaceable and unique natural beauty and traditional indigenous culture of Jeju.

However, in 2006, the South Korean government made another designation based on a profit rather than a preservation motive. It named Jeju a "free international city" to make way for gambling casinos and a naval base in southern Jeju intended to port U.S. and South Korean Aegis destroyers outfitted with missile defense systems that the villagers say will be used to surround China's coast--potentially making their once peaceful island a target if hostilities break out.

Peace activist Bruce Gagnon wrote in October at his blog that the South Korean government approached three villages about hosting the base. The first two turned the government down. So, in the case of the third village, Gangjeong, the government decided to offer bribes to some of the residents. Most of the residents remained opposed to the base, but the bribes created enough of a division to allow government to say they will build the base in this village:

The villagers of Gangjeong do not see the Navy base as offering them much. Their local economy is thriving from the tangerine groves that are everywhere in the town and from the abundant numbers of tourists who come there to experience the seaside. In fact the Navy base would take significant portions of their village land now used for farming and would destroy the environment. The rocky shoreline would be covered with cement and the proposed base pier would extend to the edge of where the fresh water Gangjeong River flows into the sea.

Kang, Dong Kyun, the mayor of the village and a key protest leader, told me that 70% of the drinking water for the community comes from the river and would surely be negatively impacted by the Navy base. Take away our water, he said, and you destroy the town.

Throughout the village you see many tall bamboo poles with yellow flags on them that say, "We desperately oppose the Naval base." But no one in the government wants to listen to them. They have tried all the usual steps of meeting with government officials, organizing protests, and they recently tried to recall their provincial governor in a special election but did not turn out a high enough percentage of voters to make the vote official.

Mayor Kang told me, "This is the land of our ancestors that we must pass on to the future generations. This village must not be used as a 'strategic' base but must be preserved. The government is dividing people against each other which is the worst thing of all. The long lasting people will ultimately win."

Sung-Hee Choi at Nobasestorieskorea.blogspot.com has been following the nonviolent protests of the villagers which include elderly people and tangerine farmers.

The South Korean government must be reminded of its own earlier acknowledgement and understanding of the reality of the irreplaceable value of Jeju Island's natural and cultural beauty, including the residents of Gangjeong. A guided missile base is going to destroy the soft coral habitat and living cultural treasures (the tangerine farmers & elders), and is not going to attract tourists.

"The Biggest Global Movement in History" — Citizen Action for Biodiversity, Indigenous & Traditional cultures, Sustainability, Peace & Justice

It is my belief that we are part of a movement that is greater and deeper and broader than we ourselves know or can know. It flies under the radar of the media by and large. It is nonviolent. It is grassroots. It has no clusterbombs, no armies, and no helicopters. It has no central ideology. A male vertebrate is not in charge.

This unnamed movement is the most diverse movement the world has ever seen. The very word "movement" is too small to describe it. No one started this worldview. No one is in charge of it. There is no orthodoxy. It is global, classless, unquenchable, and tireless. Its shared understanding is arising spontaneously from different economic sectors, cultures, regions, and cohorts. It is growing and spreading worldwide, with no exception.

It has many roots. But primarily the origins are indigenous cultures, the environment and social justice movements. Those three sectors and their subsectors are intertwining, morphing, and enlarging... This is a democracy movement...It's marked by kinship, communities, symbiosis. It's Pachamama ("Mother Universe"). It's Mama. It's the earth talking back, waking up...

The background music is not the best and the talk is now three years old––but this clip of Paul Hawken speaking at a 2006 Bioneers conference describing the collective energy of hundreds of thousands of civil society organizations made up of tens of million of people––if not more, from all over our planet–– is breathtaking.

The social entrepreneur drew his talk from his 2007 book, Blessed Unrest: How The Largest Movement in the World Came Into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming.

The movement Hawken describes is not something new. Citing poet/environmentalist Gary Snyder and actor/activist/writer Peter Coyote––Blessed Unrest refers to "the great underground, a current of humanity that dates back to the Paleolithic and its lineage can be traced back to healers, priestesses, philosophers, monks, rabbis, poets, and artists 'who speak for the planet, for other species, for interdependence, a life that courses under and through and around empires.'"

Hawken's imagination was captured by not only the explosion of movements––but also by the shift towards the "intertwingling" of causes––environmentalism; sustainability; biodiversity; indigenous issues; civil society, children's issues; community development; cultural heritage; democratic activism; fair trade; good governance; human rights; social, and economic justice; disarmament and peacemaking; water and other resource rights; and gender issues.

