"The U.S. military is building a new base on #Okinawa that marine experts and the Okinawa prefectural government say could threaten marine ecosystems, including coral reefs and thousands of marine species, desecrate Ryukyuan ancestor remains, and bring even more pollution and contamination. This week, a group of #Ryukyu Uchinaanchus is at the United Nations Permanent Forum on #Indigenous Issues calling for urgent intervention."
#Japan annexed the #Ryuku Kingdom in 1879, and renamed the Indigenous archipeligo "Okinawa." It arches from Kyūshū, the southwesternmost of Japan's main islands, towards Taiwan.
The small islands' proximity to China, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan make them strategically enticing to military powers. Last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported that 70% of US military bases in Japan are in #Okinawa.
Japan does not recognize the Ryuku people as #Indigenous.