Japan demands handover of U.S. rape suspect<\/p>\n
TOKYO (AP): Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi called on the
\nUnited States on Thursday to make an \"appropriate decision\" as
\nsoon as possible on the handover of an Air Force sergeant accused
\nof rape, while a local assembly on Okinawa denounced Washington
\nfor trying to \"shield\" the suspect.<\/p>\n
Koizumi made the remark shortly after returning to Tokyo from
\na trip to the United States and Europe, according to spokesman
\nKazuhiko Koshikawa.<\/p>\n
\"I hope the United States, understanding emotions here, will
\nmake an appropriate decision quickly,\" Koshikawa quoted the prime
\nminister as saying.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the day, defense chief Gen. Nakatani reiterated
\nTokyo's call for the suspect, Timothy Woodland, to be turned over
\nto Japanese authorities as early as possible. He spoke in a
\ntelephone conversation with U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul
\nWolfowitz.<\/p>\n
Nakatani told Wolfowitz delays in handing over Woodland, for
\nwhom Okinawan police obtained an arrest warrant on Monday, would
\nlead to an \"escalation of emotions\" on Okinawa, according to
\nDefense Agency spokesman Ichiro Imaizumi.<\/p>\n
Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka on Thursday spoke by phone with
\nU.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and requested a swift
\nhandover, according to a ministry statement.<\/p>\n
Okinawa's prefectural assembly, meanwhile, unanimously adopted
\na resolution calling for the suspect's immediate handover.<\/p>\n
\"The recurrence of these crimes by American military personnel
\nis the result of the concentration of U.S. bases here,\" the
\nresolution said, calling for a review of a bilateral pact on the
\nlegal status of American troops in Japan.<\/p>\n
\"Even with a heinous crime such as this, the Americans use the
\npact as a shield to continue denying our requests for the suspect
\nto be handed over,\" it said.<\/p>\n
Police believe Woodland, a staff sergeant stationed at
\nOkinawa's Kadena Air Base, raped a local woman last week in the
\nparking lot of a popular tourist area. Woodland, who has denied
\nthe allegations, has been taken in every day for police
\nquestioning but remains under military custody.<\/p>\n
The alleged rape has underscored long-simmering frustrations
\non Okinawa over the status of the 26,000 American military
\npersonnel based there.<\/p>\n
Under the bilateral Status of Forces Agreement, military
\nsuspects need not be turned over to local police until formal
\ncharges are filed.<\/p>\n
But huge protests following the rape of a 12-year-old
\nschoolgirl by three U.S. servicemen in 1995 prompted Washington
\nto agree to consider handing over suspects before charges are
\nfiled.<\/p>\n
The first such handover was made in 1996, when an American was
\nsuspected of attempted murder near Nagasaki. He was later
\nconvicted and sentenced to 13 years in prison.<\/p>\n
Police on Okinawa say they want Woodland turned over to them
\nbecause they want to wrap up their investigation as soon as
\npossible. But Washington has stressed that the issue is
\ncomplicated, and that Woodland's rights must be protected.<\/p>\n
As is customary in Japan, no defense attorney has been present
\nduring the questioning of Woodland so far, according to Okinawa
\npolice spokesman Akira Namihira. An interpreter has been
\nprovided.<\/p>\n
If turned over to Okinawan authorities, Woodland, whose
\nhometown has not been released, would likely be tried in a
\nJapanese court, and face several years in a Japanese prison if
\nconvicted. Japan's conviction rate for cases that go to trial is
\nmore than 95 percent.<\/p>\n
In its resolution, the Okinawa assembly noted that the small
\nisland on Japan's southern fringe bears most of the burden of
\nhosting the nearly 50,000 U.S. troops in this country.
\nSimilar criticism was voiced in Japan's media.<\/p>\n
\"Considering the mood on Okinawa, turning over the accused
\nairman to local jurisdiction would seem only natural,\" said an
\neditorial in the Asahi, a major newspaper. \"Crimes by U.S.
\nmilitary people add to resentment against the military bases.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/japan-demands-handover-of-us-rape-suspect-1447893297",
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