A gentle dugong near Okinawa,
Japan.
01/03/2005 — "It is 8:30 am and I and
30 activists have been sitting on drilling
platform #4 for an hour and a half. We can
see workers from the Defense Construction
Agency gathering on the beach of Camp Schwab,
the US Marine Corp base at Henoko, Okinawa.
They are about to board a chartered fishing
boat and come out and try to drill the first
of 64 holes into the life sustaining coral
reef. But for the 300th consecutive day, we
are not going to let them." - Yuka Ozaki,
500m off the coast of Japan.
In 1996, construction of a US Marine Corps
airbase for helicopters at Henoko, Okinawa,
off the coast of Japan was agreed. The planned
2,600-meter runway complete with hangers,
control towers and fuel storage was even being
funded by Japanese taxpayers to the tune of
US$10 billion. That US$10 billion is set to
pay for the destruction of the habitat of
sea life such as the gentle dugong - only
12 of which are confirmed to remain in Japanese
waters. The beautiful Okinawa reef is home
to Japan's last remaining population of critically
endangered dugong, as well as other marine
mammals and sea turtles. The UN Environment
Programme has called for the creation of a
marine reserve to protect the dugong. Instead
the plan is to dynamite the reef and build
the runway through it.
Local opposition has been so strong that construction
was not started until late 2004. In 1997,
local people voted overwhelmingly to reject
the base, but the local mayor was forced by
the central government to agree to the project.
He resigned in disgrace after signing the
agreement.
Courageous local residents, however, have
so far been successful in preventing the drilling
of test holes into the sensitive coral reef.
Every day for the last 300 days they have
occupied the drilling towers about half a
kilometre offshore, preventing any further
construction.
One 84-year-old local man said, "We know
for sure, that building the airbase is not
the right thing to do. There are a plenty
of sea creatures which are supporting our
life here. We always appreciate the richness
of ocean life: we have top shell, octopus,
magaki-shell and seaweed. Once the base is
built, there will be no future for our children.
I can't let it disappear."
Today, the Rainbow Warrior arrives to support
these local residents and try to ensure a
US military base doesn't mean the demise of
the Okinawa dugong.
