Okinawan/ Ryukyuan Politics

By Bobby The Rock

Menso-re Uchinau

Welcome

Okinawa Now
Bill the Marion wearing the hat.
Bob the Rock on Bill's left.
Okinawa Now

This is a report of a visit to Okinawa during November, 2002 - that would be fifty-seven years after my first encounter as a member of the invasion forces in 1945. I, Bill Steele, and his wife Toki made this present trip, which I am describing below. But first I want to mention that I am sending this to a large number of readers and friends, some of whom are familiar with Okinawa, others not. Therefore I ask your forbearance if I present information redundant to you, or if I have left something out that is needed. I’ll be more than glad to respond to any inquiries I receive as a result. To sum up our trip in one sentence – it was a never-to-be-forgotten experience for me. An experience of surprise, of renewal, nostalgia, disappointment and reward. I’ll explain:


SURPRISES


I was surprised in many ways, some positive, some negative. I’ll get the negatives out of the way first.


I was surprised to find my original, familiar - hundreds of years old - island farm plots, country roads and ancient walking paths now covered with wall-to-wall concrete buildings – all alike. That is, they covered everything, all built right next to their sidewalks – all two or three stories high, with shops below (many now closed) and living quarters above, all square, sharp-cornered, ugly to me, gray concrete slabs with stainless steel water tanks posed on top. A jumble of signs, advertising, neon, some with a few beautiful flowers growing about – either by chance or intention, and the familiar black algae coloration on walls, typical of all humid-climate third-world countries I have visited. To me this was not beauty or plan or anything spiritual. It bespoke of a contractor-built society – no architectural designs, no city or land-use planning, no parks, no green belts between cities – all run together for miles and miles like Los Angeles – no aesthetics, and often with streets so narrow an American automobile could not possibly turn a corner, or a fire truck ever negotiate. This was a disappointing surprise.


It reminded me of the 80,000-resident capital city of Naha before the war. It also was built this way, down through the centuries – by hapinchance – by individuals doing their own thing with no regard for an overall plan. I am told this was also the case after the war when the U.S. came in and developed the island – with no overall plan to follow. And even again, later when the Japanese came in with their massive building programs in the 1970s - again with little overall planning.


In all fairness I must recognize those occasional home dwellings which are beautifully designed, and landscaped. They are lovely – a joy to behold. But they are interspersed between all the repetitive buildings, their beauty often dwarfed by the overwhelming monotony of the contractor concept of urban development.


I was conversely surprised at the cleanliness of the neighborhoods. I was told home dwellers clean the streets in their own areas – these streets not being cleaned by city governments. Perhaps one of the waning fine customs of old Okinawa.


Also surprising was the fact that no one in an Okinawan city can ever possibly die of thirst. Soft-drink vending machines have been placed in almost every block. They are as ubiquitous as the trees. Someone did a magnificent job of planning this particular program. They are clean, they have hot and cold drinks, fine coffees, chocolate, orange, grape, hot and cold teas, as long as one has 110 yen ($1) in their pocket, relief is only one block away. Also, they are illuminated. They stand out like thousands of friendly little light houses in the dark of night - or a cloudy day. Sentinels of warmth and care and refuge, constantly at your beck and call. Quite a concept.

I was surprised at the number of abandoned automobiles along the roads and in grassy areas. They must number in the thousands. While we were there the newspapers told of plans to collect them and recycle – a much needed project, given not only the ugliness and constant reminder of public neglect, but the slow, creeping contamination of the soils by petroleum products, battery acids, and corroded metals. I was told one reason for this practice is the high cost of owning a car, in that it is necessary to pay at least $500 a year for official inspections, and more for resulting repairs. So when the cost of compliance is higher than the cost of a new car – it is an easy decision to simply park it on the side of the road and calmly walk away.


I was surprised at the proliferation of flowers and natural color. Everywhere, beautiful flowers spring up not only where planted but wherever there is untrampled soil. Along sidewalks, empty lots, open fields, front yards – the forces of nature cannot be suppressed in this fertile land. While this may not surprise many, to me my memory of barren war-flattened countrysides is far different than what I saw on this trip.


