 Mayor in court criticizes U.S. military housing construction A court hearing has begun on the civil lawsuit filed by Zushi City (Kanagawa Prefecture) against the government demanding that the plan to construct additional housing units for the U.S. Navy be withdrawn. At the Yokohama District Court on November 17, Zushi Mayor Nagashima Kazuyoshi made oral arguments demanding that the government honor the agreement reached between the government, Kanagawa Prefecture and Zushi City in 1994 to the effect that there must be no more housing construction in the U.S. Navy's residential area in the Ikego district that stretches to Zushi and Yokohama cities. The government submitted a statement asking the court to reject Zushi City's claim on the grounds that the city's claim is about preservation of the environment, which has nothing to do with the construction of a U.S. military facility. Zushi City filed the lawsuit on Sepember 17 with the Yokohama District Court claiming that the government has the duty to respect the 1994 agreement to not construct additional housing united for U.S. forces and that no change must be made in the present state of the natural environment in the Ikego district. (end) |