Text Fwd: Okinawans Continue to Resist in Takae

* Image source: Ten Thousand Things
'Okinawans engaged in nonviolent action to protect their beloved, biodiverse Yanbaru Forest from unwanted U.S. military training helipad construction. Photo: The Situation in Takae Higashimura and Yanbaru Forest website.'
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See also Ten Thousand Things
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* Text fwd from Corazon Valdez Fabros on Feb. 26, 2011

Huffington Post
Okinawans Continue to Resist in Takae
John Feffer
Co-director, Foreign Policy in Focus
February 25, 2011


Some animals should be endangered. Consider the V-22 Osprey. The tilt-rotor aircraft, which takes off like a helicopter but flies like a plane, costs more than a $100 million apiece, killed 30 personnel in crashes during its development stage, and survived four attempts by none other than Dick Cheney to deep-six the program. Although it is no longer as crash-prone as it once was, the Osprey's performance in Iraq was still sub-par and it remains a woefully expensive creature. Although canceling the program would save the U.S. government $10-12 billion over the next decade, the Osprey somehow avoided the budget axe in the latest round of cuts on Capitol Hill.

It's bad enough that U.S. taxpayers have to continue to support the care and feeding of this particular Osprey. Worse, we're inflicting the bird on others.

In a small village in the Yanbaru Forest in northern Okinawa, the residents of Takae have been fighting non-stop to prevent the construction of six helipads designed specifically for the V-22. The protests have been going on since the day in 2007 when Japanese construction crews tried to prepare the site for the helipads. "Since that day, over 10,000 locals, mainland Japanese, and foreign nationals have participated in a non-stop sit-in outside the planned helipad sites," writes Jon Mitchell at Foreign Policy In Focus. "So far, they've managed to thwart any further construction attempts. At small marquee tents, the villagers greet visitors with cups of tea and talk them through their campaign, highlighting their message with hand-written leaflets and water-stained maps."

It's all part of the plan that would shut down the aging Futenma air base in Okinawa, relocate some of the Marines to Guam, and build a new facility elsewhere in Okinawa. The overwhelming majority of Okinawans oppose this plan. They want to shut down Futenma, and they don't want any new U.S. military bases.

But the Japanese government has essentially knuckled under to U.S. pressure to move forward with the agreement. Building these helipads in a subtropical forest, with a wide range of unusual wildlife, is all part of the deal.

The recently re-elected Okinawan governor Hirokazu Nakaima opposes the relocation plan. And, according to Pacific Daily News, "Nakaima may actually have the authority to disrupt the plan because of his authority under the Japan Public Water Reclamation Act, which gives the Okinawa governor final authority over reclaimed land."

Washington has said that it won't move forward on the deal without local support.
The Osprey is a budget-busting beast. The Okinawans don't want it. Both Tokyo and Washington are desperate to trim spending.

The V-22 is one animal well worth driving toward extinction.

[Site Fwd: Ten Thousand Things] VOICE OF OKINAWA

See also Peace Philosophy Center


Ten Thousand Things
VOICE OF OKINAWA
Takae's helipad issue — Criticizing Sen. Inouye
Yoshio Shimoji
Naha, Okinawa

Futenma is not the only base issue anguishing Okinawa these days. There's a village called Takae in northern Okinawa and the problem facing Takae is that, in return for an unused portion of the U.S. Marine Corps Northern Training Area, Tokyo agreed with Washington to construct six helipads (diameter: 75 meters each) for the U.S. Marines' V-22 Ospreys in the lush forests surrounding the village.

The helipad construction is apparently interconnected with the planned relocation of the Futenma air station to Henoko, located also in northern Okinawa. The noise pollution caused by the Ospreys is said to be beyond human forbearance as the storm of protest showed lodged against the Marines on January 27 by the citizens of Brewton, Alabama, for the maneuvering of the Ospreys at the city’s airport.


