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Tighter watch for US troops
22/02/2008 14:05 - (SA)
Tokyo - Japan and the US military will tighten rules for troops who live off bases after a series of incidents by American servicemen including an alleged rape of a teenager, the Foreign Minister said on Friday.
"Japan and the US agreed to review the criteria and policies for off-the-base residency" as part of measures to prevent recurrence of crime, Foreign Minister Masahiko Komura said.
"We want proper screening," he told reporters.
Police on the southern island of Okinawa on February 11 arrested Staff Sergeant Tyrone Luther Hadnott, 38, on allegations he raped a 14-year-old local girl in his car, sparking an uproar.
The Marine lived outside his base, reportedly due to his relatively mature age and a previous relationship with a Japanese woman.
He has admitted he tried to forcibly kiss the teenager but denied raping her.
A total of 44 963 US troops, non-military staff and their families were in Okinawa as of the end of January, of whom 10 748 people lived off the bases, according to the foreign ministry.
Crime prevention measures
Komura said Japan would get a report from the US military once a year on the number of personnel living outside the bases. He also said Japanese police could carry out joint patrols with the US military.
Other crime prevention measures could include setting up security cameras in Okinawa's downtown streets if requested by local communities, he said.
Faced with public outrage, the US military on Wednesday imposed a sweeping curfew barring troops and their families from leaving their bases or off-base homes except for work, medical treatment or worship.
US troops are stationed in Japan under a security treaty with the country, which has been constitutionally pacifist since World War II.
More than half of the troops live in Okinawa, which was under US occupation until 1972 and is a key hub due to its proximity to the Taiwan Strait.
Okinawa saw major protests in 1995 after three US military personnel gang-raped a 12-year-old girl, setting in motion a process to reduce the number of troops on the small island.
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