Posted on 07/17/2005 5:19:59 PM PDT by Poundstone
Live-fire training begins at controversial new Camp Hansen range
By Chiyomi Sumida and Fred Zimmerman, Stars and Stripes Pacific edition, Friday, July 15, 2005
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The U.S. Army began live-fire training Tuesday at a newly built urban-warfare complex on Camp Hansen, drawing strong protests from local officials and residents.
Okinawa Gov. Keiichi Inamine criticized the military and Tokyo government, which gave its consent to the training at Range 4, located about 328 yards from the Igei community of Kin.
“What it means to forcibly conduct the training without ensuring safety of residents is that the Japanese government, who provides the military with the military installation, should undertake the full responsibility for every problem that arises from the training,” he said in a statement Tuesday.
In the past, bullets have strayed from Camp Hansen training sites and hit Igei, he said, adding that even with safety measures, accidents can happen.
Small arms — pistols and rifles — are being fired on the new range, according to Air Force Col. Victor Warzinski, U.S. Forces Japan spokesman.
Warzinski said several safety measures have been implemented at the range.
Inside the “shoot house,” he said, weapons firing will be indoors with small caliber weapons and “dense rubber bullet traps” will be placed behind targets to keep bullets inside the building.
Outside the building, Warzinski said, weapons will be fired only toward the northwest — away from residential areas. The outer wall of the building facing a rappelling tower also will be covered with thick rubber, he said.
“Furthermore, each time the range is used there will be an officer or senior [noncommissioned officer] in charge of the range who is responsible for safety and the overall conduct of the range,” Warzinski said in an e-mail response to query. “There is also a dedicated safety officer on the site whose sole responsibility is to ensure training is conducted safely.”
Spotters, whose job is to ensure the shooter has proper sighting of the target, will be positioned next to soldiers who are firing on the range, Warzinski said. The spotter will take in factors such as wind and will tell the shooter when it is safe to fire.
“Every precaution will be taken in training, and due consideration will be paid to local concerns,” Warzinski said. “Thus the [government of Japan] does not consider the training to be conducted by the U.S. forces at Range 4 to be a safety risk for local residents.”
Igei residents have been staging daily protests at Camp Hansen’s main gate since May 2004, when construction of the Army- funded facility started.
“Where on U.S. land does the military conduct live-fire training like this in such close proximity to a local community?” asked Masafumi Ikehara, district mayor of Igei. “Voices of residents who have been standing at the gate every day for 400 days never reached the military. We residents know through our own experience of stray bullets and bush fire, that the training is not as safe as they tell us.”
While sounds of gunfire echoed throughout the community during training Tuesday, Ikehara said: “Try to come and live here… our community is like a battlefield.”
Start a rumor that the US is thinking of closing its base on Okinawa. That will shut them up.
To be fair, the reason the Japanese govt. is so supportive of Okinawan bases is that it treats the Okinawans as 2cnd class citizens (Hence their willingness to fight to the last drop of okinawan blood in WW2) and every American on Okinawa is one less who needs to be on the main isles while still defending Japan.
Any base expansions or redesigns of any substance should be on the main islands, not Okinawa.
"Any base expansions or redesigns of any substance should be on the main islands, not Okinawa."
Your comment ignores geography. The fact is, Okinawa's strategic importance is growing due to the uncertainty over China's growing military power. It's inevitable that military bases in Okinawa (both US and Japanese) will continue to grow in importance. You simply can't provide effective deterrence against Chinese adventurism and expansion in the East China Sea from mainland Japan; you need military bases in Okinawa. And, God forbid, if we have to use military power in a situation involving Taiwan, you can be sure we'll need bases in Okinawa.
I’m sure it’s changed by now, but in 1964 the only thing of any significance located in Kin Village was the insane asylum. Do I have memory for trivia or what?
Guess what. The Japanese Socialist Democratic Party and Japanese Communist party are aiding these protests. It is easy to guess that China is in the back of this giving commands to the leftist party in Japan.
ping
While I see where you're coming from, the fact is that a full scale stand up war would render Okinawa's position of far less relevance than in previous wars. There are also strong arguments against centring the majority of US bases in one easily targeted area rather than scattering them.
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