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The Ryukyuaniist A Newsletteron f,y.rtyuuVOkjnawanStudies No.55 Spring2002 In this issue: ProfessorDr. JosefKreiner of the Universityof Bonmreports on the progrilm,proceedings, andachievements of'the FourthInt,ernational ')6-27,2002 Cbnferenceon Okina** St ii.r heid in Borri,' Germanyon March (p.3) Democracyis apparentlya perennialmyth in Okinawa:two views.Professor Steve Rabson 9n the Nago mayoralelection (p,4), andProfessor Kensei Yoshida on the U.S. administrationof Okinawaunder High CommissionerPaul Caraway (pp. 5-6). Amami Oshimasteps into the lime light again-Pioferssor Larura Miller narratesher fond memoriesof a uniquremini-odysse'y among islands in thLeseas r;outh of Satsuma(pp. 7-8). ProfessorSusan Siered responds to_critics' Declaration of concern(pp.9-10). Publications(XLXpp. patrictMeiji Ji4an forcibly annexed.Natlrally the Ryulgruans,newly enrolledin the Japanesestate, were placed at the b,ottomof Japan,ssocio-cultural hierarchy.Japan's imperialist experience in Ryrulqnryielded a modelfbr latercon estand control of otherareas: Taiwan, Kore4 Micronesia,and lv{anchuria. By tlhebeginning of the SecondWorld War,a multi-national/ethnic/culhral empfreo:f Japan had beena fact of life for sometime, organizedby the hierarchicalprinciples of a verticalsociety with the imperiatclan at the apexfrom whJre,it wasthought, heavenlyglory radiatedto the four comersof tlheworld. The emperor'sloyal Japanesesubjects assumed the I'burdenof the yellow man,"as advocated by TokutomiSoh6 who importxubstitutedKipling, for civilizing inferior peoplesof conquereclareas. l3ut the atavisticcelesti;al anpire of Japancotiapsed spectacularlyin a few yearsafter goinglto wa|with Americaamd BritaLin. \..I .^ "F,mbracingdefeat," Japan has sinc,e learned a few lessonsin the theoryand practice of social organizationbased on equality,The nerwConstitution declares that people sha[ 6e respectedas individrllls with the riglhtto life, liberty andpursuit of happinessand ttrat they are equal under the law and shallsuffer no discriminationin political,economic or socialrelations on accountof racc,creecl, sex, socialstatus or family origin,,Institutiornslike poeragethat prop up socialhierarchy arc abolished. vanhge point of fifty yearsafter tlhe new Constitutionwernt into effeit, oneblind -From.the_ 'Ihe spot endemicin the emphasison tlte individualhas become rather glaring. Constitutionis consti'tutionally tncapableof dealingwilh certainkinds of "collective,"as comparedwith "individual,"rights. As the law stands,a collectivityor groupingof two or moreindividuals d,erives its legitimacyfrom dte ',freedomof assemblyand association"of individuals,which is guaranteedby the Conititution.Two kinds of groups, however,claim their legitimacyfrom their own collectivepolitical will supposedly-Cbnstitutionself-justified for historicaland cultural reasons and therefore autonomous of tlte state.llhe doesnot provide for this type of autonomLy.These autonomy-seeking groups aro the regionsimbued with regionafismthat valuesthe regional interesthigher than the national interestand the etftmicgroups with an iientity commandingindividuals'allegiance anrl loyalty distinctfrom, or in co:nfliciwittr ttredemands of the nationalidentity. Suchregions and etlrric goups openlyor silentlyaspire to "theright of self-determination"that is by definitionarathema to any stateand therrefore rarely mentionerd, let aloneguaranteed, by its constitution. What "theright of self-dletermination"implies is statedin the lnternatircnalCovenant on Civil and PoliticalRights. "A1[peoples have the right of self-determrnation.By virtue of that right theyfreely determinetheir political statusand freely puLrsuetheir econLomic,social and cultural divelopment (Article 1-l)." Understandably,a duly constitutedsovereign state abhors tle possibilitythat the 'beoplesu artille may encouragesome of the underits jlirisdiction to chooseindependent statehood as theirfrlely self-determinedpolitical stah-rs.In fac! conr;ertedefforts of goverrrmentslave considerablyweakened the meaningof this articleby self-servinginterpretations of "all peoples"that this articledesignates as owners of "tie right of seH

