Aug 21 (Fri): An “Amenity Hall” for the soldiers is under construction; 882 truckloads shipped from Awa, no shipping from Shiokawa

In the Camp Schwab, a variety of facilities are under construction while the land reclamation at sea continues at the same time. How many barracks have already been completed by now? A large building in construction can be seen from the highway. That is said to be the “Amenity Hall.” It provides all kinds of luxurious facilities for the U.S. soldiers, such as bowling allies, a gym, and halls for other sports, a supermarket, restaurants, and a bar. I am sure that the government budget of 930 billion yen (2 trillion 550 billion yen per the estimation by Okinawa Prefectural Government) would provide splendid amenities. The problem is that the taxes of Japanese citizens fully paid the cost.

According to yesterday’s newspaper feed, relocating the U.S. Marine Corps from Okinawa to Guam already cost 230 billion yen. The Japanese government covered the expenses out of “sympathy” because the relocation concerns the closure of the Futenma base. Which country would donate its money out of sympathy for the high costs of the U.S. Army? Compared with Germany, Korea, and Italy that are similarly bound to a military agreement with the U.S., it is extra-ordinary. Doesn’t it touch upon slavery practices? (We want to recommend the movie “The Sympathy” directed by Leland Buckley.)

There is still no drainage system for the village of Henoko. The villagers only imagine the “another world” beyond the fences.We do not want to pay taxes for building “another world” for the U.S. military.

(In front of the Camp Schwab Gate)

A sit-in protest with 8 people took place. Five men of the riot police were present. Five may be enough to control the protestors. Now the protestors being unorganized, are afraid to get into direct contact with the police and remove themselves on their own accord. In the scorching heat, the protesters sat determinedly on for about 30 minutes and removed themselves. They repeated the protest rally in the same manner at noon and 3 p.m.

A total of 133 truckloads with earth and sand was delivered.

(Ryukyu Cement Awa Pier)

While taking turns, 10 people protested until 6.30 p.m. A large amount of landfill soil piled high up at the temporary storage area inside the pier grounds. It happens when no cargo ships are available. Operational efficiency may be sought by creating a temporary storage place to take full advantage of the available cargo ships.

Don’t the drivers’ salaries become high? They drive until close to 8 p.m. on weekdays and Saturdays. We see more new drivers recently. One of the drivers talked to us smiling: “I started this work with a used truck that I bought for 5 million yen. I have 3 children.”

The workers who lost their jobs due to the Coronavirus pandemic are eager to make “big money” with the new base construction. It is a routine method that the Japanese government uses to push their unpopular policy through by giving away tax money to divide the citizens and rule.

A total of 882 truckloads of earth and sand were loaded onto 3 cargo ships that departed for Henoko.

(Motobu Shiokawa Pier)

Because there were no empty ships available, no loading of landfill soil took place at the pier. At sea, however, the earth and sand were trans-shipped from the barges to two cargo ships.

Number of dump trucks to date and percentage against the total

The estimation calculated on the basis of the number of ruckloads serves only as a reference.

Number of dump trucks which made delivery from December 2018 to the end of December 2019 114,601(1.39%)