Hatoyama suggests 'moving Futemma outside Okinawa' was not a pledge+

TOKYO, May 6 Kyodo - Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama suggested Thursday that he was only referring to a challenge, not a pledge, when he said during last year's election campaign that his Democratic Party of Japan would try to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps' Futemma Air Station ''at least outside of Okinawa Prefecture'' if it assumed
power.

But Hatoyama added he is aware that his remarks carry a lot of weight and he
has acted in order to fulfill his responsibility.
Hatoyama said he has no intention of changing his promise to settle the matter
by the end of this month, despite calls from the head of one of the DPJ's
coalition partners for a decision on where to relocate the Futemma base to be
put off until after the prime minister's self-imposed deadline.
In an attempt to clarify that seeking the relocation of the base outside of
Okinawa was not a DPJ campaign promise, the prime minister said that the party
had pledged to thoroughly review the planned realignment of U.S. forces in
Japan to reduce the burden on the people of Okinawa, which hosts the bulk of
U.S. military facilities in the country.
During a visit to the main island of Okinawa on Tuesday, Hatoyama said it is
not feasible to relocate all of the functions of the base outside of the island
prefecture citing the need to maintain U.S. deterrence in Asia, angering local
people who believed Hatoyama had promised to seek its relocation elsewhere.
The premier reiterated Thursday that the Japan-U.S. security alliance remains
important considering the security situation in Northeast Asia, adding that the
mobility of the U.S. Marines acts as a deterrent.
Mizuho Fukushima, chief of the Social Democratic Party, which has been calling
for the base to be transferred outside of Japan, suggested that Hatoyama does
not need to resolve the issue by May 31.
During a TV program on Thursday, Fukushima, who also serves as consumer affairs
minister, said the government ''just has to come up by the end of May with an
idea or direction that (the relocation) would not take place within the
prefecture.''
On the possibility that her party could leave the ruling coalition over the
matter, Fukushima only said, ''The important thing right now is not whether the
SDP will leave the coalition, but that it is time for (the party) to work hard
not to let (the government) come up with a final conclusion that (the base)
should be relocated within the prefecture.''
Fukushima suggested in December that the SDP would leave the ruling coalition
if the government decided to relocate the base within Okinawa.
But the tiny party's Diet affairs chief from Okinawa Prefecture, Teruya
Kantoku, told reporters Thursday, ''I've made a serious decision and am always
prepared. I will not let anyone force any more sacrifices on Okinawa.''
Meanwhile, Kenji Yamaoka, chairman of the DPJ's Diet Affairs Committee, said he
does not think the Futemma issue will have a direct impact on the lives of the
people, sparking criticism from an assemblywoman in Itoman, Okinawa.
Yamaoka said in a meeting at the DPJ's headquarters in Tokyo that people in
other cities do not seem as interested in the Futemma issue as they are in
child benefits -- one of the party's policies.
''People seem to think the Futemma (issue) is something occurring in a
different world but the child benefit issue is related to their lives,''
Yamaoka said.
But the assemblywoman was quick to attack the senior DPJ lawmaker, saying,
''For us, the course of the issue could destroy our lives. It sounds
disrespectful to the people (of Okinawa).''
Yamaoka later offered an apology and retracted the comments.
==Kyodo