CURRENT ISSUE
Pick Up Stories
Obon is time for family gathering to rem… [CULTURE CURRENT ISSUE]
For three days starting on Tuesday, August 25th through Thursday, August 27th, many privately owned businesses on Okinawa will close their ...Read More
Day of Naha: Immerse Yourself in the Cap… [Community CURRENT ISSUE]
July 8th is Naha Day in Okinawa. This special occasion originated from the use of play-on-words or rather, a play-on-numbers. Naha’s two syl...Read More
June 23rd, Okinawa’s Peace Memorial Day [CURRENT ISSUE]
June 23rd is ‘Irei-no Hi’. This is Okinawa’s Peace Memorial Day. It is a prefectural holiday formally recognized in 1961. It is to memoriali...Read More
Visiting Aichi students suffer food poisoning [News]
218 high school students visiting Okinawa on a school trip from Aichi Prefecture fell victims of food poisoning in Nago. According to the Okinawa Prefecture Community Health Divisi...
Tomigusuku mayor wants to change June 19 demo site [Politics]
Tomigusuku Mayor Haruki Gibo has requested to All-Okinawa Council, the organizer of the planned Jun. 19 large-scale demonstration against the U.S. military presence in Okinawa, to ...
Kunigami YuiYui road station to reopen in July after renovation [Business]
Road Station YuiYui in Kunigami, a tourist and local product center on Highway 58 close to Okuma, is scheduled to reopen Jul. 24. Of the eight road stations on Okinawa, Road Statio...
Nago Board of Education employee arrested for DUI [News]
A 31-year-old temporary teacher was arrested on suspicion of DUI in Nago, early Sunday morning. According to Nago Police, Ryuji Nagahama, a 31 year-old temporary employee of Nago C...
Chinese multiple-entry visas to Okinawa hit new record [Business]
The number of Chinese visitors entering Okinawa on multiple-entry visas hit a new record, as the entries with such visas increased to 60,298 in 2015. That is a 3.3-time increase fr...
Allergic reactions to jimami tofu increasing among foreign tourists [News]
Reports of acute allergic reaction, anaphylaxis, and allergic shock among foreign tourists who have eaten jimami tofu while on Okinawa have increased in recent years. Anaphylaxis i...
Sangetsu opens Okinawa showroom in Ginowan [Business]
Nagoya-based Sangetsu Co., Ltd., a maker of interior decoration and upholstery materials, is opening a new showroom on Jun. 18th on the second floor of Lequios Square Bldg. in Uchi...
New Bireley’s drink hits store shelves [Business]
Asahi Orion Calpis Inryo Co., Ltd., the maker of Bireley’s brand of beverages, has bought a new beverage under Bireley’s label to stores throughout Okinawa. The new product, labele...
Man held for murder after stabbing another to death [News]
A 43-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder on Kume Island after he fatally stabbed a 36-year-old man with a kitchen knife, Sunday morning. According to Naha Police, Akir...
Hiroto to challenge World Lightweight title in July [Sports]
Hiroto Nema, a 32-year-old MMA fighter from Ishigaki who uses his first name only in the ring, is aiming to win the World Lightweight title in the match scheduled for Koza Music To...
Government to beef up security measures in Okinawa [News]
The Government of Japan announced Jun. 3rd measures to enhance security on Okinawa in light of the latest incidents involving U.S. military personnel. The decision was made in a co...
Henoko opposition wins big in prefecture assembly election [Politics]
Opponents of the relocation of MCAS Futenma to Henoko got a boost in Sunday’s prefectural assembly election, in which the anti-base camp added four seats to their majority that now...
Navy imposes alcohol ban, sweeping curfew in all Japan [Military]
The U.S. Navy imposed Monday a sweeping curfew and stiff new regulations banning all drinking of alcohol among sailors throughout Japan, regardless of their rank or location. The b...
Japan, U.S. agree to review extent of SOFA for civilians [News]
The Japanese defense minister and his U.S. counterpart agreed Saturday on the sidelines of the Asian Security Summit in Singapore to review extent of the SOFA status of American ci...
Woman Navy petty officer arrested for DUI after Hwy 58 crash [News]
Okinawa City Police arrested a female U.S. Navy petty officer assigned to Kadena Air Base, Sunday, on suspicion of driving drunk after she crashed her car into two minicars injurin...
Okinawa total income records biggest rise in 2015 [Business]
According to figures by the Okinawa National Tax Office published Jun. 2nd, the total income in the prefecture in 2015 rose 8% from the year before to ¥363.283 billion. The amount ...
Naha 4th, Ishigaki 6th in cruise ship port calls [Business]
According to the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, cruise liners made a total 1,454 port calls to Japanese ports in 2015. The number is the highest ...
Okinawans’ income up, still lowest in nation [News]
The Cabinet Office of the Government of Japan has published its annual report on the prefectural accounts for the fiscal year 2013. The report indicates the average income of peopl...
Yomitan woman sets new world record in freediving [Sports]
A Yomitan woman set a new world record in a freediving competition held at the end of April in the Bahamas. 27-year-old Sayuri Kinoshita from Yomitan, Okinawa, set a new world reco...
Sun Marina Resort re-opens as Sheraton on Jun. 1st [Business]
The Sun Marina Hotel in Fuchaku, Onna Village, has been re-branded after a full renovation, and re-opened Jun. 1st as the Sheraton Okinawa Sun Marina Resort. The hotel owner Ishin ...
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