On March 26-27,2002the 4thInternational engagedin thefield. Oneof its objectivesis to Conferenceon OkinawanStudies was held at pro.ridefonrms for internationaland the University of Bonn, Germany.Previous interdisciplinaryexchanges of views. The meetingshad convenedlunder the desigrntion of Depafimentof JapaneseStudies, the Universiry InternationalSymposicr in OdnawanSitudies of llonn, hasestablished a website 1982(Naha and Tokyo), 1992(Naha and ,which startedfunctioning on Tokyo), 1997(Naha anrd Sydney), and had been June1, 200.2.We urvitecolleagues to inauguratedand organisedby Prof. emeritus parlicipatein the operationof the websiteby HokamaShuzen of HoseiUniversity, Tokyo, am reporting on researchin progressand new internationallyacknowledged authoriry in publicationri.Links to other organisations, Ryfikytan languagesturdies and the classical institutesanLd museums are envisaged. literature of Okinawa. ,A.fust venueof the The resultsof the Bonn venuewill be fourth meetingof this serieshad alread$opened publishedin Japaneseby HaterumaEikichi of at Nago,Okinawa in September2001, but the OkinawaPrefectural Universitv of Arts Europeanvenue had to be postponedbecause of . An Englishlanguage the accidentsof September1lth lastyear. volumewilh the proposedtitle "Japaneseness Despitethis handicap,tmore than 100scholars versusRy0lqftanisni - Aspectsof bkinawan from elevencountries ail overthe word aftended idq$ity and emigration" editedby the reporter the conference.A total ofover 50 paperswere will be consideredby CurzonPress, U.K-. readin 9 sections. The next meetinghas not yet beenfinally r For the fust time a specialsection dealt with deciided,burt Mrs. Caroliftom Veniceis problemsof Okinawan emigrationand consideringan invitation to the Serenissimaiin emigrantsand their culfire (organisedby Hansi due time. Dieter Olschlegerof Borur).Another remarkable .FromMarch 8th to April 7th,2002fofi- focal point wasthe questionof Okinawan sevenexcel.lentlnr6 of theRyulyfrs (small identity,which wastou.ched by a numberof lacclueredmedicine containers that were papersin different sectrionslike linguistics, importantpersonal accessories of Japanesemen literature,social sciences and history. Iispecially of wealthduring the Edo-Period)were exhibited noteworthyin this connectionwere the three atthe Kunsl. undAusstellungshalle der concludingpapers read before the plenumby BundesrepublikDeutschland on the occasionof HokamaShuzen of Tolryo("The Emergbnceoll the conference.The objectshave all originated the Kingdom of Ry0kyt and the Conceptof in R.yfilc5dramd belongio Ms. ElseKresi and Early Kingship"),Alfred Majewiczof Posnan, Mr. Heinztrftess, well-known collectors of inr6 Poland("Is OkinawanJBndangered?") and Rosa. and highly reputablescholars in this field. Caroli of Venice("Re-inventing Okinawa: from Among many remarkabletaditions of art Ryfilqlttnessto Japanes'eness").The kevnote and craft of the small independentKingdom of speech"Some Thoughts on Ryfilry0anHistory RylLlc5rfi,its lacquerware is one of the most andHistoriography" by the reporteralsci outsitandingcontributions to East Asian and refenedto the very samequestion. world art. Ryokyo, with its widespreadtrade The conferencedemonstrated impressively networkin lhe l5th and l6th centuries.not onlv that Okinawan(or RyffJlqr0an,for that) studies adoptedmany of the culhral and artistic have indeedreached rnaturity. The guidanceand influencesfrom SoutheastAsia China.Korea teachingflrat Japanesescholars, and above all, andJapan, but wasalso higtrly productivein scholarsfrom Okinawa had for a long time inventing new traditions and transmittingthem extendedto foreign stu'dentsin thefield have to other countries.The best examplethat resultedin the generationof a $eat nuniter of illustratestlLis hitherto neglectedrole of specialistsin everyasp(oct of Okinawanstudies Okinawais without questionits art of lacquer world wide.It is now uDto us to ask.what we in ware.Althoughlnri of theRyhlryfis were made the West(not only in tlie U.S.A. andtheAsian exclusivelyfor the Japanesemarkeg those of the PacificRim, but alsoin manyEuropean 17thand early 18thcenturies demonstrate a countries)can do for firLrtheringOkinarvan strongChinese influence in their decorative studies,which are so fumdamentallyimportant elements,style and technique (i.e. scenesof for gaininga betterbalanced picture (or Chinesehistory or legends).Later, in the 18th knowledge)of Japanesrahistory, culture and and l9th centuries,the Ryfflry0-stylebecomes societyas a whole. At lhe sametime, rnany moreJapanr:se (i,e. emptyspaces and diagonal aspectsmight becomedearer when examined lines). 