I was surprised by the unending warmth and courtesy of the people. Everywhere – at grocery counters, merchant store, buses, offices, on the street – people seemed to already be in a peaceful mood – my interruption not being cause for momentary politeness, rather an inclusion in an already pleasant life. Take the bus driver, who upon being confronted by an elderly Okinawan gentleman with inadequate change, simply collected it from the other passengers and sent the man on his way well taken care of. How can this be? How can so many people in a culture be consistently pleasant and polite and friendly and helpful? The answer lies in the hundreds of years of tradition of the island, one that bettered the precepts of Chinese Confucionism by rendering it perhaps even more faithful than the original. Confucius would be pleased with Okinawa. Traditionally, the island regarded itself as "the land of right living". Now, how can we make this continue, given the deleterious forces at work of militarism, corporate greed and modern materialism?


Here I must mention the kindness of the family with whom I lived for three weeks. The matriarch is Chiyo Kinjo, mother of Toki Steele, Bill Steele’s wife, the two people from North San Juan, CA who guided me through this adventure. I found Chiyo a remarkable Okinawan woman who interprets her role as matriarch as one of serving all others in the family, unlike the same role in many other countries. She carried a perpetual smile on her face, she reveled at being able to feed, to nourish, to care for. And she’s good at it. She is one who walked between Nago and Kadena (25 miles) to bring food to her family after the war. She now manages a full household, tends seven gardens, keeps up with the daily news, and still takes the time to travel around the island each weekend to see the sights. She and I shared the same war on Okinawa in our twenties, one as conqueror, the other as conquered. We are now both in our eighties. We have much in common. I love her.


On the subject of family traditions, I found it exceedingly interesting that the ancient practice of families living together is still in effect. I was not surprised to learn that the many small towns scattered throughout the island were originally established by their first families, whose last names were then given to all succeeding generations in those expanding gathering of homes. But I was surprised to find that even in the present large non-stop cities, these same families still gather in the same neighborhoods. Here were the Kinjos, all the Kinjos, gathered together in separate homes within a short walking distance of each other, a unique small neighborhood, within all the other neighborhoods, with constant Kinjo family visiting and socializing as in the old days. What a nice custom.


I was surprised at the availability and affordability of material goods. Almost everyone I met had a cell phone, homes had more than one TV, and often many more than two cars. Prices were about the same as

in the States, except that locally manufactured goods were generally less expensive and imported, more expensive. While coffee in a restaurant was way over a dollar a cup, I could buy a fine handmade Okinawan hat for 100 yen (one dollar). Thousands of Mom & Pop businesses are located everywhere, and large super stores are beginning to go up, like Costco, Walmart, Home Depot – though usually under different names.


I was surprised at the lack of English on signs and directions. For a land that welcomes tourists, this seemed unexplainable. I was even more surprised to learn streets had no names, nor were there addresses on the houses. A place is found by giving directions from Gate 2, or from a McDonalds, or a prominent building. Speaking of McDonalds, here is the oasis for Americans. If tired, lost, depressed, yearning for something familiar, go to a McDonalds. Here are English-speaking people, hamburgers, French fries, Coke, telephones, restrooms, companions – I found more military people here than at any other Okinawan establishment, which brings me to a sore point.


The separation between Okinawans and U.S. military is frightening! I observed almost no communication between them, compared to what it could be. Here is one of the most beautiful islands in the world (that is, at least half of it), here are magnificent beaches, beautiful views, extremely friendly people, wonderful monuments, grand museums, perhaps the finest aquarium in the world, reconstructed Okinawan villages over 700 years old, fantastic foods and restaurants, yet I saw only two instances of American military present at these events in my three weeks visit. Even the TV isolates the two cultures, in that there were no English subtitles to the many wonderful colorful Okinawan TV programs nor one word of English. And the one available English-speaking TV station (Armed Forces Radio & TV) never made any reference whatever to anything Okinawan – just U.S. military. There may well be some effort to introduce these two worlds to each other, but I didn’t see it. The result is an uncomfortablness between these peoples – sad because they both live in this small space together. Unfamiliarity can certainly breed contempt.


