A city assembly in the southern Japanese prefecture of Okinawa has approved a resolution of protest and a written statement over recently revealed cases of alleged sexual violence involving US military personnel.
The assembly of Ginowan City held an emergency meeting on Friday and unanimously approved the documents. The city hosts the US Marine Corps Futenma Air Station.
The documents state that as of March this year, Japan's Foreign Ministry and the Okinawa Prefectural Police knew about one of the cases, but failed to report it to the Okinawa Prefectural Government for more than three months.
The case concerns a US Air Force member who was indicted on charges of sexually assaulting a woman last December.
The documents say the city repeatedly called for measures to prevent a recurrence each time a similar incident happened. They say, each time, the Japanese government pledged to work to prevent a recurrence, but the people of Okinawa have been betrayed many times.
The documents say people in Okinawa are filled with intense anger and frustration over what they call the outrageous behavior of US military personnel.
They go on to say that the recently revealed cases have once again shocked and unsettled the people of Okinawa.
The city assembly is demanding full compensation for the victims and their families, including apologies and mental health care.
It is also calling for a thorough investigation of the incidents, the release of information with consideration for the victims and their families, and strict discipline and comprehensive education for US military personnel, as well as measures to prevent a recurrence and revisions to the Japan-US Status of Forces Agreement.
The assembly will make these requests on Friday afternoon to the Okinawa office of the Foreign Ministry and the Defense Ministry's Okinawa Defense Bureau. It also plans to send the documents to the central government.