Takae's lush forest where Tokyo wants to construct of six helipads (diameter of 75 meters each) for U.S. military V-22 Ospreys. Over 192 plant and animal (most are endangered) species are unique to this area. Photo: Yoshio Shimoji)

Takae sits amidst lush forests and natural beauty. Imagine how horrible its beautiful landscape would become if the construction actually started. The training and the deafening noise of the infamous Ospreys would certainly destroy the peaceful environment for not only the Takae villagers but also those precious species, some already listed as endangered, that are indigenous to Yanbaru (or Northern Okinawa Highland).



According to the February 12 Japan Times, Senator Daniel Inouye again urged Tokyo to make headway for the early relocation of Futenma, saying “The U.S. side has been patient, although it cannot wait indefinitely.” This is a gangster’s typical pet line when he intimidates others — that is, Senator Inouye is threatening Tokyo to expedite Washington’s decades-old design of Futenma’s relocation to Henoko.

He may not know, but the Marines or the U.S. Navy representing them submitted to U.S. Congress every fiscal year in the 1960’s a blue print for the relocation of Futenma to Henoko for a budgetary approval, which was never approved because of sky-rocketing Vietnam War expenditures. How dare he say “the U.S. side cannot wait indefinitely”? That’s a laughing matter, indeed.

(The blueprint for a new air station, a military port, and a pier, from the Master Plan of Navy Facilities on Okinawa, 1966. Image: Asia-Pacific Journal)

Mr. Shimoji's "The Futenma Base and the U.S.-Japan Controversy: An Okinawan Perspective" was published at The Asia Pacific Journal earlier this year.

His letter letter, "How dare Obama ask Hatoyama to act without regard to democratic process in Okinawa?" was published at the The New York Times on May 28, 2010, and his article, "'Thanks' Doesn't Allay Okinawans," was published on July 11, 2010, at The Japan Times.

Petition Fwd: Stop building USmilitary helipad and save the Okinawa forest!

* Fwd from Corazon Valdez Fabros on Feb. 15, 2011


Petition: Stop building USmilitary helipad and save the Okinawa forest! (click)
Target: Mr.President Obama
Sponsored by: Sumiko Uda
Dear Mr.President Obama,

Okinawa people need your help.
Japanese government starts destroying the forest for building the US helipad,
without investgation of Redlisted animals.


Please tell Mr.Kan to stop destroying Okinawa forest.


There is Jungle Warfare Training Center of United States Marine Corps (7,500 ha) in the area called Yanbaru %u2013 Northeast mountain side of Higashi and Kunigami village, Okinawa. Subtropical natural forest and mountain stream remain, and the area provides habitats for over 4,000 species of wildlife. 11 animals and 12 plants are peculiar to the Yanbaru area. A large number of Threatened Species are listed in the Red List, 188 species in Okinawan Red List, and 177 in the Red List of Environment Ministry. Jungle Warfare Training Center and the Yanbaru Forest around the center have quite important natural environment and biodiversity including numerous endemic, endemic subspecific, and threatened species.


%u3000Northern half of the Jungle Warfare Training Center is scheduled for retiring to Japan. However, the construction of 6helipads (75m in diameter) and roads are required in return. If the helipads are constructed and military exercises carry out, it is considered to have serious adverse effect on forest and the wildlife living in the area.


Okinawa People call for the cancellation of helipads.


Natural environment and the wildlife living in the Jungle Warfare Training Center are of considerable value as World natural heritage. IUCN urged both Japanese and American governments to consider other alternatives, including Zero Option (option of no constriction), also to set up a protected area and management action plan for Okinawa Woodpecker and Okinawa Rail in the years of 2000 and 2004. The government should also call off the helipads constriction plan to the security and tranquil life of the people who lives in Takae, Higashi village,
situated next to the helipads.

Text Fwd: Generals clash on cause of April Osprey crash

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See also Peace Philosophy Center
Stop building V-22 Osprey facilities in Okinawa!
Thursdy, Feb. 10, 2011
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*Image source: same as the link

* Text fwd from Corazon Valdez Fabros on Feb. 10, 2011

Air Force Times
Generals clash on cause of April Osprey crash
By Bruce Rolfsen - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Jan 22, 2011 10:12:48 EST

In a rare public display of disunity, two generals are at serious odds over the cause of a fatal aircraft accident.

