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2008: Japanese to U.S.: Get out The two men, both 23, are
alleged to have raped a Japanese woman in the early hours of
Tuesday morning, leaving her with an injury to her neck,
police said. They were taken into custody later that day.
Tensions over the American military presence on Okinawa have
boiled over before. Many residents were incensed by the rape
of a 12-year-old Japanese girl in 1995 by three U.S. military
personnel. And allegations that a Marine raped a 14-year-old
girl caused a furor in 2008, although the girl decided not to
pursue charges.
About half of all U.S. military personnel in Japan are
stationed in Okinawa.
The U.S. government is "extremely concerned" by the
allegations against the two service members, U.S. Ambassador
to Japan John Roos said in a statement Tuesday.
"We are committed to cooperating fully with the Japanese
authorities in their investigation," he said.
Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Shuji Kira on Wednesday
summoned Roos over the case, urging the enforcement of
stricter discipline and preventive measures.
Morimoto, the defense minister, suggested that if the
Japanese protests about the matter didn't prove effective
enough, he could raise the issue with U.S. Defense Secretary
Leon Panetta.
Opposition to the presence of U.S. troops in Okinawa runs so
deeply that it contributed to the resignation of former Prime
Minister Yukio Hatoyama in 2010. He had promised to move a
U.S. base but later announced that it would stay. His critics
said at the time that he gave in to U.S. pressure, and his
governing coalition broke up.