I’ll say more about the military: Masahide Ota is the former governor of the island and is now a "Councillor" - what we would call a Senator - for Okinawa in Tokyo. He wrote a highly informative book called "Essays on Okinawa Problems", 2000, by Yui Shuppan Publishing Co. (ISBN 4-946539-10-7 C0036). He points out that about one third of Okinawa’s land mass is now taken over by the military, often taken by force from Okinawan land owners such as farmers. Moreover, the entire expense of the U.S. occupation is presently being footed by Japan, which has chosen to locate 75% of this protective shield, not on its mainland, but on this (in comparison) tiny island of Okinawa. The effect of this massive military presence, plus the effect of unlimited Japanese-financed construction has turned the island upsidedown. I learned of the loss of wetlands critical to the life of coral and sea-life, as filling-in progresses around the shallow waters offcoast. I learned of losses of Okinawa’s coral itself, which contained an unprecedented richness in its diversity – 350 species compared to a known 500 in the world. I learned of contamination of its soils by chemical weapons storage, perhaps nuclear wastes, munitions of all kinds, not to mention continuous accidents from constant flights, such as heavy items accidentally dropping from the sky during maneuvers – sometimes entire aircraft.


I am a former military man, one who, as I’ve said was part of the original invasion in 1945. I respect the military and am proud of my part in it. Further, I respect the many military men and women who are now on Okinawa, many of whom are trying their best to protect the island at the same time as doing their jobs.


But the size of this presence is so overwhelming, it is unbearable. True, the economy may have benefited from this influx of money, but that is not as much the case now as previously. Fewer Okinawans are employed by the military now than originally, and the land-use potential of these bases is now far less than if placed back into civilian production. Okinawa is now the poorest prefecture of all the Japanese islands, with its younger generation at an unemployment rate of over 14%.


While I respect those Okinawan civilians who are presently employed by the military, I can’t help but wonder if they would not be better off if free to develop their own skills and their own creativity in a competitive society. Okinawa has not been self-supporting for several hundred years, having been dominated first by China, then Japan, and now the U.S. and Japan. Its most abundant times were as traders of goods made by others in the 1700s. While magnificent handicrafts have evolved on the island, there is not yet a sound manufacturing base for self-autonomy. Therefore if the military is to be removed, it would best be done gradually, allowing time for the island to develop its own economy. What happens from this point on is anybody’s guess, what with the escalation of wars in the world, and the need for business Japan to take advantage of every opportunity to mend its own economy. Japan has traditionally, for hundreds of years regarded Okinawa as an inferior culture, undeserving of equal rights. For example, Japan used the island to bear the brunt of WW II, rather than use the Japanese mainland. Almost one third of Okinawa’s population of 420,000 people - died as a result. Japan has done some most useful things for Okinawa since taking over in the 1970s, but restoring the economy, the culture and traditions of the island does not appear to be one of the foremost. Again, please read Ota’s book.


Perhaps it is appropriate to mention briefly why Okinawa has consistently been victimized for so long in history. Briefly, it is because it is small and is populated by an extremely peaceful people. Since the 1500s they have prohibited weapons of all kinds, developing instead, self defense methods like Karate. They keep alive the traditions of politeness, kindness and equal rights within the family and community. Theirs might be called an egalitarian society, which expends its energies on labor, arts, music, history, family, rather than conquest. In a book called The Chalice & The Blade by Riane Eisler, the term "partnership" is used to depict this kind of society – one which abhors hierarchy, forced domination, and use of weapons and war. The island of Crete is used as an example of a beautiful ancient peace-loving nation which was decimated by warring northern tribes that swarmed down over the Mediterranean. The similarity with Okinawa strikes me as significant, since it is easy to overcome such a culture with the weapons of greater nations. I liken the loss of such cultures to the elimination of the Jewish race in Europe in WW II. While widening its power and material resources, Germany lost its soul in the process, its art, its music, its spiritual life when it destroyed its Jewishness. The world will lose something valuable if Okinawa is converted into another U.S. or another Japan or another China. These huge countries might do good, but the U.S. is the U.S., Japan is Japan, China is China, and Okinawa is Okinawa. Like salt, too much of a good thing is no longer good.