The April 9 crash in Afghanistan was the first loss of a CV-22 Osprey in combat. Two of the three cockpit crew members — pilot Maj. Randell Voas, 43, and flight engineer Senior Master Sgt. James Lackey, 45 — died attempting a night landing at a desert landing zone. The co-pilot survived; he has not been indentified. Also killed were a soldier and a contractor — two of 16 passengers in the cargo compartment.

Brig. Gen. Donald Harvel, president of the accident investigation board, said he believes engine problems brought down the special operations Osprey on its landing approach. Lt. Gen. Kurt Cichowski, to whom Harvel answered during the investigation, argues aircrew errors caused the crash.

Harvel cited engine problems in his report; Cichowski wrote a dissent that he released with the report Dec. 15.

Cichowski, a fighter pilot, declined to comment on the dispute. He is now the CIA’s associate director for military affairs; Harvel, a mobility pilot, spoke with Air Force Times over the telephone Dec. 28 and Jan. 5 from his home near Atlanta. He retired in September from the Air National Guard and now works for Delta Air Lines.

“There was absolutely a lot of pressure to change my report,” Harvel said. “My heart and brain said it was not pilot error. I stuck with what I thought was the truth.”

Harvel said Air Force Special Operations Command wanted him to cite the cause of the crash as pilot error because AFSOC didn’t want old doubts stirred up about the safety of the Osprey program, which had three fatal crashes of prototypes and the Marine Corps variant from 1992 to 2000. The Air Force variant has had one other serious accident, caused when an engine bolt vibrated loose during takeoff. The CV-22, though, managed to land safely.

AFSOC declined to comment on Harvel’s accusation. At the time of the April 9 crash and during the investigation, Cichowski was AFSOC’s vice commander.

The dispute will never be resolved because no irrefutable evidence exists to substantiate either explanation: no black box and no eyewitness testimony.

The CV-22’s flight data recorder probably ended up in little pieces when the service destroyed the Osprey hours after the crash. The airmen and soldiers stripping the wreckage of evidence and classified items before the explosion didn’t know the aircraft had a black box, according to the report.

As for firsthand knowledge of what went on inside the cockpit, the surviving co-pilot told investigators he didn’t have a clear memory of the flight’s last 30 seconds.

Harvel came to his conclusion from watching a video of the CV-22 from a camera onboard an A-10 Thunderbolt that was part of the mission. The footage shows haze coming out of both engines throughout the last 17 seconds of flight; Harvel is convinced the “unidentified contrails,” as they are described in the report, are fuel vapors from engines trying to restart. The Air Force did not release the images.

The stresses of flying in the dirt and dust of Afghanistan probably caused the engine problems, Harvel said.

When maintainers checked the power level of the engines April 6, the right one operated at 95.3 percent and left one ran at 99.5 percent. When an engine fell below 95 percent, it had to be repaired or replaced.

After the power check, the Osprey made four more landings at austere sites. On one, the screening system that protected the left engine from blowing sand failed. Each landing would have reduced engine performance, Harvel said.

“Degraded engines could have led to engine failure, surge/stall or insufficient power when a high power demand was required,” he said, adding that he believes the aircrew members knew about the engine problems and flew the Osprey as best they could to a rolling landing. The CV-22 touched down at 88 mph, the report said; it should have landed like a helicopter, with little forward speed.

The plane’s landing gear absorbed some of the impact, with the tires digging eight inches into the desert sand. The plane rolled and bounced for more than 200 feet until it reached a drainage ditch. As the plane’s nose dipped into the ditch, the Osprey flipped over and began breaking apart before coming to a stop 50 feet away.

In his dissent, Cichowski cited several factors ruling out engine failure:

•No one onboard the Osprey or in radio contact with it heard any discussions about engine problems or warnings from the cockpit.

