滝本 匠 
July 8, 2022 Ryukyu Shimpo
By Miho Iwakiri, Kotaro Nagamine, and Kenta Masuda
On July 7, an object resembling a bullet was discovered in a private residence in Igei Ward, Kin Town, which neighbors the U.S. military's Camp Hansen. Incidents involving stray bullets have repeatedly occurred in Igei Ward in the past, as well. Citizens were going about their daily lives when a loud gunshot rang out from maneuvering ground, and these citizens made sorrowful comments such as "When will we no longer be threatened by the military base?" and "It seems this has been thrown into uncertainty yet again."
The glass in the kitchen door of the private residence in Igei Ward, Kin Town was broken on July 7, and the object resembling a bullet was discovered there. In the residential area where the bullet-like object was discovered, loud sounds from a U.S. military live-ammunition exercise continued ringing out past 9:00 p.m. without care being shown for the apprehension felt by the ward residents. A citizen spoke out in anger, saying, "This was probably a stray bullet. It is inexcusable for our safety to be threatened in this way."
The site where the bullet-like object hit is in a residential district in which detached houses are lined up in rows with an expansive rice field nearby. A news helicopter circled the site and media companies gathered upon receiving information about the discovery of the bullet-like object, and the sense of urgency at the scene rose.
One by one, neighbors heard the disturbance and rushed over, and commotion erupted throughout the whole area. In front of caution tape put in place by the prefectural police, neighbors as well as children on their way home from extracurricular activities anxiously stared at the residence in question, which had been covered by a blue tarpaulin.
Hearing the commotion, a woman in her 60s led her granddaughter by the hand to the residence. The woman pointed out, to her granddaughter, the direction to the maneuvering ground. The granddaughter was shocked at the uproar with mass media crowded around the residence.
Some National Diet members who rushed to the scene requested an explanation from a member of the leadership of the Okinawa Defense Bureau (ODB), who simply said, "We are currently gathering information. We cannot say [what happened] for certain." Okinawa Prefectural Government personnel also waited outside the caution tape to assess the situation.
A 74-year-old man, not concealing his resentment, spoke about the live-ammunition training that continued past 9:00 p.m., saying, "Although [training] is always carried out at this time of day, it is odd that practice would be carried out even on a day when such a thing has happened. I hope that the prefectural and national governments protest," and, with a sigh, continued, "No matter how many protest rallies we hold, it doesn't ever seem to change."
Igei Ward Chief Minoru Afuso empathically said, "Although I don't know the particulars, I resent ward residents' safety being threatened. At every opportunity I have requested countermeasures from the ODB, among others. If the object does belong to the U.S. military, I will consider how to handle these circumstances moving forward, including protests and the like."
(English translation by T&CT and Erin Jones)