Those of us worldwide who are working to save endangered biodiverse species, coral reef habitats, pristine forests of the Asia-Pacific (and throughout the world); the peaceful traditional ways of life for farmers in Jeju Island, Korea; the sacred dugong and traditional village life for Okinawans; and sacred Pagat and indigenous Chamorro culture in Guam • to heal historical wounds from Japanese military colonialism and the Pacific War; and heal contemporary wounds from repeated nuclear test explosions and forced military occupation (with comcomittant crime, rapes, environmental degradation, noise pollution, emotional tension) throughout our islands (and throughout the world) • to spread the nonviolent and democratic ideals of Japan's Peace Constitution which forbids the use of force as a way to resolve international disputes • abolish nuclear weapons • and to build peaceful networks with others working for life-sustaining civilization throughout the world---who are meeting each other across national, geographical, religious, political, and socio-economic boundaries--know about this exhilirating, empowering "intertwingling" from personal experience.

We realize--that for those who choose to live on the level of common humanity and respectful, loving connection with our fellow creatures on our miraculous and beautiful living planet--there are no boundaries.

Orion excerpts Blessed Unrest here.

Four Rivers massive construction/dam/dredging project will destroy rivers, wetlands, and biodiversity in South Korea

Reuters: "South Korea green growth to hurt environment: report":

Lee's government intends to spend 22.2 trillion won ($19.68 billion) to dredge, dam and beautify four major rivers with golf courses and bike trails in a plan that is supposed to increase the supply and quality of fresh water and prevent flooding.

"(It) will impact 50 bird species negatively, causing further declines in several sensitive waterbird species that are ecologically dependent on shallow rivers, flood-plain wetlands and estuaries," the conservation group Birds Korea said in a report released on Thursday.

The group, which has conducted some of the most extensive studies of waterfowl in the country, said the further damming and deepening of rivers through dredging will lead to the decline of feeding grounds and biodiversity.

"We have lost almost all of the natural stretches. This project is going to kill off what little remains," Nial Moores, director of Birds Korea, told Reuters.

Among the species threatened with habitat loss and population declines are several listed globally as critically endangered -- including the spoon-billed sandpiper -- and others South Korea lists as "national natural monuments."

Greenpeace: Ask Nestle to give Indonesia's rainforests a break

Greenpeace has launched a new campaign that went viral in hours: "Ask Nestle to give rainforests a break:"

Nestlé, maker of Kit Kat, uses palm oil from companies that are trashing Indonesian rainforests, threatening the livelihoods of local people and pushing orang-utans towards extinction.

We all deserve to have a break - but having one shouldn't involve taking a bite out of Indonesia's precious rainforests. We're asking Nestlé to give rainforests and orang-utans a break and stop buying palm oil from destroyed forests.

Chocolate made from palm oil made from rainforest destruction leaves a bad taste in not only the mouth--but also the soul.

Nonviolent Pink Joan of Arc duo lead World Peace Now's commemoration of the 7th anniversary of the US/UK invasion of Iraq this Saturday in Tokyo

"Pink Jeanne d'Arc" performance artists Kunihiko Ukai and Rena Masuyama, a/k/a "Momo Iro Jean," promise to liven up the event with their special celebration event against war...(Photo: Renaart.exblog.jp)

At this time of record military spending; the push for military schools, and obstinate military empire-building by a few very rich people against the wishes of the billions of peace-loving people in our world--the world more than ever needs a Nonviolent Pink Joan of Arc.

Performance artists Kunihiko Ukai and Rena Masuyama subvert the dominant Western paradigm (embodied in the original Joan of Arc who wielded a sword and killed in the name of God--over power and territory) that violent force is the best way to resolve conflicts over territorial and other disputes between states. Of course--on an unevolved and morally challenged level-- it makes some sense that nations that have no legitimate claim to territories would resort to violence--knowing that their positions would not be honored in civilized forums.

Rena Masuyama is the wife of Shiva Rei, a freelance journalist who reported from Iraq. Rei is one of the speakers at Peace Not War, Japan's upcoming "Spring Love" event. Masuyama used to be part of a performance art peace group called the "Momoiro (peach-colored, as in the color of buttocks) Guerillas"--another subversive inversion of the the concept of the macho mindset that emotionally fuels the war paradigm. The "Momoiro Guerillas" had nothing (no ill will, no violent intent) to hide in contrast to armored, armed, and camouflaged guerilla warriors.

