The Kishida government has ramped up military buildup in preparation for a potential war in Taiwan, including upgrading civilian airports for military use. The most vocal protests to the Japanese government’s militarism have come from Okinawa, who would bear the brunt of the cost of war. A 2022 study revealed that 83 percent of Okinawans believed that Okinawa’s bases would be targeted during a conflict.
Read MoreYoshikawa says that peace movements are responding by working to “create a larger, more cohesive peace movement” that is organizing events and rallies to which peace groups from mainland Japan and abroad are invited. The growing US-Japan-South Korea trilateral alliance has “sparked a counter-alliance among peace movements” in each country. If Okinawa is an unsinkable aircraft carrier for the US to wage war, it can also become a bastion for movements to wage peace.
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