Now I want to talk about something unrelated, but important to me, namely old Okinawan homes. When I was there is 1945-46 I marveled at the beauty of its fertile valleys covered with hundreds of small tilled fields and either grass or red tile-roofed houses. I admit to selfishness in wanting to see this again – it was so pleasing to the eye. But alas, it is all gone. There are no such sights available today. As mentioned, the fields have been paved over for roads and streets and a million new gray concrete buildings. The former vegetable plots are now squeezed in between these streets and roads and those buildings, in tiny terraced patches, wherever space can be found. Do you know that Okinawa was used by Japan to feed the Japanese Army? The Okinawans have been and are excellent farmers, and they still carry on their tradition in these tiny irregular spaces – many of which are lined up in narrow plots between the highways and the walls that surround Kadena airfield. Their produce is superior to anything brought into the country, some think because it contains the richness of nutrients stemming from the unique soils of Okinawa. Books are now being written about the unusual health and longevity of Okinawans as resulting from their exercise, foods and diet. (Read "The Okinawa Program" by M.D.s Wilcox & Suzuki, 2001, ISBN 0-609-60747-2). It is truly a revealing book.


But I wanted to tell you that these old villages can still be seen where they have been assembled from all over the island into sort of village museums. One is located alongside the new aquarium in Motobu. It is 100% authentic, with little buttons to push at each structure, describing it in English, Japanese and Chinese, together with state-of-the-art fire protection systems since they are many hundreds of years old, and of aged woods and often thatched roofs. The authentic kitchens with dirt floors are especially interesting. This museum covers an extensive area of perhaps ten acres. It is uninhabited. The other such historical village is definitely inhabited and is part of the amazing complex at Ryukyu Mura, near Yamada. Here they have assembled not only traditional old Okinawan villages, but they are occupied by craftsmen and craftswomen who are making and selling the unique and wonderful Okinawan fabrics, Sake, ceramics – enamel ware, all the traditional crafts, together with ancient dances, costumes, music, even an entire museum mysteriously dedicated to the respected, and deadly venomous Habu snake. An entire day can be spent here in total involvement.


Speaking of Okinawan creativity, I must mention the EM enterprise. "EM" stands for Effective Microorganisms. It is based on the discovery by Professor Teruo Higa of the University of the Ryukyus of the uncommon ability of Okinawan compost to neutralize an extremely wide array of contaminants, and to enhance the nutritional value of foods grown therein. It seems the bacterial and viral population of Okinawan soils houses a diversity of microorgamisms that is unique in the world – as mentioned previously. Success has been so dramatic in plant growth, water purification, and in some medical treatments the products of this industry are being distributed throughout the world. While we were there, the first International EM Symposium was held, with representatives from well over fifty nations attending. The only U.S. contact I have found to date is in Tucson, AZ, info@emrousa.com. But also, try Yuri Ono on Okinawa at ono@emro.co.jp.


I was truly surprised at the extent and quality of the new Motobu aquarium, dedicated while we were there. Out on the peninsula, it is a marvel of not only invention, but of environmental maintenance. The salt water systems that exist to support the variety of coral, fish, shellfish and predators must be monumental. Perhaps I can convey a small bit of the impression by describing the main viewing chamber, which must be 150 feet on each of all four sides, forty feet deep with the viewing glass fifteen inches thick, housing the largest of shark, rays and ocean fish, all while visitors sip their coffee at tables at the base of these massive transparent walls. When I say large, I mean a forty-foot long shark. What a contradiction Okinawa is! The finest of some things and the worst of others. Scuba divers swam around constantly cleaning the interior of the glass and tending the complex system. Amazing too was the fact that none of the larger fish were observed to eat the smaller ones, which undulated back and forth in huge flowing swarms.


But I must finish up here before you tire of my writings. Another item on environmental cleanliness which caught my attention is the practice of recycling inside of households. All wastes are sorted before being picked up by commercial collectors, and if not sorted, they stay in front of the house until sorted or are brought back from the dump and redeposited at the front door. In other words, they mean business. These collector vehicles are happily provided with the same musical chimes we experience with our ice-cream trucks, making the event one of pleasantness rather than the irritating banging grinding noise we usually experience. I also was intrigued by the story of the neighbors across the street whose garbage is often not picked up. The trash man said "We don’t like them". (Even garbage has a personal touch to it).

