US sacks diplomat over remarks about Okinawans

Japanese policy chief Kevin Maher describes people of Okinawa as lazy and manipulative
Kevin Maher
Kevin Maher was sacked for disparaging comments about the people of the Japanese island of Okinawa, where US troops are based. Photograph: AP

The US state department has sacked its Japanese policy chief, Kevin Maher, after he described people in Okinawa, home to tens of thousands of US troops, as lazy and accused them of using "manipulation and distortion" to win financial support from Tokyo.

Maher's departure as director of the office of Japanese affairs comes as the two countries struggle to agree on the relocation of a big US marine base on the southern Japanese island.

Maher sparked outrage among Okinawa residents after details emerged this week of disparaging remarks he made about them in a speech to American students in December.

Unfortunately for Maher, some of the students took notes and passed them on to Japanese media.

According to one account, Maher said Okinawans had exploited the island's military burden for financial gain.

"Japanese culture is a culture of wa [harmony] that is based on consensus. Consensus building is important in Japanese culture. While the Japanese would call this 'consensus', they mean 'extortion' and use this culture of consensus as a means of extortion.

"By pretending to seek consensus, people try to get as much money as possible. Okinawans are masters of manipulation and extortion of Tokyo."

He also cited the island's higher than average divorce and drink-driving rates, attributing the latter to "Okinawa's culture of drinking liquor with high alcohol content".

Maher has claimed that the accounts were "neither accurate nor complete", adding that the lecture was supposed to have been off the record.

Okinawa, one of Japan's poorest regions, hosts about three-quarters of US bases in Japan. The bases are routinely blamed for noise and air pollution.

Although serious crimes are relatively uncommon, opposition to the US military presence grew after three servicemen were convicted of raping a 12-year-old Okinawan girl in 1995.

The US assistant secretary of state, Kurt Campbell, acknowledged Maher's remarks had damaged bilateral ties, but said the two countries would continue to strengthen defence co-operation.

"We are moving toward what we believe will be a major statement on the way forward, given the pressing developments in the Asia-Pacific region," he told reporters in Tokyo, where he is attending security talks.

Campbell said Maher's remarks "in no way reflect the attitudes of warmth, gratitude and friendship that the United States has for the people of Okinawa". The US had "the utmost respect for the Okinawan people", he said.

The US ambassador to Japan, John Roos, was due to fly to Okinawa on Thursday to offer a personal apology on behalf of the US government.

Tokyo and Washington are keen to settle the relocation of Futenma, a sprawling US Marines base located in the middle of a city, amid concerns about China's military buildup.

A 2006 agreement to relocate the base to a less populated part of the island is in danger of unravelling in the face of opposition from residents and indecision by Japanese leaders.

The ruling Democratic party of Japan swept to power in 2009 promising to close Futenma and build an alternative facility outside Okinawa. The then prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, resigned last summer after failing to find a site.

The current leader, Naoto Kan, has angered Okinawans by vowing to implement the original relocation agreement.

The $10.3bn plan, reached after years of negotiations, would see 8,000 troops and their families move to the US Pacific territory of Guam by 2014.

Japan's new foreign minister, Takeaki Matsumoto, acknowledged that the US had acted quickly to punish Maher, a former US consul general on Okinawa, but said his comments "hurt the feelings not only of Okinawans but all Japanese".

Maher, who will remain at the state department, has been replaced by Rust Deming, a former deputy chief of mission at the US embassy in Tokyo.

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