•An analysis of the recovered left engine showed it was working. The right engine was not recovered.

•The V-22 Joint Program Office, which oversees Air Force and Marine Corps Ospreys, concluded engine failure was highly unlikely.

•The crew made several errors, including the pilot flying too high and too fast in his approach; the failure to obtain a weather report warning of a 17 mph tailwind; distraction over unexpected lighting at the landing zone; and self-imposed pressure to make the mission a success.

Typically, the senior officer who convenes the accident investigation board — Cichowski in this case — agrees with the board president’s opinion.

If the senior officer disagrees with the report, he can ask the board president to consider new evidence. Usually the review resolves the differences.

Cichowski received Harvel’s report Aug. 25. On Sept. 30, Cichowski received an analysis from the joint V-22 Program Office that suggested the report underestimated the CV-22’s speed when it crashed.

In a memo dated Oct. 5, Cichowski stated he accepted the report but believed there wasn’t enough evidence to support the conclusion that at least one engine malfunctioned.

Next, the report and Cichowski’s dissent went to Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz, who in the early 1980s served as an MC-130E Combat Talon pilot in the same squadron as the Osprey crew — the 8th Special Operations Squadron at Hurlburt Field, Fla.

On Nov. 15, Schwartz ordered Harvel to review the program office analysis. Harvel spent three days, Nov. 19 to Nov. 21, studying the new information but still came away convinced that engine problems caused the crash.

Despite his strong disagreement with Harvel’s conclusion, Cichowski signed off on the report Nov. 23 because Air Force accident investigation rules left him little choice.

With the investigation finally wrapped up, AFSOC leaders began meeting with families and survivors to explain the conclusions. Usually, the board president handles the duty, but Harvel was not invited.

Harvel was not asked to meet with the service members and families because he had retired, said AFSOC spokesman Lt. Col. Paul Villagran.

Harvel sees the exclusion as AFSOC’s snub of his opinion.

“I thought that they were very wrong not to let me brief the families,” he said. “I had gathered a lot of insight and took extra notes to brief personal stories to each family. I even volunteered to brief the families at no expense to the government. Still, they never even acknowledged me.”

[Site Fwd: Peace Philosophy Center] V-22 Osprey "extremely noisy with a horrific racket"

Peace Philosophy Center

V-22 Osprey "extremely noisy with a horrific racket"

Jan. 27, 2011

Okinawan newspapers on January 27 reported that the residents of Brewton, Alabama complained about the noise caused by the V-22 Osprey used in the US Air Force training mission at their municipal airport, and the Air Force offered apology and told the local airport authority that the squadron will not come back. “Those aircraft are extremely noisy with an horrific racket," the airport director is quoted in the local news (see below).

It is disturbing news for Okinawa, as USMC is planning to deploy Ospreys in Henoko and Takae, two places in Northern Okinawa where military expansion is planned despite the opposition from local residents. Okinawans are worried, not just about their noise, but about the reported risk of accidents by Ospreys. A recent Pentagon report (below) also indicated the continuing unreliability of the aircraft due to "cracking or prematurely failing hinges and access doors, engine and drive components within the nacelle structure, flight control system failures, wiring and swashplate actuators." The aircraft killed thirty people during the course of development, and killed four in a crash in Afghanistan in April 2010.

In late December, a US helicopter hovered over and damaged the protesters' tent in Takae, where US/Japan are planning to build six new helipads (Osprey-capable) surrounding a residential area, but the authorities have not even confirmed that it was a US Marine helicopter that did it. It is unacceptable that a plan to use noisy and dangerous aircraft like V-22 Osprey is not properly disclosed to local residents and there has been no assessment of risks associated with Ospreys in the environmental assessments on both places.

READ MORE

[Petition Fwd] Stop US helipad plan in Okinawa to save great nature [ 서명 포워드] 훌륭한 자연을 보호하기 위해 오끼나와 미국 비행장 설치를 중단하라!

