Okinawa Is Not a Disputed Territory, Ryukyu Royal Descendant Warns

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China has repeatedly promoted a false narrative that Okinawa's status within Japan remains unsettled, part of a broader "decolonization campaign" aimed at driving a wedge between the prefecture and the Japanese mainland.

Beijing has also continued what critics call interference at the United Nations, urging the body to recognize Okinawans as an Indigenous people.

"Okinawans are Japanese, and they are certainly not an Indigenous people," says Mamoru Sho, a descendant of the Ryukyu royal family and the 23rd head of the Second Sho Dynasty. He is among those voicing concern over Beijing's influence operations.

In a message sent to a ceremony held in Naha on May 23 to mark the 54th anniversary of Okinawa's reversion to Japan, Sho stressed that the status of Okinawa has already been settled, both under international law and historically.

He cautioned that narratives casting doubt on the legitimacy of Japanese sovereignty "risk destabilizing Okinawa and drawing its people into a tragedy again."

Some activists argue that Okinawans should be recognized as an Indigenous people because of their distinct culture, language and the history of the former Ryukyu Kingdom.

Critics of the designation dispute the label for several reasons, including that many Okinawans identify primarily as Japanese. While recognition as Indigenous does not automatically mean a territory is not part of a country or should become independent, opponents argue the label is being used politically—including by Beijing—to question Okinawa's place within Japan.

The UN Trap

Since 2008, UN bodies, including the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, have issued six recommendations calling for Okinawans to be recognized as Indigenous, drawing in part on claims made by advocates of Ryukyu independence.

China, for its part, has been promoting the political narrative that the island's sovereignty remains unsettled.

Okinawa-born journalist Satoru Nakamura says that the UN Special Committee on Decolonization could eventually define Okinawa as "the land of an Indigenous people."

Such a move, he warned, could give third countries a legal pretext under international law to intervene in matters concerning the island while disregarding Japan's sovereignty.

Meanwhile, Sho says the concrete problems facing Okinawa, including crimes linked to the presence of military bases, should be addressed as domestic human rights issues through equality under the law and democratic processes within Japan's legal framework.

"I firmly reject any attempt to recast these pressing issues as evidence of colonial rule, or to exploit Okinawa for geopolitical ambitions or specific political purposes," he said.

A Platform for False Narratives

Rei Hashiguchi, an attorney with the Osaka Bar Association who represents Sho, also spoke at the ceremony. "I feel a deep sense of crisis over terms such as Indigenous people now being discussed at the United Nations," Hashiguchi said.

"This is detached from public opinion," he added, citing opinion polls that seem to show a fraction of Okinawans support independence.

"Claims that run contrary to the facts could provide a pretext for unjust territorial claims or attempts to alter the status quo."

At the UN Human Rights Council in 2015, the late former Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga opposed the planned relocation of US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan to Henoko, claiming that "the people of Okinawa are being denied their right to self-determination and human rights."

The incumbent governor, Denny Tamaki, also spoke at the UN in 2023 using a speaking slot provided by an NGO that characterized Okinawans as Indigenous people. In his remarks, he said US military bases are concentrated in Okinawa and that peace is under threat.