Japan annexed Okinawa the same way as it annexed Taiwan and Korea. If Taiwan and Korea could gain independence from Japan after ww2? Why couldn’t Okinawa?
Because Okinawa has been a part of the Japanese Empire/Nation since the 1600s when the Shimazu Clan invaded and deposed the king and installed a puppet regime. It was formally annexed in the 1800s after the Meiji Restoration and abolishment of the Japanese caste system.
Because Okinawa was occupied by the US until 1972. Being occupied by the US meant that Okinawa would increasingly become a military strategic point. So at this point, returning to Japan would be a better option. Although, the US occupation hasn’t completely ended since about 70% of US bases in Japan are still concentrated in Okinawa.
The Okinawa economy is too small to be an independent nation of 1.4M people. There’s virtually no industry in Okinawa and not much farmland. The biggest business is tourism, but that doesn’t generate enough revenue alone.
For the same reason Mississippi is never going to succeed from the union again.
Because Okinawans aren’t going to start a war with Japan to gain independence, which would destroy their economy even if it was successful.
The pro-independence folks argue that Okinawan should’ve received independence along with Manchuria, Formosa, and Korea because they argue that it was a ‘colony’. I think this was a valid point at the time and Okinawa was not returned to Japan, instead it was taken in as a US territory. By the 70s, the geopolitical interests of the US had changed, Japan was becoming an important ally to deal with China so the incentives completely changed.
Your question assumes the people of Okinawa wanted independence, which is by no means true. Even when it was first annexed, most commoners wanted to become a part of Japan so they could enjoy the full rights and privileges of Japanese citizenship rather than live under the feudal rule of their local Ryukuan lords. It was the lords who were fighting for Ryuku to remain an independent kingdom. People romanticize anti-colonialism and assume it’s always pro-commoner but history is actually more complex.
I want to preface this by saying I think the Okinawans *deserve* to be allowed to be independent. They have as much right to independence as anybody does. Assuming they voted for it, of course, and **the simple answer is that according to polling in 2011, 2015 and 2017, they want to stay with Japan** (http://www.okinawatimes.co.jp/articles/-/97097 )
However, independence would be a bad idea militarily and economically.
* First, militarily Okinawa’s position in between the pacific and the china sea is too valuable for other countries to be left alone. Iceland is the same, controlling northern sea access to europe, and it was invaded quickly by britain in ww2 for that reason(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Iceland ) Eventually the UK was replaced by the US and despite independence the US still has an airbase on iceland today, which has waxed and waned along with Russian aggression. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Air_Station_Keflavik). It’s unfortunate but I think it’s true: If Okinawa were a fully independent country with no allies, it would be invaded to control it’s location. China would invade by force, the US would use economics to guarantee a lease on a large base and influence in local politics, or Japan would pull some backroom trade deals to get a base. It’s valuable to all 3. If okinawa were not protected by a larger country like the US or Japan, I would expect China would invade in a matter of months. It would be an ideal test for their Taiwan invasion troops, an improvement in their national defense, and way to make the US and Japan look weak. It’s not an accident that Xi Xinping was recently discussing okinawa. That’s done on purpose. https://japan-forward.com/all-politics-is-global-why-is-china-suddenly-pursuing-okinawa/ .
* Second, economically okinawa would be even poorer alone than it is today. It has lots of costs, lots of things need to be imported, and the only thing it has to sell is tourism and a well educated workforce who mostly can’t speak english. The language barrier means that the workforce isn’t valuable outside of Japan. A lot of people might point to singapore as a model but what you need to know is that singapore is only independent specifically because their large neighbor Malasia *wants it that way* and they survive on trade with each other. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_in_Malaysia ) Bottom line the okinawan economy couldnt stand alone. Most pacific islands are much, much poorer than okinawa, and as an independent island it could expect to see living standards drop to match Fiji or the Solomon islands. A weak economy would also make okinawa more vulnerable to being influenced for the reasons in part 1. Politicians would be more vulnerable to good looking deals or outright bribes, and support could be bought in return for development. So the economic situation would make the military situation worse.