'The from a different,foreign point of view. exhibitioncatalogue in Englishby Else In view of that it was decidedat the final andHeinz Fhess is availablefor EUR 15.-at the meetingto establishan International Insdnrtefor JapareseStudies in Bonn Associationof Ryfflryfiranand Okinawan Studies (JapanologirschesSeminar, Regina-Pacis -W eg 7, (IAROS)that for the time beingshoukl be 53113Bonn / Germany.E-IMail: looselystructured and opento everybody [email protected]). JosefKreiner, Bonn ANOTHER I]NDEMOC]RATIC dlilemma,touting his "pipeline"to the national ELECTIOII{ IN OKINI\WA €ioverrunent,and predicting dire consequencesif Japanesegovemment threatenrs voters in tlheyfaikd to re-electhim. Nagowith er;onomicretaliation "If I losethis election,"he sai4 "it will be the endof all Ste'yeRabson €iovernment-plarnedeconomic development. A Resultsof the mostrecent mayoral election in xnayorwho opposesthe governmentcal't Nago againraise serious questions aLs to whether prossiblyget this money.l' Forcedon the local electionsin Okinawaare truly democnatic d,efensive,Miyagi respondedthat, "if I win, the when the locationof U.S. military biasesis an governmentwouldn't sirnply cancel its issue.Borrowing a "carrotand stick" sfategy d.evelopmentplans." (Asahi,p. 2) frorn the U.S.military occupationoJ: Okinalva Apparentlynot re-assuredhowever, the (1945-19'72),the Japanesegovernment has votersre-elected Kishimoto by a marginof repeatedlythreatened Okinawan voters with 20,356to 11,148.Interviewed on whv thev had economicretaliation if they electca:ndidates votedfor hirq two residentsexplained" "I hate opposedto the locationof U.S. basesin the the base,but we needeconomic development" prefecture.Such pre,ssures were applied dur.ing and "thercwas no alternativebecause we have the mostrecent gubernatorial election in 1998, to make:l living." (Asahi,p. 23) Commentingto when the governmenltheld up essentialbudplet his supportersafter the election,Miyagi allocationsfor Okinzrwa,Japan's poorest acknowledgedthat Kishimoto had been prefecture,until afterrthe election;and, during s,uccessftLlin exploiting people's fears of the pasttwo mayoral.elections in Nergo,whern governrnentretaliatron. the governmentdela'yed approval of local Four w,eekslater, during a brief questionald developmentprojects for this particularly answerp,eriod after he hadgiven a lech'e, I impoverishedarea oll northernOkinlwa. askedan official in the JapaneseForeign In the February3rd mayoralelection, Ministry aboutU.S. military basesin Okinawa. incumbentKishimoto Tateo, who supports I pointedout tlratthe Pentagonhas stated relocationof the U.S. Marine heliportat rr:peatedlythat the locationof Americanbases Futenmain centralCtkinawa to a proposedn.ew in Japaniis determined by the Japanese facility offNago's easternshore, defbated governrnent.Bu! despitesome token transfers former City CouncihnanMiyagi Yasuhiro,aL of artillerydrills andrefueling aircraft to bases leaderin the movementopposing thr: base. on the nurinland,this small island prefecture Miyagi hadpreviousty led a successful still bearr;theoverwhelming burden-75Yo of the carnpaignn 199'7when votersur a rvidely U.S. military presencein Japanon 0.6%of the reported,but non-bfuLding,local referendum nation'sliand area. Citing the continuingfiror rejectedbuilding of the new heliport.in their overthe constructionand plaruredexpansion of cify. Sincethen, acc,ording to the Asahi Nlaritaafuport, he replied tlrat "under Japan's Slrimbunnewspaper ffebruary 4,2002, p.2'.1), democraticsystem" it would be difficult to "tle nationalgoverrunent has firmly linked moveU.