名護市長再選 普天間移設は着実に進めたい

The Yomiuri Shimbun January 20, 2014
Futenma relocation must go ahead despite outcome of Nago mayoral race
名護市長再選　普天間移設は着実に進めたい（1月20日付・読売社説）

Despite the outcome of Sunday’s mayoral election in Nago, the government should push ahead steadily with the plan to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps’ Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture to the city’s Henoko coastal district.
　選挙結果にとらわれずに、政府は、米軍普天間飛行場の辺野古移設を着実に進めるべきだ。

Incumbent Mayor Susumu Inamine, an adamant opponent of the relocation, secured a second term by defeating first-time candidate Bunshin Suematsu, a former Okinawa Prefectural Assembly member who supported the move.
　沖縄県名護市長選で、辺野古移設に反対する現職の稲嶺進市長が、移設の推進を訴えた新人の末松文信・前県議を破って、再選された。

In Nago’s five mayoral contests since 1998, candidates in favor of the relocation plan were victorious in the first three. Inamine won the other two.
　１９９８年以降の５回の市長選で、最初の３回は容認派が勝利し、前回以降は反対派が当選した。

The outcomes of the last two elections presumably were the result of the Democratic Party of Japan irresponsibly calling for the Futenma facility to be moved outside Okinawa Prefecture when it was in power, whipping up the expectations of residents of the prefecture. This helped lend ammunition to their arguments against the relocation of Futenma’s functions to Henoko, even among those voters who held conservative views.
民主党政権が無責任に「県外移設」を掲げ、地元の期待をあおった結果、保守層にも辺野古移設の反対論が増えたことが要因だろう。

Although New Komeito’s headquarters threw its support behind the relocation plan, the party allowed its members to freely cast their ballots in the mayoral race, while the party’s Okinawa prefectural chapter remained committed to having the facility relocated outside Okinawa Prefecture.
　公明党は、党本部が移設を支持しているのに、県本部は「県外移設」を崩さず、市長選を自主投票にした。

It was problematic for the party’s headquarters to give tacit approval to the prefectural chapter’s anti-relocation stance while supporting the relocation plan as a ruling party.
党本部がこの方針を“黙認”したのは、移設を推進する与党として問題だった。

In his campaign, Suematsu promised to promote the local economy of Nago by strengthening cooperation with the central and Okinawa prefectural governments.
　末松氏は、政府や沖縄県との連携を強化し、名護市の地域振興に力を入れる方針を前面に掲げた。

Suematsu was hampered in his efforts to make headway against Inamine by the delay in getting a former Nago mayor who supported the relocation to give up his plan to run, thereby unifying the pro-relocation camp.
だが、同じ容認派の前市長との候補一本化に時間を要するなど、出遅れが響き、及ばなかった。

As Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima gave the green light toward the end of 2013 for the central government’s application to carry out a land reclamation project at Henoko, the basic direction of advancing the Henoko relocation plan has effectively been irreversibly settled.
　昨年末に仲井真弘多知事が公有水面埋め立てを承認したことにより、辺野古移設を進める方向性は既に、定まっている。

Delays must be avoided

The task of keeping intact the important functions of Futenma Air Station, which is responsible for transporting U.S. marines stationed in the prefecture, is of key significance to the Japan-U.S. alliance and Japan’s national security. This must not be affected by the outcome of a single local election.
　そもそも、在沖縄海兵隊の輸送任務を担う普天間飛行場の重要な機能を維持することは、日米同盟や日本全体の安全保障にかかわる問題だ。一地方選の結果で左右されるべきものではない。

Nakaima’s decision to approve the land reclamation prior to the mayoral election was appropriate from the standpoint of averting untoward developments.
　仲井真知事が市長選前に承認を決断したことは、そうした事態を避けるうえで、適切だった。

The mayor of Nago has the licensing authority on such matters as approval of building construction material depots necessary to construct the new Futenma facility, so he would be able to delay construction to a certain degree. The mayor’s power, however, is not strong enough to bring the Henoko relocation plan to a halt.
　名護市長には、代替施設の建設工事に伴う資材置き場の設置などの許可権限があり、工事をある程度遅らせることは可能だろう。ただ、権限は限定的で、辺野古移設の中止にまでは及ばない。

Taking into account the weight of the votes garnered by Suematsu, Inamine should not use his authority to block the landfill work.
　稲嶺市長は、末松氏が集めた票の重みも踏まえて、市長の権限を乱用し、工事を妨害する行為は自制してもらいたい。

The government, for its part, should make further efforts to enhance close cooperation with Okinawa Prefecture by speeding up the landfill project with the aim of making the deterrence of the U.S. forces in Japan compatible with the goal of alleviating the burden on Okinawa Prefecture residents in hosting U.S. military installations.
　政府は今後、在日米軍の抑止力の維持と沖縄の基地負担の軽減を両立させるため、沖縄県と緊密に協力し、建設工事を加速させることが肝要である。

The slower the pace of construction, the longer the perilous situation of Futenma Air Station will remain, as it is located in a densely populated area of a city.
　工事が遅れれば、市街地の中央に位置する普天間飛行場の危険な状況が、より長く続く。

Under the circumstances, schedules to implement other measures to alleviate the prefecture’s burdens, such as transferring U.S. marines to Guam and the return of U.S. military bases in the southern part of the prefecture to Japan, would also be delayed.
在沖縄海兵隊のグアム移転や県南部の米軍基地の返還といった基地負担の軽減策も遅れるだろう。

The cooperation of local communities is indispensable to ensure smooth progress and shorten the time needed to carry out such tasks as land reclamation work, which has been sought by Nakaima and other prefectural leaders.
　仲井真知事らが求める工事の期間短縮や、円滑な実施には、地元関係者の協力が欠かせない。

The government must continue its endeavors to obtain the understanding of the people about the importance of the Henoko relocation plan by providing thorough explanations.
政府は、辺野古移設の意義を粘り強く関係者に説明し、理解を広げる努力を続ける必要がある。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 20, 2014)
（2014年1月20日01時29分  読売新聞）