TOKYO (Dispatches) - Japanese citizens gathered outside the Shinjuku Station in Tokyo on Monday to protest crimes committed by a U.S. Marine in Okinawa and to voice opposition to the planned construction of a new military base in Henoko.
A 20-year-old U.S. Marine stationed in Japan’s southernmost prefecture of Okinawa was arrested by local police on Sunday for robbing and murdering a woman, local media reported.
The suspect, named Devin Ballard, is stationed at the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa. He is criminal of killing a 39-year-old local woman and taking her wallet and backpack in the early hours of Saturday at a hotel in Naha, the Kyodo News reported, citing Okinawa prefectural police.
Japan’s prime minister says the killing of a woman, by a U.S. Marine stationed in Okinawa, is a “heinous crime”, and she has called on the United States to “thoroughly enforce discipline” amid growing outrage in Japan.
Sanae Takaichi told lawmakers on Monday that the government has urged the U.S. to provide “full cooperation with the investigation” and called for “strict discipline among U.S. military personnel”.
About 54,000 U.S. military personnel, including 18,000 Marines, are stationed in Japan. The majority of these forces are based in Okinawa, a Japanese island that came under U.S. administrative control at the end of World War II and was returned to Japan in 1972.
Crimes including rapes, assaults, hit-and-run and drink-driving incidents by U.S. personnel have long sparked protests on the island.
Rally participants expressed their anger at the violence committed by U.S. forces stationed in Japan.
“This is not the only such incident. There have been cases in the past in which U.S. servicemen committed sexual crimes against young girls. There have also been many other incidents, including acts of violence. Do we really need military bases like these here?” said a protester.
“When I saw the news this morning and learned that another Okinawan woman had been killed in an incident involving a U.S. serviceman stationed in Japan, I was deeply shocked. I couldn’t help thinking, how could this happen again? I came here today with a very heavy heart,” said another protester.
Statistics showed that in 2025 alone, Okinawa police handled more than 100 criminal cases involving U.S. military personnel and related individuals.
“I believe that as long as there are U.S. military bases in Okinawa, crimes like these will not disappear. The fact that they are planning to build yet another base in a place like Henoko is absolutely unacceptable,” said a protester.
Another protester said, “Around 70 percent of U.S. military bases in Japan are located in Okinawa, and this has caused all kinds of problems for local communities. Such incidents keep happening in Okinawa, and it’s truly heartbreaking. I believe the new governor needs to address these issues seriously and take concrete actions going forward.”