international human rights day sexual violence by the u.s. military in okinawa: what can we do?...

International Human Rights Day

Sexual Violence by the U.S. Military in Okinawa: What Can We Do?

December 10, 2012Michiko Hase

Active Duty Forces Abroad (12/31/2011)

U.S. Military Personnel in Japan(3/31/2009)

• Marine Corps 14,951• Air Force 12,490• Navy 6,766• Army 2,501 Total 36,708

＊ 68.4% are in Okinawa

U.S. Military in Okinawa ~Historical View~

1945 3/26—6/23(9/7) Battle of Okinawa (one in four Okinawans died)

8/15 Japan surrenders1952 4/28 Occupation of Japan ends

Okinawa -- US military rule (--1972 )1972 5/15 Reversion of Okinawa to Japan

Today 74% of US military facilities in Japan are in Okinawa (0.6% of Japan’s total area)

U.S. Military in Okinawa TodayNumber of US military facilities (3/31/2010)

34

Areas of US military facilities (3/31/2010)

10.2% of total area of Okinawa prefecture (18.4% of Okinawa Island)

73.9% of exclusive US military facilities in Japan

US military personnel, civilian employees, family members (9/30/2009)

Total – 44,895

• Military personnel 24,612 (68.4% of total US military personnel in Japan, 35,965)•Civilian employees 1,381•Family members 18,902

Sexual Violence by US Military in Okinawa

Most notorious cases:• 1955 -- a 6-year-old girl was abducted, raped

and brutally murdered by a US serviceman• 1995 -- a 12-year-old girl was abducted and

raped by 3 servicemen

• May 1972 ~ Sept 2011 144 arrests in 127 cases of rape or attempted rape

• But many more cases like Yumi’s in the film

Sexual violence by U.S. military in Okinawa, 2012

• August 21 -- a woman was sexually assaulted and injured by a marine corporal (arrested)

• October 16 -- a woman was gang-raped by two sailors

-- Nov. 6 – prosecuted for rape and assault; one of them also for robbery

• October 19 -- Night-time curfew (11:00pm to 5:00am) placed on all U.S. troops in Japan

Curfew is ineffective• November 2 -- a heavily intoxicated airman broke

into an apartment and punched a junior-high-school boy; no arrest made by Okinawa police perpetrator in US custody and not a “heinous crime”

• November 18 -- a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant trespassed in a room of a building

• December 1 -- US military in Okinawa bans drinking outside bases (except in one’s own home) at all times; drinking on bases banned between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.

＊ Curfew imposed in 2000 & 2008 but ineffective

Sexual Violence within U.S. Military

Marine Corps Report “Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Campaign Plan 2012” (June 20, 2012)

• Okinawa: 67 sexual assault cases reported on Marine bases in Okinawa (Oct. 2010 – Sept. 2011)

• Per capita rate is twice as high as that on Marine bases in the U.S.

DOD Sexual Assault Response and Prevention Report (April 13, 2012)

• FY2010--2617 persons reported; 190,000 estimated victims

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on sexual violence in US military

“The military stands for and defends the values of good order and discipline; we’ve got to make sure that women are protected from any kind of assault.”

(September 2012 interview)

Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA)• A SOFA:– Is a bi-lateral international agreement that

defines legal rights and obligations of the parties – Supersedes US and host-nation domestic law–Provides “facilities and areas” for use by US

forces in host country–Creates rights and protections for U.S. military

personnel & civilian employees -- NO legislative consent (ratification) required

Jurisdiction of SOFA criminal cases in Japan

“Official duty” protectionA SOFA member who is arrested off-base while

in an official-duty status cannot be tried by the Japanese authorities U.S. military has jurisdiction

“In official-duty status”: a person is doing something on behalf of the U.S. government (including commuting between home and a work function)

Jurisdiction of SOFA criminal cases in Japan – revised November 2011

1. Drunk driving – no “official duty” protection (even if drinking took place at official function) Japan has primary jurisdiction

2. Civilian employees in official-duty status --when US authorities do not prosecute Japan can request to try the case (US still has primary jurisdiction)

NATO JAPAN/SOUTH KOREA

Environmental cleanup of closed bases

U.S. is responsible for cleanup

No provision

Children of US personnel and local person

Germany, UK, Sweden have individual agreements with US to cooperate re: child support

No provision

12 MV-22 Ospreys ＊ deployed to Okinawa despite massive protestsOctober 1-6, 2012

＊ Vertical take-off and landing transport aircraft

Dangerous Military Aircraft

• Crashes --7 crashes with a total of 36 fatalities --April 2010 (Afghanistan) 4 killed, 16 injured --April 2012 (Morocco) 2 killed, 2 injured --June 2012 (Florida) 5 injured• Noise • Low-frequency noise• Training in Hawai’i canceled (August 2012)

possible impact on archaeological resources by downwash generated by the aircraft

Okinawans Protest against Deployment of Ospreys

9/9/2012 100,000 Okinawans protest

Police forcibly remove sit-in protesters in front of a base gate

U.S. Military Budget

• Government estimates of military spending -- Department of Defense budget only

• Military-related costs in other departments: -- Veterans’ benefits (Dept. of Veterans Affairs) -- Nuclear weapons & research (Dept. of Energy) -- Interest on the national debt (mostly due to

military spending; U.S. Treasury) • 2012 -- $1,372 billion, or 48% of the total U.S.

budget (War Resisters League ).

http://www.usfederalbudget.us/defense_budget_2012_3.html

2009 Fiscal YearTotal Outlays (Federal Funds): $2,650 billion

MILITARY: 54% and $1,449 billionNON-MILITARY: 46% and $1,210 billion

http://www.warresisters.org/pages/piechart.htm

U.S. Military Spending vs. The World

• U.S. military spending – Dept. of Defense plus nuclear weapons – is equal to the military spending of the next 15 countries combined.

