Soka University Okinawa Learning Cluster 2014
MON. JAN 13, 14:00
Visit to Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum & Cornerstone of Peace
TUE. JAN 14, 10:30
Meeting with the Okinawa Shogaku High School
TUE. JAN 14, 13:00
Visit to Shuri-castle
TUE. JAN 14, 18:30
Friendship Dinner with the American Chamber of Commerce
WED. JAN 15, 10:30
Tour of OIST and Meeting with Mr. Neil Calder (Vice President for Communications & Public Relations)
WED. JAN 15, 14:00
Meeting with the military base affairs division of the Okinawa Prefectural Government
WED. JAN 15, 17:00
Meeting with Two Japanese Employees from the Kadena US Military Base
THUR. JAN 16, 8:15~16:00
U.S. military Ops -visit to Kadena and Futenma military base-
FRI. JAN 17, 10:00
Visit to Okinawa Peace Assistance Center
FRI. JAN 17, 15:00
Meeting with Mrs. Satoko Taira of the Okinawa Social Mass Party
MON. JAN 20, 11:00
Visit to the Ryukyu Village
MON. JAN 20, 14:00
Visit to the Soka Gakkai Peace Monument
TUE. JAN 21, 11:00
Lecture by Professor Tony Jenkins of Okinawa University
TUE. JAN 21, 14:00
Meeting with the U.S. Consulate general of Naha
TUE. JAN 21, 17:30
Meeting with journalists of Stars and Stripes
WED. JAN 22, 11:30
Visit to the Tsushima-maru memorial museum
Meeting with Sir Edo Heinrich Sanchez of OCEAN
WED. JAN 22, 16:30
Meeting with Professor Sato from Okinawa International University
SAT. JAN 18, 13:00
Meeting with Mr. Tsutomu Kinjo of the Komei party
-Under construction-
Our Interviews & Visits
Meetings & visits to museum
Visit to Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum & Cornerstone of Peace
January 13, 2014
On our first day in Okinawa our Learning Cluster visited the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum. Okinawa prefectural Peace Memorial Museum was established to mourn for those who have passed away during the war and to pass down the stories of such an atrocity as the Battle of Okinawa to the future generation. The Corner Stone of Peace is constructed to remember the battle of Okinawa and the lives lost on both Japan and the U.S. sides. Inscribed on the Cornerstone are the names of the war victims from both sides.
This visit was a great introductory day for us as we were able to see the actual reminiscence and understand more about the Battle of Okinawa through the exhibits and the Cornerstone of Peace. This trip has not only deepened the students’ desire to achieve peace for humanity but also enabled them to comprehend the history of the island and to empathize the adversities and sorrows citizens encounter during the battle. For more information about the museum, please check out their website (http://www.peace-museum.pref.okinawa.jp/english/) that provides a better description of the concept of its museum.
Meeting with the Okinawa Shogaku High School
January 14, 2014
The first visit the Learning Cluster (LC) students made was to Shogaku High School, which is a private school famous for athletics, particularly baseball and judo. The school has not only outstanding performance in their sports department but also in their academics. Just like Soka, Shogaku High School also provides a liberal arts course out of the six programs available.
We met with about 21 students who specialized on International Studies. We divided into seven small groups to have a deeper interaction with each other.
writing...in progress......
Visit to Shuri-castle
Right after the meeting with high school students at the Okinawa Shogaku High School, our Learning Cluster went sightseeing the Shurijo Castle Park. This historical castle in Okinawa was built during the Ryukyu kingdom around the 14th century; however, the specifics are unknown. For approximately 500 years, it served as the central structure of the kingdom and as the politics, foreign diplomacy and culture of the Ryukyu Kingdom.
King Sho Hashi became the royal seat in 1406, and united the kingdom in 1429 until the last ruler of the kingdom, King Shoo Tai, who gave the throne to the Meiji Government. Through trading with China, Japan, and Southeast Asia in the past, Ryukyu kingdom gained various items in a Shuri castle such as lacquer ware, dyes, and textiles. Some of the objects were presented in the exhibition rooms. Unfortunately, the castle was burnt to ashes in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. In 1992, the castle was restored to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Okinawa’s reversion to Japan.
We were all amazed with the bright red color of the castle, reflecting the architectural influence from both China and Japan. The color of vermilion represents the rebirth of the history and culture of the Ryukyu Kingdom and is recognized as the symbol of Okinawa. Its unique stonework and design showed remarkable cultural and historical values. Hence, Shuri castle was recognized as the 11th World Heritage Site within Japan in December, 2000.
