Okinawa Vice Gov. Takekuni Ikeda, right, reads a protest letter to Ambassador Manabu Miyagawa, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Okinawa Liaison Office, at the prefecture’s office in Naha, May 2, 2025. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
NAHA CITY, Okinawa — Okinawa’s prefectural government lodged formal protests Friday with Japanese and U.S. authorities following a Marine’s indictment in an alleged sexual assault — the fourth such case involving American service members on the island in the past year.
Vice Gov. Takekuni Ikeda delivered protest letters signed by Gov. Denny Tamaki to Shinya Ito, director of the Okinawa Defense Bureau, and Ambassador Manabu Miyagawa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Okinawa Liaison Office. Ikeda, Ito and Miyagawa made statements but did not take questions from reporters.
Later in the day, Ikeda presented a similar letter to Maj. Gen. Brian Wolford, commander of Marine Corps Installations Pacific, and U.S. Consul General Andrew Ou during a meeting at Camp Foster, a spokeswoman for the prefecture’s Military Base Affairs Division said by phone Friday.
It is customary for Japanese government officials to speak to the media only on the condition of anonymity.
A spokesman for the command, Marine 1st Lt. Grant Hoel, confirmed the meeting took place but declined further comment by phone Friday.
The protests were spurred by Wednesday’s indictment of Marine Pfc. Austin R. Wedington on charges of sexually assaulting a Japanese woman on Foster in March and injuring another woman who tried to intervene. The first woman is a civilian employee on a U.S. base, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported April 24.
Okinawa Vice Gov. Takekuni Ikeda, right, speaks with Ambassador Manabu Miyagawa (green shirt), of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Okinawa Liaison Office, and Shinya Ito, director of the Okinawa Defense Bureau, after delivering a protest letter at the prefecture’s office in Naha, May 2, 2025. (Keishi Koja/Stars and Stripes)
Copies of both letters were distributed to reporters following the morning meeting in Naha.
The letter to U.S. officials demands a review of military training and educational programs, enhanced disciplinary measures, implementation of further preventative steps, protection for base employees, and compensation for the victims.
“This incident has had a tremendous impact on [Japanese employees], questioning whether they can go to work safely,” Ikeda said.
Roughly 9,000 Japanese are employed at American bases on Okinawa.
Friday’s protest is the latest in a series of official objections raised by Japanese authorities since June. Prior efforts included petitions from governors across Japan, meetings with U.S. diplomats, and direct communications from Tamaki to U.S. commanders.
On Wednesday, Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Takehiro Funakoshi conveyed “strong regret” over Wedington’s indictment to U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass in Tokyo, Miyagawa said. Glass also met with Defense Minister Gen Nakatani on Monday, according to a post on the ministry’s official X account.
Three other sexual assault cases involving U.S. service members have been handled by Okinawa courts in the past year.
In December, Air Force Senior Airman Brennon R.E. Washington was convicted of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor. He is appealing his five-year prison sentence. Two other Marines are awaiting trial in separate cases of sexual assault and attempted sexual assault.
In response to rising concerns, U.S. Forces Japan in October implemented liberty restrictions prohibiting troops from visiting off-base drinking establishments between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m.
“The repeated occurrence of sexual assaults by service members not only casts strong doubts on the effectiveness of these measures but also raises serious questions about the state of discipline within the U.S. military on Okinawa,” Friday’s letters stated.
The first formal forum for cooperation between the U.S. military and Okinawan leaders is slated for May 9 at Foster, according to an unsigned statement from USFJ on Friday.
