Japanese protest against US base http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2011/02/20/japanese-protest-against-us-base/

Japanese activists have gathered in front of the US embassy in Tokyo to protest against a planned heliport near the village of Takae, northern Okinawa.The demonstrators shouted slogans against the American military base on Okinawa, demanding the removal of the base from the island, The Japan Times reported on Sunday.They tried to submit a letter to Washington’s Ambassador in Japan John Victor Roos, but they were prevented from reaching the embassy by a wall of Japanese police.

Futenma airbase, hosting about half the US troops in Japan, is extremely unpopular with locals who associate it with crime and pollution.Futenma has provoked a wave of anger in the country, urging Tokyo to remove US military installations from the country.Tens of thousands of people have held several rallies against the American military engagement in the country over the past months.