Lastly, a word about the purpose of our trip. Personally, I simply wanted to satisfy a longtime desire to return to what I regarded as the beautiful island of my youth in 1946. I also wanted to stand on some of the same hallowed ground where unforgettable events occurred during my first sojourn. (Most are indistinguishable under many inches of concrete and asphalt now, and only the northern half now retains the original beauty). But I also wanted to support my host, Bill Steele’s, desires. Bill was a Marine in WW II, and Toki his Okinawan bride. After the war Bill spent a good many years as a volunteer civilian on the island, developing Okinawan small industry, and is now distressed to the point of impacting politics to help reverse the present trends of deterioration.


A good part of our three weeks was spent visiting the heavily populated parts of the island carrying the ancient Okinawan flag of King Cho as a symbol of restoration of its culture and independence. Two newspaper interviews were published, along with meetings with influential leaders such as Masahide Ota. Our theme of beginning the removal of the massive military on the island was met with support from almost everyone, except the military. It seems extremely unbalanced for the military to confiscate so much of one small island when a defensive presence in that part of the world can be maintained by using several other nearby land areas.


Bill and I appeared at every major part of the island, carrying an original flag designed of King Cho, as our small contribution to the cause of independence and preservation of the Okinawan culture. We included such sites as the underground Naval Headquarters of the Japanese forces on the South end of the island where its leaders committed suicide after realizing victory was impossible. Others were the moving memorials to the hundreds of Okinawan high school girls and boys who were illegally conscripted into serving the Japanese Army, most of whom died in their valiant effort. Another was the sobering Okinawa Peace Memorial where re-enactment of the island’s battle is presented in still and moving pictures of military and civilian casualties. Here is where granite walls (similar to the Vietnam Memorial) display the names of everyone who was killed in the Battle of Okinawa, civilians, military, foreigners – all. It left me with no desire whatever to again see another war. Perhaps that is the purpose of the peace museum.


We went to the extreme south end of the island as well as the north end, a journey as rewarding to us as to anyone else. We met old people from both sides of the war, and young ones who weren’t born then. We "spoke" in gestures, scrawled pictures and at times with interpreters, and all with complete understanding. As I said, it was an unforgettable experience.

In summary, I found Okinawa to be a land of wide contradictions - with few exceptions the ancient being buried beneath the modern, and strong trends in place for a continuation of this unhappy phenomenon. I saw many couragous and beautiful efforts to preserve traditions, and to create new ones based on Okinawan presence. But I cannot help but wonder whether the positive forces will eventually win out over the negative ones. I can only hope and make known my views and do what I can to contribute.


If reading this piques your interest in the island and its unique people, I encourage you to do whatever you can to contribute to preserving this treasured part of the world. Time is important because at the present rate, the remaining pristine northern half of the island could also be paved over in the next thirty years, for military and Japanese development purposes.


Thank you for your patience.

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POSTSCRIPT


And now, since I have cited so many instances in this treatise of my disappointments in the way the island has been developed, it behooves me to be more positive, and to take some responsibility by offering some constructive suggestions. In making such suggestions I wish to give reminder of the many wonderful things that have already been done, such as the rebuilding of authentic old Okinawan villages, like the Peace Memorial, like the restoration of the castle ruins, and of the Shurijo Temple, like the establishment of so many schools and universities. But this is not enough. As a visitor to the island, here is what I saw as affecting the long-term future.


It is clear to me after this visit that it is entirely possible that this historic island and its Okinawan way of life can be totally destroyed. This can easily be done by: continuing to pave its entire land space and by filling all the shallow waters to accommodate even more expansion - thus destroying all wetlands and their contribution to marine life; by continuing to crowd the island with automobiles and highways in order to accommodate a Miami Beach style of tourist living on its beaches and in its picturesque mountain areas; and by maintaining or further expanding its extensive existing military establishments for a beefed-up armed presence in Asia. Given the wealth of the U.S. and Japan, and the irresistable temptation to make optimum us of this tempting land space for these purposes, it would be easy to continue such development until the final depletion of available resources automatically stopped the process. That would be the end. This scenario is already approximately half completed.