Blessedly, Pink Jeanne D'Arc will be performing at the World Peace Now event commemorating the 7th anniversary of the ongoing U.S. war in Iraq.

Thanks for the head's up to Martin Frid at his Kurashi--the "Eco" Blog:

Peace groups are gathering at noon in Tokyo on Saturday for a big anti-war event on the 7th anniversary of the Iraq War.

The booths with information as well as rally speeches start at 13:00. Do join the parade, as they call the demonstration, starting at 15:00 from Shiba Koen.

There are events in the evening as well, with music and presentations.

Background on World Peace Now from Jennifer Chan's Another Japan is Possible: New Social Movements and Global Citizen Education (short excerpt of interview with Machiko Hanawa):

World Peace Now (WPN) came into being as an amorphous network when youth-centered groups centered around CHANCE!pono2 and many civic groups (dominated by relatively older people) taking action against the attack on Iraq got together and organized the first demonstration on October 26, 2002. In that first attempt, eight hundred people joined.

WPN started as a broad coalition of individuals in citizens' groups, religious groups, and international NGOs who have agreed on four principles: no more war, opposition to the war in Iraq, opposition to the Japanese government's support and cooperation for the attack on Iraq, and nonviolent action. There were some thirty organizations at the beginning, but currently the number has increased to fifty.

Until this kind of coalition came into being, many NGOs in Japan focused on a single theme and acted separately. In order to overcome this, we requested the participation and self-expression of NGOs in different fields, including Peace Boat and Greenpeace Japan. In this way, on Jan. 18, 2003, before the start of the attack on Iraq, seven thousand people participated in the demonstration in Tokyo, and fifty thousand people joined on March 21, 2003, right after the attack was started. After December 2003, when the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (SDF) joined the occupation of Iraq, opposition to the occupation of Iraq and immediate withdrawal of SDF became WPN's demands.

In March 2004, the first anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, WPN also joined the international antiwar action again. This time, 130,000 people in 120 places across Japan marched on the streets.

Standing Army: A journey into the world of US military bases, one of the most defining--and less-talked about--realities of our time

Standing Army is a new documentary film from Italian-American director Enrico Parenti and Anglo-Italian director Thomas Fazi.

The filmmakers connect the dots between continued U.S. military expansion around the world. The Obama administration has pushed to open several new bases in Columbia and Panama. In Italy, citizens are still protesting the expansion of a US military base into the last green space in Vicenza--a World Heritage site. In Japan and Guam, we see the same agenda for expansion since the 1990's and 2000's--under Clinton and Bush--unchanged with Obama's presidency.

Over the course of the last century, the US has silently encircled the world with a web of military bases unlike any other in history. Today, they amount to more than 700, in at least 100 countries. No continent is spared. They are one the most powerful forces at play in the world today, yet one of the less talked-about. They have shaped the lives of millions, yet remain a mystery to most.

Why do countries like Germany, Italy and Japan – more than 60 years after the end of World War II and almost 20 years after the end of the Cold War – still host hundreds of US military bases and tens of thousands of US soldiers?

• What role do the bases play in maintaining US hegemony in the world?

• How will they shape our future?

•  Is a global military presence the last resource of an economically-, politically- and culturally-declining empire?

•  How do the bases impact the lives of local populations and how do these interact with their uniformed neighbours?

We will answer these and other crucial questions both through the words of prominent intellectuals, experts on the subject, political and military leaders, ex-government and CIA officials, philosophers and political activists – some of whom we have already interviewed: Noam Chomsky, Gore Vidal, Chalmers Johnson and others – and through the shocking but often inspiring stories of those directly affected by US bases:

The citizens of Vicenza, struggling to stop the construction of yet another military base in their hometown; the Diego Garcia islanders, violently expelled from their island in the Indian Ocean to make space for a US military base, and who have been fighting for years to return to their birthplace; the many Japanese women brutalized by US soldiers in Okinawa; the various grassroots movements in Europe and Asia struggling for a base-free world; as well as those living inside the bases: the men and women who are often sent to faraway lands with little or no preparation for what they’ll find there.

U.S.-based United for Peace & Justice: No to U.S. Bases for Empire Speaking Tour--starts in April

The U.S.-based United for Peace & Justice coalition is working to stop the U.S. from expanding its already bloated and unwanted military bases around the world and is sponsoring a "No to U.S. Bases for Empire Speaking Tour" starting in April:

The United States maintains over 700 military bases across the globe in 40 countries. These bases directly threaten local communities and cause geopolitical destabilization. They make U.S. foreign military interventions, wars like the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and even nuclear war possible.

