A New Governor and a New Era for Okinawa Reflections of an All-Okinawa Activist

Cries of “Shitaihya” and “Yushittai” (Okinawan words meaning “Well Done [People of Okinawa!]” and “Take That [Abe government!]” rang out across Okinawa. The 30 September 2018 gubernatorial election occasioned by the sudden death of Governor Onaga Takeshi was literally an all-out war between the Okinawan people doggedly opposing the construction of a new military base at Henoko and the Abe government trying by all means to crush the will of the people. As Onaga's second son, Takehiro, kept insisting during the election period, “this is not an election to be won, or an election we want to win, it is an election we simply must win at all costs.” Needless to say, this election was not just a struggle against candidate Sakima Atsushi but against the Abe government that backed him, to decide whether or not former Governor Onaga Takeshi would be able to pass the baton of our struggle to the candidate (Tamaki Denny) who inherited his mission of no new base.