While others might, I do not wish to see this happen. It has already occurred in too many parts of the world. Therefore while there is still time, I make the following suggestions:


1. Okinawa is similar to many other parts of the globe where the attraction of the area far exceeds its ability to absorb the influx of the outside world. In Yosemite Park CA, for example, the integrity of the area is being gratefully sustained by limiting the number of campers and cars in the Park. As discouraging as this may be to those who wish unbridled access, it is a far better alternative than allowing the area to be destroyed by over-use. Perhaps it is time to consider this in the case of Okinawa. It is obvious that the beauty of the central and southern half of the island is already being destroyed by excessive land-use practices devoted to highways, auto traffic, wall-to-wall buildings and the military. While I do not know if such already exists, I suggest creating a land-use agency aimed at maintaining some sustainable level of aesthetics as regards commercial and military development of the island, including a parks administration which has the authority to create and maintain green areas within and in between separate towns, cities and villages.


2. A transportation system that limits the number of automobiles on the island, encourages use of bicycles and provides incentives for bus or rail transport.


3. An agency that has the power to control the filling-in of the shallow waters around the island. In California, it is known that approximately 65% of San Francisco Bay is shallow enough to very easily be filled in, providing much extra land for expansion of housing and industry. But the deleterious effects of wiping out the shallow water and shore-bird populations, and the resulting effects on the entire environment, its fisheries, sports use, and aesthetics, was early cause to create a ‘Bay Conservation and Development Commission " (BCDC), which has the authority to control and manage this practice. I believe it is appropriate to establish this kind of commission on Okinawa as well. I say this not knowing if it already exists.


4. An Architectural Board that again has not only the expertise, but the power to manage the design and construction of buildings. Since it appears concrete construction survives the typhoons well, the least that can be done with these gray slabs is to conform to some semblance of the established appearance of historical Okinawa. In Germany, ancient villages still require that new homes conform to the traditional old architecture, thus rendering these areas uniformly pleasing and attractive to its dwellers as well as to their money-paying tourists. I would also suggest laws that require not only the proper maintenance of structures after they are built, but the funds to remove them and restore their areas when no longer beneficial. This to minimize the proliferation of abandoned housing and industry.


5. If the military presence is diminished, and the potential exploitation of that available land for short-term gain is curbed, this land could be a source for a much stronger self-supporting Okinawan economy. A strong tourist trade could provide much of this. Therefore, I see a need for an agency that has power to affect the protection and development of Okinawan culture, its products and services such that it can render the island a valuable resource toward offering the world its material and spiritual riches.


6. Above all, I believe there must be a strong and sustained revival of national pride. There is good reason to be proud of being an Okinawan. It is truly a unique place in the world – unique in its culture, unique in its climate, in the vitality of its people, in the remarkable health of its marine life, in its soils and their unusually rich nutrients which, as EM’s Professor Higa claims, can be of benefit around the world. There is already much being done to sustain Okinawan culture such as the arts and crafts, music fabrics, dance, pottery, but I do not know how much this is self-supported or encouraged by the government. If tourism is to be a major source of income to the island, then I would think the ruling powers would be deeply interested in supporting this, as well as the above mentioned factors. I also would like to see a stronger program in preserving Okinawa’s ancient past as evidenced by the many abandoned shrines and places of worship throughout the island. They are beautiful and venerable in their antiquity – a testimony to the ages of the culture. This, as enhancement to the history of its people as well as for the edification of visitors from other lands.


In closing I offer one more highly speculative but I think interesting thought – that the original basis for the vitality of the island may lie in the health of its coral. As a retired environmental engineer, yet a layman with regards to coral, I can visualize that the unique location of the island in the warm Japanese currents and particular seasonal temperatures, has over the millennia created an unusually rich coral population. And that this wide and unique variety of coral species, who’s oceans used to cover Okinawa’s entire land area, has resulted in formation of a very special microorganism population in its soils that may well be a blessing in disguise to the world in general. If this is proven to be the case, then in the long term, the very life of the island may depend on maintaining not only the culture of its inhabitants, but the health of this coral and the health of that soil.




Robert M. Rock

Redding California
Bob Rock

Started counting 01 December 2002

Last Update or Revision: 23 December 2002

Nihe de Biru (Nifee dee bire)

Thank You

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