Communities around the world have been organizing and resisting U.S. foreign bases in their backyards for decades. Local movements are now uniting in an international network in the effort to close U.S. bases. Leading experts/activists from around the world will share their first-hand experiences in the movement to say, “No to U.S. Bases for Empire!”

Please join us to hear the first-hand accounts from those who suffer the consequences of these military bases, as well as experts from the U.S. on how people in the United States can join the growing movement to resist these bases across the world.

East Coast Tour Schedule -- West Coast Tour Schedule

Tour Sponsors

American Friends Service Committee, Campaign for Peace and Democracy, Foreign Policy In Focus (Project of the Institute for Policy Studies), The Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, Humanist Movement, Resist Africom, United for Peace and Justice, US Peace Council, Veterans for Peace.

Linda Hoaglund describes a Sunday in Henoko-- Marines with machine guns storming the beach during an Okinawan Rally

As President Obama readies for his Spring 2010 trip to the Asia-Pacific and one of his envoys is on his way to Japan--looking back at filmmaker Linda Hoaglund's post, "The Story Behind President Obama’s Trip to Japan in November, 2009" at the ANPO website--sheds light on the intrusion of militarism in the daily lives of ordinary Okinawans.

I am back in the U.S. after traveling to Ginowan in Okinawa to film the November 8th protest against the plan to relocate the Futenma Marine Air Base to the environmentally sensitive Oura Bay near Henoko. I returned just as President Obama landed in Tokyo to begin his first trip to Asia since becoming President.

There, Obama appeared to make a concession to the DPJ government, agreeing to reopen talks on plans to relocate the base. But experts say those talks are likely to be confined only to details of implementation, and not include discussions of moving the Marines off Okinawa altogether, as so many Okinawans are demanding.

The rally I filmed at Ginowan, site of the Futenma Air Base, was as impressive in its scale as in the diversity in ages and backgrounds of those participating. At its height, more than 20,000 people assembled for the rally. It was scheduled for 2PM but by half past noon, hundreds were lined up at the gate to the amphitheater, despite the scorching sun. As soon as the gate opened, they streamed in, toddlers and grandmothers, students, fishermen, businessmen and activists, mostly dressed in sunshine casual.

Many carried tall pennants high overhead, identifying their hometowns from all over Okinawa. Some came from as far away as northern Japan. The multitude of colorful flags fluttering in the breeze brought to mind the battle scenes from RAN, Kurosawa’s saga of battling samurai.

As the crowds began to pack the stadium, long before the rally’s official start time, two bands performed onstage. The second act closed with the haunting anthem, “Give us back Okinawa.” Its simple melody has lodged itself into my brain, perhaps because the defiant lyrics, “Give us back Okinawa, give us back Okinawa,” foreshadowed both the tone of the speeches and the reactions of those assembled.

During my stay in Okinawa, I realized just how little we Americans know of the anger that Okinawans feel about the U.S. military presence. Before I started making this film, I never realized that some 30 sprawling U.S. bases have covered more than 20% of the land area of this small island since the end of World War II.

As the rally began, mayors and members of parliament representing Okinawa spoke in open anger about the noise pollution caused by the incessant training of F-16 fighter jets, C-130 transport planes and Chinook helicopters, directly over the homes and streets of local towns, disturbing their daily lives and even their sleep. They reminded those assembled of the interminable rapes, murders and petty crimes, committed by American soldiers over the decades, which have largely been exempt from prosecution under the Status of Forces Agreement.

The were united in their indignation of how long their legitimate grievances have been ignored by mainland politicians. The unmistakable rage in the voices of the elected officials was echoed by irate cries from the audience. I had the distinct feeling that although the Okinawans have been protesting American bases for over 60 years, they believe their struggle has just begun, all over again.

Among those present was Shimabukuro Taeko, a great grandmother in her 80's, who remembers the firestorms which decimated her island during WWII. She is among those defiant Henoko residents who have staged sit-in protests for nearly a decade, preventing the relocation of Futenma to their emerald translucent waters.

I had filmed her in May, on the Henoko beach, where she explained to me, how “if this all becomes an air base, I could never face my grandchildren or my ancestors.”

When I saw her again, she smiled broadly, saying, “I want to meet Obama-san. Please tell him that we don’t need American bases on Okinawa. Please take them back to America.”

