October 3, 2018
The results of the Okinawa gubernatorial election delighted China and the Korean Peninsula.
We'll talk about Okinawa at a later date.
Still, in this chapter, we'd like to introduce the work of Yagi Hideji, which was published in the current issue of the monthly magazine Seiron under the title 'Now is the time to learn from the "father of Okinawa studies. '
It is a truth that the Japanese people and people worldwide need to know.
I am worried about the future of Okinawa.
I am referring to the Okinawa prefectural gubernatorial election.
This election has an intense "funeral battle" aspect with Governor Onaga Takeshi.
If Denny Tamaki, who is said to have been nominated as his successor, is elected, he will succeed Governor Onaga's administration.
The prefecture is in a state of conflict with the central government over relocating the US military base at Futenma, having withdrawn its approval for construction work off the coast of Henoko.
The impact of this extends to Japan-US relations.
An essay by Iha Fuyu, the father of Okinawan studies, includes a section entitled "The Greatest Flaw of the Okinawans" (1909, included in "Koryuukyuu" (Ancient Ryukyu), Iwanami Bunko, 2000).
Iha points out that "the Okinawans are prone to forget their gratitude" and says, "This is probably due to their circumstances over the past several hundred years."
The phrase "prone to forget their gratitude" here means they will follow whoever is strong then and easily betray those they were following.
Iha shows how, when the Chinese dynasties changed, the Ryukyu Kingdom's envoys brought two sets of memorial letters to the Qing and Ming emperors to be flexible with either.
China is currently using its official media to claim that "We will recover Ryukyu and liberate Okinawa" (i.e., we will recover Ryukyu, which was part of China's territory, and liberate Okinawa from Japan).
China has almost completely taken control of the lower half of the South China Sea, which is the area enclosed by the First Island Chain (a military line that starts from Kyushu and runs through Okinawa, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Borneo to enclose the entire South China Sea), by reclaiming reefs and building military bases on them.
It is also extending its reach into the East China Sea, which includes Okinawa, in the upper half of the First Island Chain.
It is reported that the Chinese Navy plans to expand its landing force (marines)—which is responsible for landing in front of the enemy—three times in two years (US State Department annual report).
It is also due to China's machinations since the Kuomintang era.
Still, in Okinawa, too, the "indigenous people theory" that some people are a different race from the mainland is spreading, and Governor Onaga has also jumped on board.
As an extension of this, the "Ryukyu independence theory" is also gaining ground.
China is also stirring up the Okinawa War, which caused a large number of casualties, as the "Ryukyu Massacre" carried out by the Japanese military.
Okinawa's public opinion is gradually being drawn towards China's gravitational pull.
Governor Onaga attracted public opinion in Okinawa by saying, "Identity before ideology."
Mr. Tamaki also appealed to this in his election campaign.
This is also the basic idea of "All Okinawa," which has supported Governor Onaga, that we should come together based on our identity as "Okinawans," transcending conservative and progressive ideologies.
However, the "identity" referred to here is merely another expression of the "indigenous people theory" and "Ryukyu independence theory" that state that Okinawa is different from the mainland, as mentioned above.
The background to this is the "essential discrimination theory" that states that Okinawa is discriminated against by being forced to host US military bases from the mainland and that "Uchinanchu" are discriminated against by "Yamatonchu."
However, in the introduction to the essay "The Greatest Flaw of Okinawans," Iha points out that "the greatest flaw of Okinawans is not that we are a different race, or that we speak a different language, or that we have different customs or habits" and then goes on to say that "the greatest flaw of Okinawans is that we easily forget our gratitude."
We must recognize that this essay was written assuming that Okinawa and the mainland are the same in terms of race, language, customs, and habits.
In fact, in another essay, Iha states that "it is necessary to mention that Okinawans share the same ancestors as people from other prefectures" and "I would like people to understand that Okinawans today are the descendants of those who colonized the southern islands from parts of Kyushu in the years before Christ," he also states that "the Okinawans who were trading with Ming China were actively importing their systems and culture, but the Okinawans of that time were in fact Japanese people disguised as Chinese people" (Ryukyu History Trends, 1907, included in "Old Ryukyu").
Iha, who majored in linguistics at Tokyo Imperial University, demonstrated that the languages, peoples, cultures, and customs of Okinawa and the mainland were of the same lineage.
These form the basis of Okinawan studies today.
The background to the unfortunate relationship between Okinawa and the mainland cannot be explained simply by the concentration of US military bases in Japan or the large number of casualties in the Battle of Okinawa.
There is also a historical perception based on misunderstanding.
I want to assume the ideas of Iha Fuyu.
