Dec 2 (Wed): Mr. & Mrs. Nakamura commit to our protest after recovery from injury: There is hope for Okinawa. An activist in Motobu Town, Kizo Takagaki, passed away.

The couple comes dressed in a matching T-shirt. Six months have passed since their relocation to Nago City from Tokyo, “Five days a week is a bit too much for us. So Thursdays are off.” They always come four days a week to join rallies in front of the Gate and at Awa and Shiokawa piers.

After working as a home delivery agent for a big transport company, Mr. & Mrs. Yoshikatu (68) and Toshiko (68) Nakamura decided to join our protest movement against the new base construction. “We were sure we would find what to do when we get there,” they are optimists. At the same time, they seriously believe, “we should support the anti-base movement in which our grandparents’ generation has involved. We have neglected them far too long.”

Yoshikatsu was a strong leftist in his high school days. He joined the “campaign against the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty” in the 1970s, which brought him almost expelled from the school. One of the teachers persuaded other teachers and the school administration on his behalf, which saved him. In college, he was more active in leftist activities than attending classes, which forced him to give up on becoming a teacher. He could not be a civil service worker either, so he chose to work in the publishing business.

When the late Naha City mayor Takeshi Onaga came to Tokyo to present his petition in 2013, Yoshikatsu attended a meeting to welcome the late mayor. He met his old activist friends and felt his passion rekindled. He and his wife decided to come to Okinawa, “A map of the landfill plan for the new base shocked me. What is happening to Okinawa? We needed to come here to see and understand.”

On Jun 2, 2017, Toshiko fell to the ground and lost consciousness in a chaotic rally in front of the Gate. She got a skull fracture and cerebral contusion that required two weeks of complete rest in bed. When he tried to explain her condition to the protesters through a microphone, he was choked with tears. Their marriage was the second one for both. They worked together as a home delivery agent, planned for their life after retirement, and decided to relocate to Okinawa. All the memories flashed through his mind. Luckily, Toshiko finally came out of intensive care.

In response to a question of why the couple decided to live in Okinawa, “I have lost my fight in mainland Japan, but there is hope in Okinawa. Her injury should not be a reason to quit. Our re-commitment after her injury is revenge; we must not lose.”

(In front of Camp Schwab Gate)

Nearly 70 people sat in front of the Gate and protested. The news came that Mr. Kizo Takagaki (71), a prominent Motobu Shimagurumi Kaigi (Motobu chapter of the Island-Wide Conference) member, passed away. Many gave speeches for his condolence.

Mr. Takagaki relocated from Osaka to Motobu Town in 2011. He commuted to Ie-Jima to support managing Wabiaino-Sato (Anti-war Museum), which exhibits the life and works of Mr. Shoukou Ahagon, who was honored as Gandji in Okinawa. Two years later, he became a Museum board member and concentrated on preaching and practicing non-violent protest. He led the Motobu Town’s protest movement where landfill soil is shipped out to Henoko for the new base construction, monitoring landfill shipping operation at Shiokawa Pier.

Mr. Hiroji Yamashiro of Okinawa Heiwa Undo Center (Peace Okinawa Center) recollected on him in tears, “He became friends with people in opposing positions like landfill soil delivery agents. He was always quiet, never shouted. I feel so lonely and miss him so much.” We lost a dependable shoulder. The funeral service for him will be held on Dec 4 in Motobu Town.

A total of 181 trucks, including concrete mixers, made the delivery.