Futenma foes target candidates

NAHA, Okinawa Pref. (Kyodo) A group of 18 intellectuals in Okinawa issued a joint statement Thursday opposing a Japan-U.S. plan to build a replacement facility for the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma and plan to send it to the U.S. presidential hopefuls. "Construction of a new military base would destroy mountains and kill the sea," the group said in the statement they plan to hand to Sens. Barack Obama of the Democratic Party and John McCain of the Republican Party. "Okinawa does not need such a facility." Kunitoshi Sakurai, president of Okinawa University, and Moriteru Arasaki, a professor emeritus at the university, were among the group. We welcome your opinions. Click to send a message to the... [read full story]