* Image source: Villagers' website in Japanese on Takae issue 다까에 이슈에 대한 마을 주민들의 웹사이트(일본어)

* Image source: Anatakara (original source: Wiki) V-22 Osprey
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* Petition thankfully informed by M. S. on Sept. 27, 2010
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Please do a sign here:

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/stop-us-military-helipad-construction-in-takae-okinawa/

Stop US helipad plan in Okinawa to save great nature : by Care 2
훌륭한 자연을 보호하기 위해 오끼나와 미국 비행장 설치를 중단하라!
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* For more information on the struggle of Takae, go to HERE (English/ Japanese)
다까에 투쟁에 대한 영/일어 사이트는

http://www.okinawa-u.ac.jp/~tsuchida/Save-Dugong/material/takae/heli_pad.html

* Villagers' website in Japanese on Takae issue
다까에 이슈에 대한 마을 주민들의 웹사이트(일본어)

* 다까에 비행장 설치 반대 투쟁에 대한 국문 번역 내용은 여기를 보시길.
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Excerpt from petition:

Target: to be submitted to the Japanese Parliament Speakers of lower and upper houses
Sponsored by: citizens of Higashi village against helipad construction

Paper based petittions(over 21,830 personnel signed) and web based petittion (550 personnel signed in care2 till then) against helipad construction plan was presented in the Japanese Diet after "in house" meeting on 7th Feb 2008.

Total signer's number of over 22,000 is well above the targeted 15,000, which is 100 times of Higashi village population(about 150).

However, US and Japanese governments show no intention to quit the plan, which means we still need to continue this campaign.

On the contrary, Okinawa Defence bureau bring case to the court argueing that citizen are illegally prohibiting the construction plan.

Court case has started in January 2009. Over 20 voluntier lawyers are supporting the citizen, claiming that resistance of the citizen in non-violent form is solely the expression of resistance and that it is Okinawa Defence bureau who is violating legal process of this procedure. Another pettion in the paper form for supporting the court to reject the case in favor of the resisting citizens is in the way. Form is available in citizens of Higashi village against helipad construction homepage, http://takae.ti-da.net/

Apart from court case problem, construction plan has been stalled. Okinawa Defence bureau was intended to change the situastion by bringing the case into the court. The result was that lots of Okinawa citizen came to know the Takae problem from this news and support movement has widely spread since then.

It is promised by the Okinawa Defence bureau that they will not start construction work until the court case come to an conclusion.

As a rsult, no construction work took place since 2008.

For further detail of the past, see below.


----No majour construction-related progresses have taken place since New years day, although two dump trucks were recorded to carry in pebbles and sand for surfacing last week. No surfacing worker was allowed to enter for this occasion.

Prediction from these is that as fiscal year 2007 of Japan is close to the end(in March) the constructor needed to show a sign that they are making progress of some kind.

Environment assessment procedure made an agreement that no construction work should be done during the breeding period of wild life(from March to June).

Our position is that no construction should take place at any time. Concerning breeding time, two newly born babies are in Takae and another baby is expected in this spring.

This place has been primarily used for living, it should be so in the future as far as people wish.-----

ex-title:Save okinawa Woodpecker and rail from US military helipad---

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Takae US military helipads construction has started in July 2007, which has close link with Henoko air base in plan. Local citizens are objecting against the plan by 24 hours sitting in.

Takae people and its nature was unwishingly pushed to the front line of US military operations, militarism move of this kind is soon supposed to spread to the entire Japan.

We call petition to the world for the Japanese parliament against the helipad plan by demanding following two claims.

First claim: Immediate stop of illegal helipad construction of US military in Takae, Higashi village, Okinawa JAPAN.

Second claim: Entire northern training area of Okinawa should be returned to people of Okinawa, as it was deprived by US military force during and after world war II against international law and it has continuously been provided by Japanese government againt Okinawan people's will.

Dead line is scheduled 10th Janury of the year 2008, in order to be submitted in the next annual parliament meeting in 2008.

