Rifts deepen in Okinawa as minister suspends local governor's order to halt U.S. base work

Japan's Fisheries Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said Monday that the government decided to suspend Okinawa governor's order to halt work on the planned relocation of a U.S. military base, triggering strong opposition from local residents.

The Okinawa prefecture governor Takeshi Onaga last Monday ordered the Defense Ministry (MOD) bureau in Okinawa to suspend all work off the Henoko. But Hayashi's statement, came after the MOD's request to examine Onaga's instruction, will enable the Okinawa Defense bureau to continue its work.

Hayashi said that a major delay in the work could affect trust between Japan and the United States and hurt their defense and diplomatic ties while the two nations try to push forward the long- stalled relocation plan.

However, the decision has angered local residents, prompting about 100 citizens to stage a protest in front of the U.S. Marines ' Camp Schwab adjacent to the planned reclamation site.

Those protesters called the action an "outrageous act that ignores the sentiments of prefectural residents," and said they support the governor.

Japan and the U.S. have signed a bilateral accord to build a replacement facility off the Henoko district of Nago for the U.S. Marine Corp's Futenma Air Station, located in the densely populated city of Ginowan. But the Okinawa prefectural government and residents there hope to move the base outside the prefecture. Endt