First of all, Taiwan, Korea and Okinawa are annexed by different ways. Taiwan joined Japan as result of the First Sino-Japanese War. Taiwanese liked Japan for the consistent rules than Sino established ones.
Meanwhile, Korean citizens groaned under a heavy tax of their own reign and asked Japan to get rid of.
While Okinawa has a unique history between Dutch, China, America and Japan. From 1600 to 1850, Okinawa served as a hidden trading port for Dutch, Chinese, and Japanese smugglers. This was because the Edo Tycoon had banned foreign trade. Okinawa / Ryukyu has been so important for the maritime oasis. But its economy depends on the traders or visitors because of the lack of mountains and materials to build an independent country out of it. The Ryukyu Kingdom functioned as a country, resembling a hub of pirates, a characteristic shared by many other islands in Japan.
tl;dr Okinawa doesn’t have natural resource to declare independence.
why hasn’t Hawaii become independent from USA? The reasons are pretty similar.
As I remember there was a referendum after US Army decided to reverse the islands control to civilians. Independence was one option but return to Japanese government won. The international expo 74 was a kind of commemorative event, my grandparents and many okinawan immigrants living in Brazil visited it at that time.
What country could survive on a minimum wage service industry economy?
Give it to them and they will be begging to be added back within a few years.
I think a lot of comments are forgetting Okinawa remained an independent kingdom for centuries despite Imperial China, colonial Japan, and basically every western power being in that region
Were they thriving or wealthy? No, but compared to the Philippines, South America, Africa, Hawaii, etc Okinawa has fared better. The US ended their occupation of Okinawa decades ago while they will never let Hawaii or Guam go as long as America exists
I haven’t looked into it yet. I don’t know what happened back then.
However, from the current point of view, I think Okinawa was lucky to be a Japanese territory.
I understand that if Okinawa had become independent, it would have been a disputed territory with China, and it could have gotten into much bigger trouble.
(Although there are a few Okinawans who want to belong to China.)
I mean let’s face it, Okinawa has no industrial industry nor do they have exports. If it wasn’t for Japan and the American military, where would Okinawa really be financially?
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Because Okinawa has been a part of the Japanese Empire/Nation since the 1600s when the Shimazu Clan invaded and deposed the king and installed a puppet regime. It was formally annexed in the 1800s after the Meiji Restoration and abolishment of the Japanese caste system.
Because Okinawa was occupied by the US until 1972. Being occupied by the US meant that Okinawa would increasingly become a military strategic point. So at this point, returning to Japan would be a better option. Although, the US occupation hasn’t completely ended since about 70% of US bases in Japan are still concentrated in Okinawa.
The Okinawa economy is too small to be an independent nation of 1.4M people. There’s virtually no industry in Okinawa and not much farmland. The biggest business is tourism, but that doesn’t generate enough revenue alone.
For the same reason Mississippi is never going to succeed from the union again.
Because Okinawans aren’t going to start a war with Japan to gain independence, which would destroy their economy even if it was successful.
The pro-independence folks argue that Okinawan should’ve received independence along with Manchuria, Formosa, and Korea because they argue that it was a ‘colony’. I think this was a valid point at the time and Okinawa was not returned to Japan, instead it was taken in as a US territory. By the 70s, the geopolitical interests of the US had changed, Japan was becoming an important ally to deal with China so the incentives completely changed.
Your question assumes the people of Okinawa wanted independence, which is by no means true. Even when it was first annexed, most commoners wanted to become a part of Japan so they could enjoy the full rights and privileges of Japanese citizenship rather than live under the feudal rule of their local Ryukuan lords. It was the lords who were fighting for Ryuku to remain an independent kingdom. People romanticize anti-colonialism and assume it’s always pro-commoner but history is actually more complex.
I want to preface this by saying I think the Okinawans *deserve* to be allowed to be independent. They have as much right to independence as anybody does. Assuming they voted for it, of course, and **the simple answer is that according to polling in 2011, 2015 and 2017, they want to stay with Japan** (http://www.okinawatimes.co.jp/articles/-/97097 )
However, independence would be a bad idea militarily and economically.
