Okinawa's want the U.S. out of Japan

Two 23-year-old U.S. servicemen were arrested in Okinawa on the suspicion of raping a Japanese woman, police said, further angering Okinawans and renewing calls for the U.S. military to abandon its post there.

“U.S. military top officials were not doing enough to control their thousands of personnel present in the area," the resolution read.

According to Japanese media, the sailors had been drinking before they attacked the woman, in her 20s, outside her apartment while she was on her way home. 

Governor Hirokazu Nakaima, leader of Okinawa has welcomed the “quick” U.S. response to the incident and stated that Washington is taking the case very seriously. 

“My impression is that they were very quick in their response,” Nakaima told reporters. 

Immediately following the event, U.S. commanders re-imposed an 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. curfew on all military personnel stationed in Japan.

The U.S. ambassador to Japan, John Roos, has stated full cooperation with the Japanese authorities and said that he also shared anger over the incident. 

One of the men has confessed to the rape while the other is denying that he was even involved as investigations continue, an Okinawa police spokesman said. 

Both men are under custody of the local police while the case continues to be investigated. 

There are roughly 28,000 U.S. troops- mostly Marines and Air Force personnel -- stationed in Okinawa, and U.S. bases occupy nearly 20 percent of Okinawa's main island. 

The United States has been involved in Japan since World War II, saying that military-less Japan needs a protector due to its proximity to Russia. For the U.S., the bases provide quick access if problems arise in Asia and Oceania. 

This event is not the first incident where anger has risen in Okinawa because of the U.S. involvement on the island. Previously friction was caused surrounding the 1995 gang rape of a 12-year-old Japanese schoolgirl by U.S. servicemen. The incident sparked widespread protest around the island and among its people who have long resented the U.S. presence on the island.

Relations between Japan and the U.S. are stable however many Japanese share resentment to the U.S. influence on Japanese soil. Many Japanese feel that the U.S. involvement in the country needs to come to an end. 

This incident will further push the military to introduce more education about sexual assualt into their training programs.

Additionally, this incident might bring back the former agreement to reduce the military footprint on Okinawa, including the former plan to move about 9,000 Marines off Okinawa to U.S. territories in Guam and other Pacific islands.

Reach Staff Reporter Joseph Krassenstein here.