U.S. plans to construct facility in Okinawa for counter-terrorism training

Akahata of December 22 reported that the U.S. Forces in Japan are
planning to construct a facility in Okinawa for training for anti-terrorism
operations.

About 3.8 million dollars has been appropriated in the FY 2002 U.S.
budget for constructing the facility in a U.S. Marine Corps base in northern
Okinawa, presumably at Camp Schwab.

Akahata reported that this may be used by the U.S. Army Special Forces
(Green Beret).

Opposition is likely to grow in the locality which is close to Nago City,
where residents are strongly opposed to the construction of a huge U.S. air
base as the replacement for the U.S. Marine Corps Futenma Air Station.

On December 21, the Japanese Communist Party group in the Okinawa
Prefectural Assembly demanded that the prefectural governor call on the
central government as well as the U.S. government to cancel the plan.

U.S. Green Berets are stationed at the U.S. Torii Communication Station
in Yomitan Village and have carried out parachute exercises at the U.S.
Ie-jima Auxiliary Airfield, which has no firing ranges.
The U.S. forces have a counter-urban guerrilla training facility in the
Central Training Area of U.S. Camp Hansen in Kin Village.

In 1989, Okinawa's Onna Village residents discovered that the U.S. Army
had constructed a facility to be used for anti-urban guerrilla exercises.
(end)