Fantastic Okinawa

Henoko landfill dispute

Art Aquarium exhibition in Ryubo shows plenty of “Wa”Afantasy aquarium art exhibition is cur-

rently being held on the 6th floor ofPalette Kumoji Ryubo departmentstore in Naha. The exhibition is sched-

uled to run through Nov. 15th.The next question coming to mind is what

is the Art Aquarium? Yes, there are manyaquariums at the venue, and each of them con-tains goldfish of every size, from small to huge.Some of them are very rare kind, and valued upto a million dollars.

The producer of the Art Aquarium exhibi-tion Hidetomo Kmura explains his project onhis official website http://h-i-d.co.jp/art/exhibi-tion/#history.

“Since putting myself in the world ofaquariums, I have met many fish in many coun-tries. Since starting my job by collecting fishfrom seas worldwide, I was attracted to the col-orful beautiful fish, which are a natural grace ofthe sea.

“Of course I still have this feeling but sinceI started my activity as Art Aquarium artist, Ihave become especially deeply attracted to themysterious beauty and natural simplicity ofkingyo (goldfish).

“When I create an artwork, which is com-pleted by putting fish inside, I inevitably tend tochoose kingyo. The reason is probably becausekingyo itself is a work of art, created by ahuman hand. As a person creating art, I believeI am attracted to art.

“ When I hold an exhibition as ArtAquarium artist, I always make Japonism areaand express Japan with my artwork usingkingyo.

“This is my attempt as a Japanese, and tosend new art from Japan to the world.Thankfully, this Japonism artwork and spacealways get positive reviews. I am so delightedto be able to hold exhibitions in various placeswith these artworks. Through my Japanese likeartwork, I am able to show Japanese culture tomany people.

“I am producing the exhibition, alwayshoping that people will experience theAquarium sublimely as art and feel the message

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As expected Governor TakeshiOnaga revoked the approval ofthe landfill permit for HenokoTuesday that his predecessor had

approved in December 2013. The move

was expected as inevitable, since the one-month-long pause in the construction sitesurvey off Henko and concurrent negotia-tions with central government ended with-out progress as both sides refused to budgefrom their positions.

The result is most likely to be that thedispute ends in the courts, while the centralgovernment regards Onaga’s revoke of thepermit as invalid and intends to continuethe work on the relocation site.

“ A committee that inspected theapproval process recognized that therewere defects. So, we decided that revokingit is reasonable,” Onaga said at a news con-ference at the Okinawa PrefecturalGovernment office building in Nahaannouncing his decision.

The central government in Tokyo isalso sure to seek to invalidate Onaga’sdecision in the courts. Defense MinisterGen Nakatani said in a news conference in

Tokyo that the government will take “aprompt action” to suspend Onaga’s deci-sion. Nakatani said the preliminary work inthe Henoko area will be halted for the timebeing, but argued that the cancellation ofthe landfill permit is illegal.

The central government is planning tobegin the construction work on the reloca-tion facility this fall. According to pressreports from Tokyo, the Defense Ministrywas set to file the complaint with land min-ister Keiichi Ishida as early as Wednesday.In addition, the Okinawa Defense Bureauwill submit the land minister a demand tosuspend the cancellation.

The land minister is expected to acceptthe Defense Ministry's request for suspen-sion of Onaga’s revocation of the landfillpermit, and the national government plansto restart the relocation-related work fol-lowing the decision.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide

Suga said at a press conference that thecentral government has found “no legalflaws” in the approval for landfill work.“Revoking the approval is extremelyregrettable as it ignores the efforts made sofar by officials in Okinawa and the centralgovernment to eliminate the risks posed bythe MCAS Futenma,” Suga said, addingthat construction work will continue asplanned while taking “utmost care of theenvironment.”

Governor officially revokes Henoko landfill permit

Okinawa Governor Takeshi Onaga

Art Aquaruim exhibition centers on goldfish and various shape aquariums to create a very Japanese harmonius atmosphere.

Oct. 15, 2015 - Oct. 21, 2015

¥150 Fantastic OkinawaLocal News

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2Japan Update Classifieds Oct. 15, 2015 - Oct. 21, 2015

Kinser Fest is back, and the much-anticipated fall festival takesplace Saturday, Oct. 24 andSunday, Oct. 25 from 2 to 10

p.m. on both days.This year’s Kinser Fest will have no

shortage of food, game booths, prize give-aways and amusement rides but the mainattraction is the free live entertainment.The highlight of the entertainment is thelive performance of the platinum-sellingand Grammy nominated singer-songwriter,Vanessa Carlton.

In addition to Carlton, the KinserFestival’s entertainment lineup features jazzband Subfive and variety group Zyncxationon both days. On Saturday, see street per-former Tamanchu and Eisa group Ninu-faDaiko and Ti-da Daiko. R & B group NewSolution and dance troupe T-DA is slatedfor the stage on Sunday, alongside Eisagroup Chinjinsyu Waka-Tida.

Headliner Vanessa Carlton will take to

the stage at 8 p.m. on Saturday. Carlton isknown best for writing “A ThousandMiles,” one of the defining pop songs ofthe 2000s, which earned her a platinumcertification and a Grammy nod.

Kinser Fest is open to all DoD ID cardholders and Japanese locals. Please leaveyour pets at home. Do not bring any out-side alcohol, bottles or coolers. If youchoose to drink, do so responsibly. Therewill be daiko and taxi services available.

For more information, call MCCSSpecial Events at 645-5828 or visit mcc-sokinawa.com.Entertainment ScheduleOctober 24, 14:00–22:00• 15:00 Clown Kotora (balloon performer)クラウンコトラ (風船パフォーマー)• 15:30 Chanpuru Entertainer Tamanchu(Street Performance) チャンプルーエンターテイナー珠人 (大道芸)• 16:00 Ninu-fa Daiko and Ti-da Daiko(Cultural Performance) ニヌファ太鼓ティーダ太鼓 (太鼓パフォーマンス)* 17:00 Subfive (Jazz Music) サブファイブ (ジャスバンド)• 18:00 Zyncxation (Variety Music) ジンクゼイション (バラエティーバンド)• 20:00 Vanessa Carlton (Pop Music) バネッサカールトン (ポップコンサート)October 25, 14:00–22:00• 15:00 Clown Kotora (Balloon performer)クラウンコトラ (風船パフォーマー)• 15:30 Chijinsyu Waka-Tida (CulturalPerformance) 鼓衆若太陽 (エイサー太鼓パフォーマンス)• 16:45 Subfive (Jazz Music) サブファイブ (ジャスバンド)• 18:00 New Soulution (R&B Music) ニューソウルーション (R&B バンド)• 19:00 T-DA (Hip Hop DancePerformance) ティーダ (ヒップホップダンス)• 20:00 Zyncxation (Variety Music) ジンクゼイション (バラエティーバンド)

For more information on upcomingevents visit http://www.mccsokinawa.

com/festivals/ or facebook.com/mccsoki-nawa.entertainment.

Vanessa Carlton to headline Kinser Festival Saturday

Kinser Fest is known for its abundance of food and game booths. (MCCS photo)

Platinum-selling Vanessa Carlton takesthe stage on Saturday at 20:00.

Clown Kotora entertains tbe youngest fes-tival visitors. (MCCS photo)

Variety music playing band Zyncxation ison stage Sunday evening.