Okinawa Gov. Protests to Defense Chief after U.S. Marine Arrest

Tokyo, Oct. 7 (Jiji Press)--Okinawa Governor Genta Koja, at a meeting with Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi on Wednesday, lodged a protest following the murder and robbery allegedly committed by a U.S. Marine in the southernmost Japan prefecture earlier this month.

At the meeting, held at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, Koja urged Koizumi to ensure that effective measures to prevent a recurrence should be taken.

Noting that crimes involving U.S. military personnel continue to occur in Okinawa, Koja said, "I have no choice but to say that the U.S. military's human rights education has not functioned at all."

The governor requested that the Japanese government urge the U.S. side to fully cooperate for the investigation into the latest case and thoroughly improve discipline among U.S. troops in the prefecture.

Koizumi said, "We plan to hold discussions with the United States on how we can take effective measures."

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]