DURING my recent trip to Okinawa, one of the figures I enjoyed speaking with the most was Ushii Chinin. She is a writer and a strong voice for Okinawa’s decolonization and demilitarization. I was on a panel with her for a symposium at Okinawa International University and, through a translator, got to hear her presentation. As a public figure for Okinawa’s decolonization, both Japanese and Okinawans often criticize her.

During the question and answer period, each audience member was given a paper in which to write their questions or comments. One comment sheet that was read to the audience condemned Ushii for dressing and acting in such strange ways. In public, Ushii often wears traditional Okinawan clothing and incorporates some of the Okinawan language into her presentations. These are things that Japan long ago tried their best to get rid of, and so Ushii proudly uses them in public in an attempt to counter Japanese colonization of Okinawa.

During her presentation, a member of the audience yelled at her, demanding “politely” that she speak Japanese since he couldn’t understand the Okinawan dialect she was using. An Okinawan man sitting nearby yelled for Ushii to keep speaking uchinaaguchi, and that he would translate for the Japanese guy next to him.

Ushii’s approach was effective because of the practiced way she discussed somewhat controversial things. When talking about Okinawa’s subordinate status, she framed it in terms of what makes Okinawa unique in this regard amongst other Japanese prefectures, and if so, why? What about Okinawa’s past or present makes this possible?

Many might think of the base issue in Okinawa as an all-or-nothing equation – you either have the bases and enjoy their benefits, or you close them up and every soldier leaves. Ushii enjoys reminding people there is another option. It is an option that is so practical, it is too controversial to be discussed. Ushii is part of a Japanese women’s group that asserts the answer to the base problem in Okinawa is to move the bases to mainland Japan.

The truth is something that everyone says they want, but in truth don’t generally like when it stares them in the face. Especially when that truth implicates them in a way they don’t want to admit.

The majority of people in Okinawa do not want U.S. bases on their island. The majority of Japanese people, however, want U.S. bases somewhere in Japan, preferably just not near where they live. The Japanese government wants to keep good relations with the U.S. and do its best to honor the security alliance the two countries have, and this is one of the reasons why the Okinawa base issue has become so thorny and delicate. Okinawa becomes the warehouse for quite a few things that the Japanese government and people don’t want to admit to or deal with.

As a place that is far away from mainland Japan – historically seen as being inferior and someplace already occupied by the U.S. prior to Japan’s surrender – Okinawa was perfect for hosting a lion’s share of U.S. bases. Japan as a whole would benefit from close U.S. relations, but the bases would not inconvenience the majority of the people. Okinawa would even get extra funding from the central government for shouldering this burden. It seemed like a win-win for just about everyone.

But if we get rid of all the particularities of history, then all we have is a grossly unequal burden being shouldered by only 0.6 percent of Japan. We have all the risk, all the danger, all the taxes upon the land that bases create concentrated on one island. The truth of this position is if the people of Japan do want this security alliance and do want U.S. bases somewhere in Japan, shouldn’t they be all over the country instead of all in one place? Shouldn’t more communities experience part of this burden instead of one community taking on close to all of it?

It is a clear example of the Japanese wanting their cake and eating it too. Every excuse that you could make for why bases should stay in Okinawa, and not be moved to mainland Japan, can be easily reversed. All the money that Okinawa gets? Why not offer it to any other prefecture that wants to take them instead. The bases are good for Japan and fine where they are? If this were true, why would other prefectures not want to share in that wonderful hosting? If the bases are so excellent, why does only Okinawa get the honor of hosting so many? If Okinawa is so safe, why doesn’t everyone else want to be just as safe?

In truth, Ushii and her allies would most likely prefer the bases to be out of Japan completely, but her “Out of Okinawa, Into Japan” argument is an interesting one. It is designed to get mainland Japanese people to confront their own complicity in Okinawa’s colonization.