[i. basesto the mainland "withoutthe developmentplans for Nagoto acceptanceof consentof local communities." I tried to follow the base." The Asahidescribed the latest up andask whether this "democraticsystem" mayoralelection as "a bitter choicelbr the a.tsoappljied in Okirnwa, but he hadalready peopleof Nago,suffering especially from movedon to the next question. prolongedeconornic doldrums, of whetherto acceptthe basein returnfor economic T'heauth.or: 'cafiot."' developmentor to reiectit andlose lhis ProfessorSteve Rabson teaches Japanese (Asahi,p. 2) Two daysbefore the official lzmguageand literature at Brown University, openingof the camp:rign,the government a:ndlus just completeda two-yearstudy of announcedtle detailsof its latestplzn which Ctkinawansand their descendantsliving in would designatethe northernregion of Okinawa greaterOsaka. He is co-editorwith Michael for capitalinvestment as a "specialfinancial" Molaskyof theanthology Southern Exposure: and "specialinformation" zone. Modern,JapaneseLiternture from Okinawa During the ensuingcampaigq Mayor (Jniversity of Hawaii Press,2000). Kishimotomade the rnostof the voters'painfril Was Caraway Good for Okirnawa? 5, L963,Caraway called the Okinawandemand KenseiLYoshida for "autono:my""a rabble-rousing,excusing, "We hold with AbrahalnLincoln, that'no man alibi for failLures"and statedthat "ttre cry for is good govern 'autonomy,"for enoughto anotherman withoul: completefreedom from all that other'sconsent. Whenthe white man restraints,fbr power to nrle without governshimself, that is self-government,but responsibitityor demonstratedcompetence is a when he governshimself and also governs 'aspimtion false of the people'," anothermarL that is more than self-governmenit Caraway - tlnt is despotism'." denouncedthe threebranches of the Governmentof The abovequotation comes from the "Platform the Ryukyu Islands, including the chief executive of the AmericanAnti-Imperialist League" appointedby the high conrmissiomer declaredin 1899by a gpoupthat included himself, for their failures to live up to their claim to "autonomy." peoplelike Andrew Carnegie,Mark Tr,vain,and Under the circumstances, SamuelGompers. The groupcampaigred he saidin his famousspeech, autonomyflrr againstthe U. S. annexationof the Philippines. the Okinawanpeople was impossible;it wasa "myth." Accordingto the plaform, "imperialism,"or flle The high commissiorrerpersonally controlof a peopleby a foreignpower,, "is undertookmeasures to mend hostileto libefty and tendstoward militarism" the failures. Did justify and "the subjugationof any peopleis 'criminalt the end the means,particularly considering aggression'and opendisloyalty to the the overwhelmingtegal and exftalegalpowers that distinctiveprinciples oll our government''which the United Statesand the high commissionermaintained guaranteetlnt "all men, of whateverrace or overthe people? llis speech, color, areentitled to li{i:, libe(y andthe pursuit which reflectedhis condescendins of happiness." attitudestor;vards the Okinawanpeople, so infuriatedAdlai E. The plaform's condernnationof "imperialism" Stevensontlrat the thenU.S. Ambassadorr would easilyapply to the U.S. military to the United Nationscailed it "palronizing occupationof Okinawa,especially the andeven dictatorial." In facL Carawayhad inherited administrationof High Commissioner,PaulW. a long tradition of pate,rnalismfrom Caraway.To say,as solmedo, thatthe l[our-star. his military predecessors. CommodoreMatthew Perry generalwas, for all intentsand purposers, a thought that he was justrifiedin placing benevolentadministrator motivated by a sense the Okirnwan peopleunder U.S, occupation "the ofjustice and dedicated;to bringingdernocrary by strictestrules of moral law" becausethey were to Okinawa,is to acceptan Orwellianworld of being oppressedby the Satsumaclan in "doublethink"and "dourblespeak"where the mainlandJapan. General NelsonMilers told people Ministry of Love maintainslaw andorrler and the in PuertoRico in where"war" is "peace." 1899that the U.S.forces came "to bring you protectioq Fi-rstof all, miiitary ocrcupationfor military rrotonly to yourselvesbut to your property,to promoteyour prosperity, pffposes,by natureand: necessity, is unjustand andto bestow you anti-democratic.The UrnitedStates occrupied upon the immunitiesand blessings of the liberalinstitutions Okinawaand conffolleclits people for nothing of our government." General but military reasons.ThLe high comrnissioner SmedleyButler, who in 1915helped establish puppetgovernment wasthe military agentof the U.S. government a in Haiti with a U.S.