* First, militarily Okinawa’s position in between the pacific and the china sea is too valuable for other countries to be left alone. Iceland is the same, controlling northern sea access to europe, and it was invaded quickly by britain in ww2 for that reason(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invasion_of_Iceland ) Eventually the UK was replaced by the US and despite independence the US still has an airbase on iceland today, which has waxed and waned along with Russian aggression. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_Air_Station_Keflavik). It’s unfortunate but I think it’s true: If Okinawa were a fully independent country with no allies, it would be invaded to control it’s location. China would invade by force, the US would use economics to guarantee a lease on a large base and influence in local politics, or Japan would pull some backroom trade deals to get a base. It’s valuable to all 3. If okinawa were not protected by a larger country like the US or Japan, I would expect China would invade in a matter of months. It would be an ideal test for their Taiwan invasion troops, an improvement in their national defense, and way to make the US and Japan look weak. It’s not an accident that Xi Xinping was recently discussing okinawa. That’s done on purpose. https://japan-forward.com/all-politics-is-global-why-is-china-suddenly-pursuing-okinawa/ .
* Second, economically okinawa would be even poorer alone than it is today. It has lots of costs, lots of things need to be imported, and the only thing it has to sell is tourism and a well educated workforce who mostly can’t speak english. The language barrier means that the workforce isn’t valuable outside of Japan. A lot of people might point to singapore as a model but what you need to know is that singapore is only independent specifically because their large neighbor Malasia *wants it that way* and they survive on trade with each other. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_in_Malaysia ) Bottom line the okinawan economy couldnt stand alone. Most pacific islands are much, much poorer than okinawa, and as an independent island it could expect to see living standards drop to match Fiji or the Solomon islands. A weak economy would also make okinawa more vulnerable to being influenced for the reasons in part 1. Politicians would be more vulnerable to good looking deals or outright bribes, and support could be bought in return for development. So the economic situation would make the military situation worse.
First of all, Taiwan, Korea and Okinawa are annexed by different ways. Taiwan joined Japan as result of the First Sino-Japanese War. Taiwanese liked Japan for the consistent rules than Sino established ones.
Meanwhile, Korean citizens groaned under a heavy tax of their own reign and asked Japan to get rid of.
While Okinawa has a unique history between Dutch, China, America and Japan. From 1600 to 1850, Okinawa served as a hidden trading port for Dutch, Chinese, and Japanese smugglers. This was because the Edo Tycoon had banned foreign trade. Okinawa / Ryukyu has been so important for the maritime oasis. But its economy depends on the traders or visitors because of the lack of mountains and materials to build an independent country out of it. The Ryukyu Kingdom functioned as a country, resembling a hub of pirates, a characteristic shared by many other islands in Japan.
tl;dr Okinawa doesn’t have natural resource to declare independence.
why hasn’t Hawaii become independent from USA? The reasons are pretty similar.
As I remember there was a referendum after US Army decided to reverse the islands control to civilians. Independence was one option but return to Japanese government won. The international expo 74 was a kind of commemorative event, my grandparents and many okinawan immigrants living in Brazil visited it at that time.
What country could survive on a minimum wage service industry economy?
Give it to them and they will be begging to be added back within a few years.
I think a lot of comments are forgetting Okinawa remained an independent kingdom for centuries despite Imperial China, colonial Japan, and basically every western power being in that region
Were they thriving or wealthy? No, but compared to the Philippines, South America, Africa, Hawaii, etc Okinawa has fared better. The US ended their occupation of Okinawa decades ago while they will never let Hawaii or Guam go as long as America exists
I haven’t looked into it yet. I don’t know what happened back then.
However, from the current point of view, I think Okinawa was lucky to be a Japanese territory.
I understand that if Okinawa had become independent, it would have been a disputed territory with China, and it could have gotten into much bigger trouble.
(Although there are a few Okinawans who want to belong to China.)
I mean let’s face it, Okinawa has no industrial industry nor do they have exports. If it wasn’t for Japan and the American military, where would Okinawa really be financially?
Because people there don’t want to.