JAPAN - Yankees Go Home!
Hamilton: Its just before dawn on the Japanese Island of Okinawa. 00.00.00
A squadron of F15 Eagles prepares to take to the skies from the US Air Force base at Kadena. Thousands of kilometres from home, at the spear tip, guarding the interests of America and its allies. Should war once more darken the western Pacific, these men and planes would be the first to the fray.
But there is a price for them being here, which the people of Japan and Okinawa pay in lost land, quality of life and sovereignty.
Okinawas burden is the legacy of the last great battle of World War II. Determined to stave off an invasion of mainland Japan, the Emperors forces put up ferocious resistance. 00.50
One hundred and fifty thousand Okinawan civilians also perished. Many forced to suicide rather than surrender.
The Americans first objective was to capture a rough coral airstrip near the village of Kadena.
Sentry at air base. Theyve been here ever since. 01.26
Lieutenant: Here you have Kadena Air Base in Okinawa and its the fourth largest in population in the Air Force.
Hamilton: Kadena is vast. An American city population 20,000 plonked down in Japan.
Lieutenant: You can live on Okinawa, or live on Kadena and every one of your needs will be met by something on the base.
Radio Announcer: A tea ceremony tour courtesy of Kadena USO Tours takes place from 6.30 until 10.00 in the evening. Now you can sign up at the information desk or call...
Hamilton in car with Lieutenant Lieutenant: We have playing fields, we do a lot sports. Theres gas stations, fire departments grocery store, theres pretty much everything that you would need to live.
Radio Announcer: Dance party at the Hansen Club Tracers...Please stick around.
Hamilton: Stick around is just what they plan to do.
Kadena is a $6 billion investment in superpower display of American resolve to protect its own political and economic interests in the region might against might.
Tyler: ...at this point in the game you need to be thinking violence. You need to be manoeuvring your jet with as much aggression as the bandit is, because hes trying to stay alive, youre trying to kill him...
Hamilton: Captain Scott Tyler is what the Air Force calls a Top Gun.
He and his F15 wingman are briefing for a combat mission.
Though today is only a training exercise, they treat it like the real thing. Tyler: ...think violent. Wait till he either runs out of energy, hits the floor, or both. And then hes going to be out of options...
Hamilton: This is Scotts first overseas assignment. As a pilot hes never had to pull the trigger on a real enemy, and its many years since his squadron saw combat in Vietnam and Korea. 03.27
But for him the mission doesnt pale.
Tyler: Were certainly closer to potential threat that are out there. Were a stones throw from the DMZ up in Korea. Were real close to Taiwan and the potential problems that are going on there.
A lot of people back home pick up the paper and they read about the difficulties that are going on abroad, and to them its a long way away. But to us here in Kadena, its a mission away. The call could come at any time.
Hamilton: If the folks back home can relax about a mission far away, thats a luxury Okinawans dont enjoy, especially those unlucky enough to have the air base as their noisy neighbour. 04.19
Hamilton: From the perimeter of the air base its only a few metres to the nearest housing.
From dawn until dusk, and sometimes even in the middle of the night, the din of aircraft noise is a constant aggravation to the people living here, with as many as 250 take offs and landing in a single day.
These vacant lots mark the exodus of those who could bear it no longer, leaving behind just the elderly and the unyielding.
Like Tamotsu Takeshi whose house has been wired for sound by the local authorities.
Hamilton: The roof top recording device each year collects evidence of some 25,000 noise violations.
Tamotsu Tamotsu: We cannot talk over the telephone. Family discussion is disturbed and we cant hear the television.
Hamilton: Yet nothing is done, because military needs are given priority over Japans environmental laws.
Its only when the weather is bad that Takeshi and his long suffering neighbours get any peace.
Tamotsu: A small typhoon is welcomed by us. Though you might find that hard to believe.
Hamilton: But theres a typhoon of another sort blowing through Okinawa, which shows not all citizens are powerless against the bases. 05.58
Rebellious land owners are refusing to extend leases on private property used by some military facilities.
Challenging the Hashimoto government, whose obligations under the US-Japan Security Treaty have been tied up in legal knots.
The rebel groups leader, Shumei Ikehara, raises cattle on land right beside Kadena.
His farm was once also under us control, through a compulsory lease.
But he got it back using guerilla tactics, sneaking past military patrols at night and secretly erecting his animal pens.
Shumei: When a patrol came along we dimmed our headlamps. We kept silent and waited. After they passed, we lit them again and went on with the construction. 06.46
Hamilton: The authorities finally gave in, but now he works under the flight line of the F-15s, one of which he saw crash a short distance away.
Hamilton: For Airman Chris Reynolds, one sweep of his radar beam covers not only Kadena, but three-quarters of the US military bases in Japan ¾ all located on tiny Okinawa.
Still a single man, Chris has come a long way from small town Arkansas to big city Kadena. But in a sense, he never left home.
Integration with the surrounding community is purely optional.
On base, all day, every day, you can plug in America and tune out Japan.
Reynolds: Hello. Over rice, please. 07.55
Hamilton: Another reason for staying put all his meals are free.