-madec,onstitution, commissionedto admf isterOkinawa emd latertold a special Senatecomrnittee: Okinawansso that the lJnited Statescould make "We were all embued[sic] with a maximumuse of the islandfor strategic the facl.that we were the trusteesof a huge estatethat purposes.People's welfare was secondrrry at belongedto rninors. That was the viewpoint personally bestand their democraiicrights were olften I took, that the Haitians were our wards considereda threatto threU.S. policy o1f and that we were endeavoringto makefor therm rich "remain[ing] in the Rlulc]us as long as tlreats a ald productiveproperty, to be turned over andtension exist in the FarEast." As ilrrGeorge: to them at sucha time as our government (Incidentally, Orwell's 1949novel, ltr84,"democracy was sawfit." one of the U.S. Marine Corps impossibleand ... the Partywas the guardianof campsin Okinawais named afterBufler.) democracy.""Big Brother"was watching you. CaptainHarry Pence,officer-in- chargeof In his remarksat a dinner meetingof the the Nar.y'sOffice for OccupiedAreas, saidin 1943 Golden GateClub in Nzrln. Okinawaon March tlnt sincethe Micronesians possessedsuch a "very primitive" social population so that they would not interfere with organizationand political tradition that it would tJheprinury mission of the miliUry. Paternalistic be necessaryto establish"a strongtrut b,enevolencehad anotherface. benevolentgoverffnent - a government High CommissionerCaraway may havebeen paternalisticin chanrcter." a sincereman in his own right with a strong Onecommon aspect among these attitudesr was senseof mission.It is true that some the Amencansense'of superiority to non- Okinawans,including those who hadbeen Westernpeoples. In Caraway'scaser, he hadl educatedin the United Statesunder the totally ignored the fact that Okinawa,once an GARIOA oTArmy scholarships,respected him autonomouskingdom and subsequentlyone of for usinghis discretionarypowers to right some the 47 prefecturesof Japarqhad had a long vyrongs.,And arguably, he may bave historyof runningitr; own affairs.kr addition, uLnintentionallyforced Tokyo and Washington his World War II mentalityhad also clouderl his trorevieu,the local situationclosely and helped view of the situation.Japan should r;top maldng quickenlJre island's reversion to Japanby inquiriesof the U.S. aboutthe fuhue of angeringmany people and their leadersin both Okinawa,he statedlive years after he left Okinawa and mainlandJapan with his words Okinawa,for it had invitedU.S. forr;esto and deeds.But the truth remainsthat Caraway, Okinawa by its attack on Pearl Harbor. The rnoretlran the U.S. Administrationunder United Statesshouldlhold on to the islandthat I'residentJohn F. Kennedy,pursued anti- hadbeen so dearlypaid for in the war. And Japaneseand "imperialistic" military priorities Okinawans,he said,were "free to leave[thetir tlhatsquarely contradicted the priorities of the islandlat any time they desire[dl" and"go back Okinawanpeople, in betrayalof the American to their homeislands; [i.e., mainlandJapan],'" political principles. insteadof making"cromplaints and r;ries of Patem,alisrqPeter Suber of EarlhamCollege, spuriousdistress" (italics aremine). The onJly writes,"is to actfor the goodofanother person conclusionthat the preopleof the UnLitedStates without that person'sconsent, as parents do for coulddraw, he continued,was eitherthat "Japan children....[I]ts endis benevolent,and its is seekingto gratuitously embarrassthe United meanscc,ercive. Paternalists advance people's States"or that Japan'sruling Liberal interests(such as ltfe, health,or safety)at the DemocraticParty wes trying to divertthe expenseoftheir liberty.In this, paternalists attentionof the Japanesepeople away from its supposellnt they canmake wiser decisions than failure to solvedomestic problems." the peoplefor whom theyact." Did Okinawans Carawayis known to haverepeatedly pressed needa father like Paul W. Carawav? Congressfor increasedeconomic assistance to Okinawa.Was he sincerelytrying to improve The autLror: the welfareof the Okinawanpeople as a KenseiYOSHIDA is professorof intemational benevolentadminisfator? Perhaps