Okinawa’s assembly has called for a review of the agreement that governs US troops in Japan, after a US Marine was accused of robbing and killing a local woman. The case has set off protests in Okinawa and Tokyo, and the US military has imposed a 30-day curfew.

The prefectural assembly of Okinawa has called for a review of the agreement governing United States military forces stationed on the Japanese island, Al Jazeera reported.

The assembly adopted the resolution on Friday, October 9, after a US Marine was accused of robbing and killing a local woman.

What the Assembly Wants

The resolution calls for the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement to be revised and urges the US military to prevent such incidents. It will be sent to the US embassy. A statement to the same effect, addressed to the Japanese government, was also passed.

Ryotaro Odo, who heads the assembly’s special committee on US military bases, said the US military was “not functioning as an organisation”, pointing to failures in training and discipline.

He called the killing “extremely heinous and despicable” and urged the military to cooperate with investigators.

Some members opposed the resolution because it did not demand the dismissal of the US military chief in Okinawa, Japan’s Kyodo News agency reported.

The Case

Lance Corporal Devin Jacob Ballard, 20, has been accused of killing Anna Yagi, 39, at a hotel in the city of Naha on Saturday.

He has denied the allegations. They have not been tested in court.

The Response So Far

  • The US military paused its operations for 48 hours from Wednesday
  • It imposed a 30-day curfew, from midnight to 5am, starting on Friday
  • Tokyo summoned the US ambassador and the commander of US forces in Okinawa to protest
  • Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi condemned the “heinous” crime

The case has led to a series of demonstrations in Tokyo and Okinawa.

A Long-Running Grievance

Okinawa hosts the majority of the 54,000 US troops stationed in Japan. The island was under US control from 1945 to 1972 and still has many facilities used exclusively by American forces.

Crimes by US personnel, including rapes, assaults, hit-and-run incidents and drink-driving, have prompted protests for many years.

The assembly passed a similar resolution in 2024, after a series of sexual assaults by US servicemen came to light.

Image: The Okinawa Prefectural Assembly building in Naha (file photo, 2016). Photo by CEphoto, Uwe Aranas via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.