As we were filming the warm-up acts, I had received an urgent call from the second camera crew I had sent north to Henoko, site of the proposed new base. They told me that an enormous battleship had suddenly appeared offshore and the locals were predicting that the vessel would soon disgorge Marines to train for an amphibious landing onto the beach outside Camp Schwab. The locals told my crew that although they were accustomed to the site of amphibious tanks churning up the sands of their beaches, this was the first time they could recall that Marines were conducting training exercises on a Sunday.

Later, as I watched the footage of more than 100 Marines storming Henoko beach, I was stunned by how the presence of battle-ready soldiers, aiming machine guns as they charged the beach, transformed what I had experienced as a tropical oasis into such a menacing tableau.

Note: Marines haven't engaged in amphibious assaults in real military conflicts since the Pacific War.

Vandana Shiva: GMO crops "suicidal" compared to native crops adapted to flood & drought--"Resilience is built through diversity"

GMO companies have pushed their way into India, persuading small farmers to purchase expensive GMO seeds on borrowed money. Many of these farmers have committed suicide after the promises of better cotton yields turned out to be false hype--poor or bad GMO crop yields resulted in insufficient income to pay back their debts.

In February, India's government imposed a moratorium on the use of a GMO eggplant because of safety concerns.

In a recent interview with Reuters, Indian environmentalist and GMO-free advocate Vandana Shiva, warned that the use of genetically modified crops is "suicidal" because they, unlike native and normal crops, cannot adapt to flooding and drought:

"The (GM) system is more about companies making money from farmers than food security..."

Plenty of drought- and flood-resistant traditional crop varieties already exist and simply need to be brought back to market, supporters of traditional farming say.

Shiva said India has hundreds of varieties of rice, and many that show resistance to flooding, drought and saltwater are now being carefully bred at Indian research institutes to increase yields and are then re-released to farmers.

In India's northeast Assam province, where fields have been flooded for weeks after intense rains, demand has surged for two rice varieties that can survive weeks under water and also produce well even in dry conditions.

Planting a broader variety of crop strains - rather than a couple of GM varieties - should help protect the world food supply and insure it against emerging climate threats, including an expanding range of crop pests.

While a pest might decimate some varieties of crops, it is unlikely it could destroy a wide range of varieties, she said.

"Resilience is built through diversity," Shiva said.

Keeping small farmers on their land is also key, she said, because small farmers are more productive per acre than big-scale growers, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation's figures.

"The majority of people in the world are still farming on small farms," she said. "If we're addressing food security we'd better enhance the security of small farms."

NHK Debate Program "Nippon no Korekara" on Japan-US Alliance

From Satoko Norimatsu's March 15 Peace Philosophy Centre Blog: NHK Debate Program "Nippon no Korekara" on Japan-US Alliance NHK番組「日本の、これから」日米同盟特集

NHK broadcast a special debate program "Let Us Think Now About the US-Japan Alliance," from 10:00 - 11:30 PM on Friday, March 12, as the latest of the series "Nippon no Korekara"(Future of Japan). Six "yu-shikisha," or "experts" and about thirty citizens from all walks of life are loosely divided into the "left" and "right" sides - those who would generally agree on reducing military emphasis on the Japan-US relationship and those who would support status quo or more military alliance.

Kimberley Hughes, author and translator, and one of our fellow Okinawa supporters, was among the citizen representatives on the "left" side (photo: Kim, second left of the upper panel). The experienced NHK anchor Tamio Miyake looks like he is conducting an orchestra in the photo, and indeed that was what he was doing - to navigate through the bursting opinions and emotions from the both sides.

I wanted to share the exchange of emails when Kim shared her reflection with me and a number of other Okinawa supporters:

Kim's remarks

Hello All,

I just wanted to send many warm thanks to each one of you for your support prior to my participation in NHK's Nihon no korekara program on Friday night.

It was a very challenging experience because of the nature of the program (so many discussants and the ambiguous nature of the questions thrown at us, plus the cameras deliberately focused the majority of the time on the six "experts"). But I am still glad I did it!

As some of you have seen, I managed to make one comment about my disappointment in the Japan-U.S. alliance being based upon militarism, due to the ways that this destroys the humanity of everyone involved, whether aggressor or victim.