• U.S. share of: --Military spending : 47 % of the world’s total --GDP: about 21 % of the world’s total

What Can We Do?

• Write to your representatives to Congress --sponsor a hearing on sexual violence committed by US military in Okinawa

--redirect of the use of tax money away from the military

• Spread the word in your community --Living Along the Fencleine --Visit websites and blogs• Follow news and write to news organizations• Other ideas?

Thank you!

U.S. military spending

• In 2011, the United States spends 58 percent of the total defense dollars paid out by the world's top 10 military powers, which combined for $1.19 trillion in military funding in 2011. With its unparalleled global reach, the US outspends China, the next-biggest military power, by nearly 6-to-1.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/06/defense-spending-fact-of-the-day_n_1746685.html

How the Network Got Started

1995 12-year-old girl abducted & raped by 3 US servicemen in Okinawa

1996 Okinawan women’s “peace caravan” – SF, Washington, DC, NYC, Honolulu

1997 International meeting in Okinawa – Okinawa, South Korea, Philippines, Japan, continental U.S.

Past Network Meetings

• 1997 Okinawa • 1998 Washington, D.C. – “East Asia-U.S.

Women’s Network against U.S. Militarism”• 2000 Okinawa – Puerto Rican activist joined

the meeting “East Asia-U.S.-Puerto Rico Women’s Network against U.S. Militarism”

• 2002 South Korea – hosted by SAFE Korea (new coalition of women’s groups)

Past Network Meetings - 2

• 2004 Philippines – hosted by Philippine Women’s Network for Peace and Security

--Hawai’i joined South Korea, Puerto Rico, the United States, and the Philippines

• 2007 San Francisco – hosted by Women for Genuine Security

-- Guam/Guahan joined South Korea, Japan, Okinawa, Puerto Rico, US, and Philippines

Past Network Meetings - 3

• 2009 Guam/Guahan –hosted by 9 local groups

-- Women from Australia & Republic of Belau joined Okinawa, South Korea, Puerto Rico, Hawai'i, Philippines, Japan, U.S.

• 2012 Puerto Rico

Historical Context

• http://www.genuinesecurity.org/aboutus/timeline.html

• Puerto Rico, Philippines, Guam -- colonized by Spain.

• 1898 Treaty of Paris (Spanish-American War)-- ceded to the United States

• World War II -- Philippines and Guam were occupied first by Japan and then by the United States

Historical Context - 2

• Philippines – independence in 1946

• Guam & Puerto Rico – “unincorporated territories” of US

-- US citizenship (P.R. 1917; Guam:1950 ) -- No voting rights in presidential elections -- A delegate in House of Representatives with limited voting privileges

Historical Context - 3

Japanese colonialism and militarism

• Okinawa, South Korea, Philippines, Guam -- colonized or occupied by Japan

• Hawai’i was attached by Japanese warplanes in 1941

Military Bases and Tourism

Commonalities among Guam, Hawai’i, Okinawa (& P.R.)

• Climate & Vegetation• U.S. military presence• Tourism industry

Issues

• Military toxics & environmental contamination -- Radioactive materials -- Chemicals -- Noise pollution

• Health issues -- Cancers (Vieques, P.R., Guam, Texas) -- Cerebral palsy (Philippines)

Issues - 2• Violence against women & girls

-- 1995 Rape of 12-year-old girl in Okinawa -- 2005 Rape of Nichole J. (22) in Philippines -- Many unreported cases (e.g., Yumi in film)• Other crimes

-- 2002 US tank killed 2 junior high school girls in South Korea

-- Military planes/helicopter crashes -- Thefts, burglary, robbery

Issues - 3

• Amerasian children--Philippines, Okinawa, South Korea

-- US soldier-father does not: *acknowledge child *provide child support -- Discrimination in host countries * esp. children of African American soldiers -- No int’l agreement b/w US & host countries

Issues - 4

• Military budget -- U.S. : 48% of federal budget

-- Japan: “sympathy budget” (Japan pays for rent, Japanese employees, etc.) in addition to “Host Nation Support”

• Military recruitment – ROTC, JROTC• Distorted local economy dependence on the

military

Activities• International meetings & reports back • Education -- anti-militarism fashion show (WGS, SF, Guam) -- peace caravan (Okinawan women) -- postcards (South Korea, WGS) -- documentary films (South Korea, WGS)• Campaigns -- Support for Lolas, Nicole J (Philippines) -- !000 letters to 1000 fathers of Amerasian children

(Philippines) --Bumper sticker campaign (Guam)

Activities • Research & publication• Five-language peace activist dictionary• Lobbying• Letter writing• Petitions/resolutions -- Resolution demanding release of political

prisoner (Puerto Rico)• Statements -- Statement issued after 3.11 (less military

spending and more resources for relief)

Activities• Work with prostituted women --Training & job training (Philippines) -- Alternative work & store (Philippines) -- Counseling (South Korea, Philippines) -- Health care (South Korea) -- Art therapy (South Korea)• Art – quilts, fabric art, mandala, collective painting,

dance, music • Websites, Facebook• Collaboration with other groups -- Co-sponsor event with Code Pink (WGS) -- Collaborate with the Occupy movement?