Friendship dinner with the American Chamber of Commerce
The night of this day, 5 of the students and Professor Jay Heffron attended a Shin-nen Kai (New Year) Friendship Dinner hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce. We were fortunate enough to meet and discuss some issues with key persons such as the American Consul General Alfred R. Magleby, Ambassador in Charge of Okinawan Affairs, Mr. Toshihisa Takata (representative of the Government of Japan), Sir Eduardo Heinrich-Sanchez (CEO of Okinawa Ocean Culture & Environment Action Network (O.C.E.A.N.)), Commander Colonel Jeffrey R. Ullmann from Kadena Air Base, Governor Mike Holland and President Justin Wentworth IV and Governor Cindy Kawaguchi of American Chamber of Commerce in Okinawa, Mr. William J. Traux (U.S. Marine corps), Mr. Timothy W. Martin (Administrative manager of American Consulate General), Dr. Mikio Higa (a president of Okinawa American Association), Miss Yumiko Ichikawa (Sales & Marketing Manager), Mr. Douglas Bennett (Course Director), Miss Rachel Davidson (General Manager of Hotel Hilton), Cooz Komei Tokita (CEO of Tokita Investments), Mr. Arthur T.Y. Arao “Art” (American Engineering Corporation), Mr. Mohan Maeda (Office manager of Asiatic Trans-Pacific), President Tomokazu Yamamoto of Okinawa Nexiss, and many others in the business, commercial, political and military fields. Our discussion focused on the presence of American Military Base in Okinawa. Opinion varied from pro to anti base, realistic to futuristic and brought fresh ideas among us as we deepened our conversation. This opportunity allowed us to think of what it means to create peace in Okinawa. As we shared our stories and experience in Okinawa to several officers, they were surprised to hear our new thoughts, especially because most youth in Okinawa are neutral to the existence of the base. Although we did not come to a conclusion of any sorts, we were able to gain the different perspectives and views of the history of Okinawa, as well as the presence of American Military Base in Okinawa.
Tour of OIST and Meeting with Mr. Neil Calder (Vice President for Communications & Public Relations)
January 15, 2014
On the morning of Wednesday we visited the beautiful campus of OIST, the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, to meet with Dr. Neil Calder, the Vice President for Communication and Public Relations. This university is fairly new and receives much of its funding from the central government. Their 3 goals are 1) to become the best university in the world, 2) to become international, and 3) to be multidisciplinary- research and understanding of different types of sciences as well as the disciplines. Dr. Neil Calder believed that in this new age, the dominant culture is science and technology and all citizens of this Earth have a responsibility to understand them. This meeting was quite different from the rest of the meetings, as the main topic was not about the military bases, but instead we mostly discussed the importance of OIST in improving the current state of Okinawa. Although OIST does not directly relate to the issue of the large concentration of the military bases, one of OIST’s main goals is to create a self-sustainable Okinawa and create a stronger sense of Ryukyuan identity. To create a self-sustainable Okinawa would mean that Okinawa could stop relying heavily on funding from the central government they receive for compensation of having such a large concentration of military bases in their lands. OIST embodies the hope that Okinawa could be an independent island while preserving its own culture, history, and economy.
Meeting with the military base affairs division of the Okinawa Prefectural Government
In this meeting, we met with the Military Base Affairs Division of the Okinawa prefectural Government (OPG). This division is in charge of handling all issues and incidents regarding the military bases. However, this division and the OPG as a whole do not communicate often with the military. The Okinawan government has difficulties in dealing with crimes and accidents due to SOFA and the lack of communication with and between the military bases and the central government of Japan. The meeting began with a briefing from the head prefectural official. He handed out a printed out PowerPoint packed with information about the history of the military bases in Okinawa and the statistics of the economy, number of tourists, and the amount of crimes and accidents. After going over the PowerPoint, we were able to ask questions to the official. We asked about the long term and immediate goals of the OPG and what their idea of peace of. The head official desired to reduce the number of bases and to keep the number of incidents relating to the bases a minimum. His short term goal was similar, and was to reduce the number of incidents and crimes so Okinawans could feel safe. We also learned through our questions that the OPG’s goal is to create an economically independent Okinawa.
Meeting with two Japanese employees in the Kadena base
We met two Japanese employees working for the Kadena U.S. Military base. They shared with us what their daily work interactions on the base were like and their feelings towards the military bases. An important piece of information that they revealed to us is the U.S. military bases provided many jobs for the Okinawans and supported the economy after the battle of Okinawa.