Tamaki Must Abandon Okinawa's Illegal Washington Office Idea Permanently

Recently, an Okinawa prefectural assembly special investigative committee questioned Governor Denny Tamaki. He was called as a witness regarding the defunct office that the Okinawa prefectural government established in Washington DC. The committee was established under Article 100 of the Local Autonomy Act.

The Washington, DC office in question was closed in June 2025 after discovering that it had been conducting illegal activities.

Governor Tamaki acknowledged his responsibility for the trouble and apologized. Nevertheless, he stated that the prefectural executive would "consider how to continue operations with transparency." The governor thereby indicated his desire to reopen the office.

Such a course of action is unacceptable. Tamaki apparently still does not comprehend the gravity of the issue. Reopening an office that had been operating illegally for many years is out of the question. What Tamaki should do instead is cooperate with the special committee to thoroughly investigate the allegations. Furthermore, he should refrain from again engaging in any activities that could be considered "dual diplomacy."

*Okinawa Governor Denny Tamaki spoke about his position on Okinawa issues at a symposium held by the Hudson Institute in Washington on September 9, 2024. (©Kyodo)*

Okinawa's Illegal Washington Office

The prefecture's Washington DC office was established in 2015 at the initiative of then-Governor Takeshi Onaga.

Onaga used the office to try to influence the United States' decisions on various Okinawa-related issues. Specifically, he wanted to directly appeal to the US to scrap the planned relocation of US Marine Corps Futenma Air Station in Ginowan City to Henoko in Nago City.

At first, prefectural authorities attempted to register the office in the United States as a non-profit organization. However, the US State Department deemed the entity "political" in nature. Consequently, on the advice of local lawyers, it was established as the office of a wholly owned subsidiary of the prefecture.

But prefectural officials failed to disclose these facts. Furthermore, they did not register the shares acquired through the establishment of the subsidiary as public property of the prefecture.

Moreover, in applying for visas for its office staff, the "subsidiary" allegedly falsely represented one staff member as "president" even though that individual was a prefectural employee. It also submitted deceptive documents to the US Immigration Service. In those, it stated that these staff members would "not be directly employed by the prefecture."

Anyway, the prefecture ended up outsourcing the majority of its office operations to a local consulting firm. What's more, the DC office failed to report its actual operations or financial situation to the prefectural assembly. That report was required by Japan's Local Autonomy Act.

No Double Diplomacy

While being questioned as a witness at the prefectural assembly special committee hearing on March 13, Tamaki stated that he "regrets" his actions regarding the matter. He noted that he himself had proposed an ordinance to the prefectural assembly that would reduce his salary.

*The Henoko coastal area, Nago City, where construction work is underway to relocate the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma (©Sankei by Naoki Otake)*

However, the issue has still not been conclusively resolved. The DC office had served as the headquarters for the prefectural government's anti-base activities in the United States. Governor Tamaki was wrong to declare that it "was undoubtedly necessary and important."

Handling diplomacy and national security is solely the prerogative of the national government.

The Henoko relocation plan is based on a bilateral agreement between the governments of Japan and the United States. And, Okinawa Prefecture's "dual diplomacy" in attempting to abort it severely harms the national interest.

In fact, new questions have surfaced. There are discrepancies between the US lawyers' testimony and the prefecture's explanation regarding the establishment of the DC office.

Governor Tamaki should fully cooperate in answering all allegations and abandon any notion of reopening the DC office.