Reynolds: Everything I compare in Japan, I say is approximately three times, three times what it would cost in the US.
Hamilton: The Kadena chapter of the Boy Scouts of America is in session.
For Airman and Eagle Scout Sean Bruce, foreign service means keeping up apple pie traditions.
Bruce: Its also another reminder for us of what our goals and objectives are. Just to kind of keep us in check. 08.46
Hamilton: Sean and his wife chose Japan for a posting, ironically enough, because its safety, and are starting a family here.
Bruce: Where you guys going?Woman: Arizona.
Hamilton: A meeting place for Americans and Japanese is Kadenas weekend market, where service families garage sale before returning to the States.
Bruce: You try and pick up a little bit here and there. You learn the important phrases like, ohayo gozaimasu is good morning.
Its time to learn the language with John and rose. How do I ask someone the way to the gas station? During your tour in Japan, learn the local language.
Hamilton: But by the end of their assignment, few have made the effort.
Allies, living side by side, and these Americans and Japanese hardly know each other.
Seans wife: Well, we had just one incident. We went off base when all that happened about the girl. I felt like people were looking at me, like that you know.
News file footage of rape trial Hamilton: The episode with the girl she refers to has made Okinawa less comfortable for every American. And captured the worlds attention. 10.16
News Broadcast: The rape which led to todays conviction and the public outcry its caused, has caused Washington to reassess the military presence here.
Hamilton: The abduction and rape of a 12 year old schoolgirl by three marines shocked even Okinawans used to a high toll of crime by US servicemen.
At their trial, among the crowd drawing lots for a seat in court, is anti-bases politician and womens advocate, Suzuyo Takazato.
In her view, such crimes of violence against local people are a direct result of the military system itself.
Takazato Takazato: Their education is to let them become the war warrior. So to educate man to become warrior and educate them to become decent is very contradictory. 11.03
Hamilton: In Naha, Okinawas capital, Takazato runs a rape crisis centre, she made after the school girl incident.
Dancers Hamilton: Ethnically distinct, their island seized by Tokyo only last century, Okinawans have always had to endure an inferior status.
Their tourism and battle-green economy is Japans poorest, with unemployment twice the national average.
Hamilton: Every day, Japanese tourists gather on a hill overlooking the American air base.
Its a popular attraction, where they can snap their photos and eavesdrop on air traffic control.
From this side of the fence, Kadena is like a giant forbidden theme park. A bit of Japan that isnt. A reminded of the forfeits of war, and the expedience of peace.
ENDS 12.50
Hamilton: Its just before dawn on the Japanese Island of Okinawa. 00.00.00
A squadron of F15 Eagles prepares to take to the skies from the US Air Force base at Kadena. Thousands of kilometres from home, at the spear tip, guarding the interests of America and its allies. Should war once more darken the western Pacific, these men and planes would be the first to the fray.
But there is a price for them being here, which the people of Japan and Okinawa pay in lost land, quality of life and sovereignty.
Okinawas burden is the legacy of the last great battle of World War II. Determined to stave off an invasion of mainland Japan, the Emperors forces put up ferocious resistance. 00.50
One hundred and fifty thousand Okinawan civilians also perished. Many forced to suicide rather than surrender.
The Americans first objective was to capture a rough coral airstrip near the village of Kadena.
Sentry at air base. Theyve been here ever since. 01.26
Lieutenant: Here you have Kadena Air Base in Okinawa and its the fourth largest in population in the Air Force.
Hamilton: Kadena is vast. An American city population 20,000 plonked down in Japan.
Lieutenant: You can live on Okinawa, or live on Kadena and every one of your needs will be met by something on the base.
Radio Announcer: A tea ceremony tour courtesy of Kadena USO Tours takes place from 6.30 until 10.00 in the evening. Now you can sign up at the information desk or call...
Hamilton in car with Lieutenant Lieutenant: We have playing fields, we do a lot sports. Theres gas stations, fire departments grocery store, theres pretty much everything that you would need to live.
Radio Announcer: Dance party at the Hansen Club Tracers...Please stick around.
Hamilton: Stick around is just what they plan to do.
Kadena is a $6 billion investment in superpower display of American resolve to protect its own political and economic interests in the region might against might.
Tyler: ...at this point in the game you need to be thinking violence. You need to be manoeuvring your jet with as much aggression as the bandit is, because hes trying to stay alive, youre trying to kill him...
Hamilton: Captain Scott Tyler is what the Air Force calls a Top Gun.
He and his F15 wingman are briefing for a combat mission.
Though today is only a training exercise, they treat it like the real thing. Tyler: ...think violent. Wait till he either runs out of energy, hits the floor, or both. And then hes going to be out of options...
Hamilton: This is Scotts first overseas assignment. As a pilot hes never had to pull the trigger on a real enemy, and its many years since his squadron saw combat in Vietnam and Korea. 03.27
But for him the mission doesnt pale.
Tyler: Were certainly closer to potential threat that are out there. Were a stones throw from the DMZ up in Korea. Were real close to Taiwan and the potential problems that are going on there.