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Further information is available here.
http://okinawaforum.org/disagreeblog/VOT-en.pdf

Comment by WWF Japan.
http://www.wwf.or.jp/news/press/2007/p07061401.htm#eng

Greenpeace Japan is kindly mentioning on this petition in their Blog.
http://www.greenpeace.or.jp/info/features/okinawa/blog_eng/index_html
less

Paper based petitions(over 21,830 personnel signed) and web based petittion (550 personnel signed in care2 till then) against helipad construction plan was presented in the Japanese Diet after "in house" meeting on 7th Feb 2008.

Total signer's number of over 22,000 is well above the targeted 15,000, which is 100 times of Higashi village population(about 150).

However, US and Japanese governments show no intention to quit the plan, which means we still need to continue this campaign.

On the contrary, Okinawa Defence bureau bring case to the court argueing that citizen are illegally prohibiting the construction plan.

Court case has started in January 2009. Over 20 voluntier lawyers are supporting the citizen, claiming that resistance of the citizen in non-violent form is solely the expression of resistance and that it is Okinawa Defence bureau who is violating legal process of this procedure. Another pettion in the paper form for supporting the court to reject the case in favor of ... more

[Site Fwd][Peace Philosopy Center] DoD: Joint Use of "ALL" bases in Japan, and Operation of Ospreys 미 국방부: 일본의 "모든" 기지들 합동 이용 과 '물수리' 운영들

* 일명 '물수리(Osprey)로 불리는 이 헬리콥터에 대해서 국문인 여기(클릭)와 여기(클릭)를 참조하세요.
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*Thanks to S. N and M. S.

* Peace Philosophy Center
Saturday, September 11, 2010
DoD: Joint Use of "ALL" bases in Japan, and Operation of Ospreys

(Photo: MV-22 Osprey, from Wikipedia)

See below an excerpt from the September 9 press briefing by Assistant Secretary of Defense Geoff Morrell, talking about the U.S. and Japanese joint use of "all facilities in Japan," including the FRF("Futenma Relocation Facility"), and confirming their plan to operate MV-22 Ospreys will operate in Japan.

What Morrell indicates is that the joint use of military bases and operation of Ospreys apply to ALL military bases in Japan, not just in Okinawa. Could Ospreys operate in and out of Iwakuni as well ?

Okinawans are angry about the fact that the Japanese government has concealed the Osprey plan until earlier this month. The environmental impact assessment did not pay consideration to the Osprey operations either.

The Japanese and U.S. governments must be fully accountable for their plans to jointly use the military bases in Japan, and their plans to operate MV-22 Ospreys, dangerous aircrafts dubbed "Widow Makers" for their frequent accidents.

From the transcript of September 9 Press Briefing of DoD (Department of Defense website).

Q Hi. On the Futenma issue, Japanese Defense Minister Kitazawa announced that United States and Japan agreed to discuss the possible joint use of Futenma Replacement Facility. But this was not included in the so-called bilateral or Experts Study Group report which was recently published. Did United States actually agree to discuss about this possible joint use?

MR. MORRELL: I think, Yoso, as you are aware, the ministers have agreed to look at joint or shared use of, frankly, all facilities in Japan, the FRF among them. But the mandate of the Experts Study Group was to look at the facility's location, configuration and construction method.

So looking at shared use was beyond the scope of their mandate, as were a slew of other issues. So that was never their charge.

However, there is a separate consultative process that will, indeed, study, you know, the expansion of joint and shared use of U.S. military and Japanese facilities in order to improve the effectiveness of the alliance's defense posture. So we do anticipate those discussions to take place. They just weren't a part of this first -- the working group -- the experts' group, their mandate, okay?

Okay. You also had another question that you sent me, I think. It was about the Ospreys. And what I would say to you there is yes, we anticipate that Ospreys will indeed operate in Japan. And we've -- and we've told the Japanese government as much. You know, where and when and how are things to be determined. But this is obviously an incredibly effective form of airlift that will enhance our alliance capabilities. And so we do anticipate the deployment of Ospreys to our facilities in Japan at some point.