I would have also *loved* to point out Michael Green's hypocrisy in continually touting the U.S. as the grand purveyor of democracy while ignoring the democratic process in Okinawa on the Futenma issue...but by the time I was relaxed enough to speak, the hot debate had begun and we were all literally screaming over each other to get a word in. Rather exciting, but still frustrating!

And I don't have adequate words to express my thoughts re. Yoshiko Sakurai. First of all: what decade is she living in, I wonder? Given both her professed nostalgia for Ronald Reagan era politics and her quaffed hairdo, I felt like I was time traveling back to the mid-1980s! Very weird. I also was not impressed by the way she shushed the Okinawans who were trying to express their anger over treatment by the U.S. and Japanese government. Some of my friends pointed out that this was likely a deliberate strategy of NHK to try and make the U.S. position appear the most rational, by deliberately choosing screamers who would discredit their cause in the eyes of the Japanese viewing public. (One of them actually said something to the effect of "I wish I could chop Bush into pieces")!

At any rate, if I were an actual public speaker instead of a writer, I could have been much more effective...but it was still an interesting experience nonetheless.

Many thanks to you all again! (And an extra thanks to Martin for filming the clip of my comment!)

Warm wishes, Kim

My response:

Dear Kim,

I just watched it on TV Japan.

Thank you so much for being the only one in the whole program who questioned the assumed nature of the military alliance itself. Former Defense University prof Magosaki said something meaningful in that regard, but you made that point very clear, thank you!

Sakurai Yoshiko and Kang Sun Joong represented the most powerful speakers from the right and left side, respectively, of today's Japan. They must be tired of seeing each other in such occasions but I felt there was some kind of strange rhythm and trust between them. Thank Heavens Kang was there ... the only person perhaps Sakurai respected in the Left team and was ready to give in to from time to time. Sakurai can be a lot more wicked and aggressive.

Kang Sun Joong and Waseda's Ueki Chikako rightly stressed on the importance of departing from the Cold War thinking and diversifying the alliance to other forms than just military to deal with today's global challenges, many of which cannot be solved by forces, and Magosaki appropriately pointed out that the changed nature of the alliance from one for the security of Japan/Far East to one for the US's global hegemony makes the advantage of the alliance seriously questionable. Unfortunately these rational and current voices did not reach the minds of the three Cold-War team - Sakurai, Green and Tanaka. Tanaka Hitoshi, former top Foreign Ministry official shamelessly stated that Japan's cooperation with the Iraq War was inevitable because Japan could not afford to damage its relationship with the US in light of the threat of North Korea.

What was most shockingly was the complete lack of discussion of any sort on Okinawa - nothing on the Futenma issue. Kang did talk about the unfair burden of Okinawans, and a few Okinawans did talk about their experiences and feelings, and Sakurai and Tanaka did talk about the usual "futan keigen," or easing of burdens, and went on to other topics as if mentioning that term was a ritual that the status quo supporters just had to go through once to purify themselves of the guilt. But there was no discussion of how that "easing" could be achieved. It was all about the culture of "atamagoshi" (discussion and decisions over the heads of Okinawans) again. There should have been at least one expert from Okinawa on the left side, like Yoshida Kensei, Doug Lummis, Miyagi Yasuhiro, Gabe Masaaki or Sato Manabu. There would have been so many choices and it is unfair that NHK didn't invite one.

To the simultaneous survey of the viewers on the question whether we should "deepen" the alliance or not, 65% answered yes, and 35% no. This question was ambiguous. Without defining the nature of alliance and without discussing what it meant by "deepening," the question is like one that asks whether we should change the Constitution or not. It was meaningless without discussion of specifics. To the question of whether the alliances was advantageous or disadvantageous, 75% of the viewer respondents answered "advantageous" and 25% "disadvantageous." Kang appropriately pointed out the answer would depend on where you live; if one lives in Okianwa, it would certainly beg disadvantageous. Any advantage would lie on the sacrifice of Okinawans. But again, it was not discussed any further.

To complement the lack of Okinawan voices in the program, I will quote from the feedback by Yoshida Kensei, former Obirin U. professor and author Medoruma Shun.

Yoshida Kensei (abbreviated translation) (in his email to me and his email to NHK)

"The program started with a statement "the Japan-US Alliance, which have facilitated Japan's security and prosperity for the last fifty years." This program was supposed to reexamine the Japan-US alliance, but the NHK started with a bald affirmation of the military alliance. What was most outrageous was Sakurai Yoshiko's view of China's threat. She stressed on the military build-up of China but totally disregarded the US threat against China, including its nuclear build-up and the presence of US military bases surrounding China. She did not mention the US sale of weapons to Taiwan either. There was no discussion on how reduction of the burdens of Okinawans could be achieved."