A lot of people back home pick up the paper and they read about the difficulties that are going on abroad, and to them its a long way away. But to us here in Kadena, its a mission away. The call could come at any time.
Hamilton: If the folks back home can relax about a mission far away, thats a luxury Okinawans dont enjoy, especially those unlucky enough to have the air base as their noisy neighbour. 04.19
Hamilton: From the perimeter of the air base its only a few metres to the nearest housing.
From dawn until dusk, and sometimes even in the middle of the night, the din of aircraft noise is a constant aggravation to the people living here, with as many as 250 take offs and landing in a single day.
These vacant lots mark the exodus of those who could bear it no longer, leaving behind just the elderly and the unyielding.
Like Tamotsu Takeshi whose house has been wired for sound by the local authorities.
Hamilton: The roof top recording device each year collects evidence of some 25,000 noise violations.
Tamotsu Tamotsu: We cannot talk over the telephone. Family discussion is disturbed and we cant hear the television.
Hamilton: Yet nothing is done, because military needs are given priority over Japans environmental laws.
Its only when the weather is bad that Takeshi and his long suffering neighbours get any peace.
Tamotsu: A small typhoon is welcomed by us. Though you might find that hard to believe.
Hamilton: But theres a typhoon of another sort blowing through Okinawa, which shows not all citizens are powerless against the bases. 05.58
Rebellious land owners are refusing to extend leases on private property used by some military facilities.
Challenging the Hashimoto government, whose obligations under the US-Japan Security Treaty have been tied up in legal knots.
The rebel groups leader, Shumei Ikehara, raises cattle on land right beside Kadena.
His farm was once also under us control, through a compulsory lease.
But he got it back using guerilla tactics, sneaking past military patrols at night and secretly erecting his animal pens.
Shumei: When a patrol came along we dimmed our headlamps. We kept silent and waited. After they passed, we lit them again and went on with the construction. 06.46
Hamilton: The authorities finally gave in, but now he works under the flight line of the F-15s, one of which he saw crash a short distance away.
Hamilton: For Airman Chris Reynolds, one sweep of his radar beam covers not only Kadena, but three-quarters of the US military bases in Japan ¾ all located on tiny Okinawa.
Still a single man, Chris has come a long way from small town Arkansas to big city Kadena. But in a sense, he never left home.
Integration with the surrounding community is purely optional.
On base, all day, every day, you can plug in America and tune out Japan.
Reynolds: Hello. Over rice, please. 07.55
Hamilton: Another reason for staying put all his meals are free.
Reynolds: Everything I compare in Japan, I say is approximately three times, three times what it would cost in the US.
Hamilton: The Kadena chapter of the Boy Scouts of America is in session.
For Airman and Eagle Scout Sean Bruce, foreign service means keeping up apple pie traditions.
Bruce: Its also another reminder for us of what our goals and objectives are. Just to kind of keep us in check. 08.46
Hamilton: Sean and his wife chose Japan for a posting, ironically enough, because its safety, and are starting a family here.
Bruce: Where you guys going?Woman: Arizona.
Hamilton: A meeting place for Americans and Japanese is Kadenas weekend market, where service families garage sale before returning to the States.
Bruce: You try and pick up a little bit here and there. You learn the important phrases like, ohayo gozaimasu is good morning.
Its time to learn the language with John and rose. How do I ask someone the way to the gas station? During your tour in Japan, learn the local language.
Hamilton: But by the end of their assignment, few have made the effort.
Allies, living side by side, and these Americans and Japanese hardly know each other.
Seans wife: Well, we had just one incident. We went off base when all that happened about the girl. I felt like people were looking at me, like that you know.
News file footage of rape trial Hamilton: The episode with the girl she refers to has made Okinawa less comfortable for every American. And captured the worlds attention. 10.16
News Broadcast: The rape which led to todays conviction and the public outcry its caused, has caused Washington to reassess the military presence here.
Hamilton: The abduction and rape of a 12 year old schoolgirl by three marines shocked even Okinawans used to a high toll of crime by US servicemen.
At their trial, among the crowd drawing lots for a seat in court, is anti-bases politician and womens advocate, Suzuyo Takazato.
In her view, such crimes of violence against local people are a direct result of the military system itself.
Takazato Takazato: Their education is to let them become the war warrior. So to educate man to become warrior and educate them to become decent is very contradictory. 11.03
Hamilton: In Naha, Okinawas capital, Takazato runs a rape crisis centre, she made after the school girl incident.
Dancers Hamilton: Ethnically distinct, their island seized by Tokyo only last century, Okinawans have always had to endure an inferior status.
Their tourism and battle-green economy is Japans poorest, with unemployment twice the national average.
Hamilton: Every day, Japanese tourists gather on a hill overlooking the American air base.
Its a popular attraction, where they can snap their photos and eavesdrop on air traffic control.
From this side of the fence, Kadena is like a giant forbidden theme park. A bit of Japan that isnt. A reminded of the forfeits of war, and the expedience of peace.
ENDS 12.50