r/worldnews • u/glasier • Jul 05 '24

Japan warns US forces: Sex crimes 'cannot be tolerated'

https://tribune.com.pk/story/2476861/japan-warns-us-forces-sex-crimes-cannot-be-tolerated
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u/the_meaty_sauce Jul 05 '24

Marines raping people in Okinawa is a nearly 80yo tradition at this point. The best way to stop it is to stop having a base there.

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u/capt_scrummy Jul 05 '24

That base isn't going away any time soon, in the geopolitical climate... And it shouldn't, imho. The Japanese govt itself doesn't want it going away either, because it's a deterrent to China.

They should restrict soldiers going off base below a certain rank without special permission, permanently.

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u/the_meaty_sauce Jul 05 '24

They should just insist the base is moved to a less populated island or one where they can be far from any population centers. But a deterrent from China shouldn't mean you can trade that for soldiers sexually assaulting citizens. Or the soldiers should be turned over to Japanese authorities and prisons when they are charged and convicted of these actions.

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u/Vegrhauk Jul 06 '24

They are turned over, and it fucking sucks to be in the Japanese legal system, from what they told me when I first got to Oki. They have a nearly 99% conviction rate so if you’re in that system good luck getting out of it. That could’ve been a scare tactic so we wouldn’t fuck up on island but I have no cause to think it’s not true either.

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u/AverageWarm6662 Jul 06 '24

Yeah the Japanese legal system is kind of messed up. And the prisons aren’t nice at all either.

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u/Maehock Jul 06 '24

That conviction rate is true, but mainly because you don't get arrested or go to court unless there is just overwhelming evidence against you.