Medoruma Shun (abbreviated translation):

"Someone in the program was suggesting a national referendum on Japan-US Security Treaty should be held. That suggestion made me wonder whether he was ready to accept a US military base in his own backyard. Even if we have such a referendum, it is obvious that most people will vote with the assumption that they will "benefiit" from the alliance by imposing the base burden on Okinawa, and other places like Sasebo, Yokosuka, Iwakuni, Atsugi, Yokota, and Misawa.

Some people mentioned "easing of Okinawa's burden," but that phrase itself assumes that the burden had to be born by Okinawa. The program did not discuss at all what can be done to reduce the burden of Okinawa or to deal with the current Futenma problem. I suspect there was a prior agreement with NHK and the participants not to go deep into these issues. How can we talk about the Japan-US alliance without talking at all about the biggest problem we are facing right now? Yamato Japanese first need to face squarely their own discrimination and violence against Okinawans, and the political delusions that led to the concentration of base burdens in Okinawa."

Kim's additional comment on my response:

I think that the glossing over the Okinawa issue may have been deliberate...perhaps because the perspective represented by Green, Sakurai et. al does not really have a solid leg to stand on--which would have been made all too clear had an Okinawa expert been included on the panel. Again, it really felt like the whole thing was deliberately constructed by NHK in order to make the position of the U.S. government appear to be the only viable and trustworthy one. Disturbing indeed.

Many thanks to Kim Hughes, who made a precious contribution to the debate.

U.S.-based "Network for Okinawa" launches website: Closethebase.org

The U.S.-based "Network for Okinawa" has just launched its new website: CloseTheBase.org.

So far the website offers:

•  A Center for Biological Diversity sign-on letter to President Obama and Prime Minister Hatoyama addressing the environmental damages of the planned project to open a U.S. military base to Henoko, Okinawa.

• An article, "Can Japan Say No to Washington?," by John Feffer, of Foreign Policy in Focus, exploring the Okinawa base issue within the context of U.S. military empire.

•  A petition, "We must protect the reef and its inhabitants." Speak out and tell President Obama to protect Okinawa’s reefs and stop all plans for the construction of a military base.

For more in-depth background on US military bases in Okinawa, see Satoko Norimatsu's Peace Philosophy Centre blog and Japanfocus.org.

Full Spectrum Peacebuilding: Come Home, America (U.S. Citizens Opposed to War & Empire)--http://comehomeamerica.us/

On February 20, 2010, a historic conference was held in Boston bringing together American traditional conservatives, progressives, liberals and libertarians who oppose US militarism and Empire. They've started a fledgling website with an assortment of articles across the political range.

Okinawan construction company & Japanese politicians who bought land around Henoko pushed Futenma-Henoko relocation deal--to line their own pockets

(Recently retired U.S. State Department official William Brooks explains what former Administrative Defense Vice Minister Moriya recently revealed about the current agreement between the United States and Japan to relocate the Futenma Marine Corps Air Station to Henoko Bay. Local construction companies in Okinawa wanted to build the elaborate air base in the bay to maximize profit on the relocation. Video: 2010 Okinawa )

In another revelation about the backroom deals driving some Japanese politicians' insistence on the expansion--Satoko Norimatstu reports on an investigative article by Nikkan Gendai that Japanese government officials bought land around Henoko, seeking to profit from the relocation plan they are still pushing despite almost unanimous citizen opposition in Henoko and Okinawa.

One of the alleged deal-makers, Okinawan parliamentarian Shimoji Mikio--whose family owns a construction company with an interest in the base--continues to churn out alternative plans trying to keep the Henoko base relocation afloat or inside Okinawa:

Nikkan Gendai Report on "Those Who Bought Henoko" 日刊ゲンダイ報道―辺野古を買っていた「政界９人リスト」が問題化

According to the report of Nikkan Gendai, in its March 5, 2010 edition, there are several high-ranking government officials who have bought land around Henoko, the planned site for construction of a new runway as replacement facility of USMC Futenma Air Station.

It was previously reported that Ichiro Ozawa, Secretary-General of the ruling party DPJ (Democratic Party of Japan) had bought a piece of land in Ginoza Village, near Henoko back in 2005. (See related Sankei Newspaper News in Japanese).

According to this undercover research by the National Public Safety Commission and the Research Department of the Ministry of Defense, there are at least nine more people within the government who bought land around the area.

The plan of reclaiming off the coast of Henoko, where Camp Schwab is, to build a new runway was agreed between US (Bush Administration) and Japan (Koizumi Administration) in 2005. The new plan to build a V-shaped runway was agreed upon in 2006. This plan was endorsed by Takemasa Moriya, former Vice Defense Minister, who was prosecuted in 2007 for taking bribes from an equipment trader Yamada Corp. in 2007 while overseeing the defense bureaucracy.

The undisclosed list of the nine people are mostly LDP (Liberal Democratic Party) members including those closely associated with Moriya - "N," "K," and "I," all former Chief of Defense Agency (before it became Ministry of Defense), "N" as former Chief Cabinet Secretary, "T" who was the minister with special assignment for Okinawa issues, and "I," who managed the office of Prime Minister as a secretary. These are all LDP members, and two of the rest three are DPJ's incumbent Cabinet members "M" and "K," and "S" of PNP (People's New Party).

Prices of the real estate around Henoko area have been increasing lately, and they are expected to rise more when the new base is built in Henoko as planned. Gendai made inquiries of the offices of those government officials, and their responses were more of less the same:

"There is no such fact." (Office of "S")

"It is ungrounded." (Office of "M")

"The staff in charge is away." (Office of "M")

"I am just an intern and I cannot say the name of the person in charge." (Office of "N")

Journalist Hajime Yokota, who has visited the area before says that the areas surrounding Henoko have already been developed on the assumption that there will be a new base built there. Many public projects are underway including a new gateball centre. Base relocations are perfect opportunities for the interests of the Ministry of Defense and parliamentarians with vested interests in defense-related businesses.

Who are those people mentioned in the Gendai report just with initials?

Looking at the list of recent defense chiefs and cabinet ministers, here are the possibilities.

"N" for Fukushiro Nukaga 額賀福志郎 who was Defence Agency Chief from October 2005 to November 2006.

"K" for Fumio Kyuma　久間章生, who was Defense Minister for the first half of 2007, or Yuriko Koike 小池百合子, who was Defense Minister just over a month after Kyuma.

"I" for Shigeru Ishiba 石破茂, who was Defense Minister from September 2007 to August 2008.

"T" for Sanae Takaichi 高市早苗, who had the ministrial post under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe from September 2006 to August 2007.

"N" as former Chief Cabinet Secretary for Hidenao Nakagawa 中川秀直or Hiromu Nonaka　野中広務.

"I" for former Prime Minister's policy secretary could be Isao Iijima 飯島勲 under Koizumi or Yoshiyuki Inoue　井上義行 under Abe.

The "K"s among the DPJ members within the current Cabinet are Defense Minister Toshimi Kitazawa 北澤俊美, Finance Minister Naoto Kan 菅直人, and Education Minister Tatsuo Kawabata 川端達夫, and the only "M" in the current Cabinet is Transportation Minister Seiji Maehara 前原誠司.

The "S" in PNP is probably Mikio Shimoji　下地幹夫, the only "S" in the incumbent PNP parliamentarians. The Okinawan parliamentarian has already been connected with the interest of his family's construction business.

The original text in Japanese is posted in its entirety at the above link.

NHK's "Korekara" focuses on the planned expansion of a US Marine base in Henoko--an ecologically sensitive area in northern Okinawa

From Martin Frid's Kurashi--News From Japan blog:

If you live in Japan, tonight's program at NHK starting Friday evening at 22:00 pm promises to be a very interesting show. The NHK Korekara is a debate program with a long history. They do their resarch and invite only the best to talk about the Korekara issues.

これから of course in the sense of "from now on" or "what's next" so it is very timely that NHK will devote this hour to Okinawa issues.

Living here, I just humbly wish this NHK show would be broadcast elsewhere as well, as an inspiration to all the peace activists around the world.

Do write and ask your local TV station to contact NHK and find a way to talk about this issue not only in Japan but everywhere else where American military bases are a part of the daily life. How many places? How many military bases does the United States of America have on foreign soil?

The NHK Korekara program is a standard feature with a long history. The producers and everyone will take great care to make a balanced, fair program that makes sense to Japanese viewers. I'm glad that people like long-time Japan resident Kimberly Hughes from US for Okinawa will participate, together with Michael J Green from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. But I'm actually more interested in how NHK Korekara will portray and present the concerns of people in Okinawa, Japan. Stay tuned.