yes. But, politics,intemational relations, and Okinawan again,his primary concernas a rnilitlary studiesal. Obirin University,Tolcyo. He is the commanderdictated that the United Stateshave authorof DemocracyBetrayed: Okinawa "completeadministnltive control [over Under U.S. Occupation@ellingha4 WA: Okinawa]"and "freedomof action"for the lU.S. Centerfor EastAsian Studies, Western forceson the island.Military prioritiesplaced WashingtonUniversity, 2001). After B.A. and restrictionson the perople'sfreedom to travelto M.A. degpeesin joumalismatthe Universityof mainlandJapan and icondonedsome "excesses" Missouri.,he held variouspositions at the on the part of U.S. troops.Likewise, the Morning Star, OkinawaTimes, Newsweek,and economicaid rvasa lool to paci$'the local othersbe:fore settling down at Obirin. Amami Blitz: A short visit trothe NorthernmorstRyurryus in 19g0 L,auraMiller

My cursory recollectionsof Amami Oshirna overduebatlh at a sent6.Despite the ingressof pink visited more than twenty years ago,are filtered Lady, SpacerInvader coffee shopsand the Wallunaa tirough the eyesof a thenforreign resident of Osaka. Yakushimawas remarkedlyunique. The local This was during the daysI was a naive corporate langrrage,blend of regional cultures,and natural employee,prior to my currenttidentity as an beaufywas tflardifferent from Osaka'sethos of anthropologistwho often doelsresearch in/on Japan. hardlcorebursiness. In Kansai I had becomehabituated Although I now focus on ma:inlandJapan, this chance to being pointed out as an oddity, so was surprisedto visit to the northernmostRyuklus plantedthe seeds seemy Osalianmates being treatedthe sameway. of interestin Japanesediversity. Wealthy Namiwa They too were markedby their attire, language,and friends had invited me along on a two-weektrip confident swaggersas outsiders.At Yakushimawe aboardtheir yacht. Twelve otfus, alternatingih the found a small shrinein a seeminglyinaccessible rolesof crew and passenger,snilsd from Kag,qshima place,set in a cliffs cavefacing the sea.We reached to Amami Oshim4 stoppingatmany of the smaller it by swimmLingand climbing ald discoveredfresh islandson the way. flowers,ciguettes, and sake offerings inside. Two things in particular rnadea great impressionL From Yrrkushimawe sailed at night until we on me. The incredible physical beautyof the reachedNal:anoshima- On one side of the island wds topographyand sealife was unforgettable,a;nd I f^,^.' was a beautifulcompact harbor.ringed with greenhills astonishedto find that,from theperspective of the wherefishermen's boats were anchored. Local peoplewe encountered,the Osakanswere just as inhabitantsviewed the Osakansand ms with eoual foreign as myself.Although lt haveread elsewhere suspicionand what at rhattime I had dfficulty that Ryukyu peoplealign themselveswith Japanese interpreting,but eventuallythought might perhapsbe when confrontedwith foreigners,this wasn't what I resentment.Like Yakushima,Nakanoshima had experiencedpersonally. primevalforests, palm trees,and colorfi:I blooming Our first stopwas Idjima (fikai-ga-sliima),a flowers.One side of the islandfeatured serrated small islandwith an activevolcano where the monk white cliffs toweringout of the water.We anchored Shunkanhad been exiled in I I77. Ihave a stronger offshorenear these deeply fissured escarpments and memoryof Kuchi-no-Erabujima,a daintyisland spentour affernoonsswimming and catchingfish. wheregreenish mountains crr:pt right up to the Among limerstonerocks I locateda whirlpoolwith shoreline.Other island facadr:s presented crag;W trappedfish which I could scoopup with my hands. grottosand steep grayish prer:ipices ofvolcanic rock At night we drank beer andsh1chft in a seedybar. extendinginto the sea.I swarninto a large cave Although well awareof Japanesedialect diversity, surroundedby hugepale boulders. Near this opening; the difficult5rmy Osakanfriends had communicating the waterwas an iridescentaquamarine, whille with someolder islanders suggested language elsewhereit shimmeredslate blue. Locals said that variation of a different order. Given that I was living sulphurseeping out from hot springscaused this sort in Japanat the height of acceptanceof a national of markedvariation in color. mythology touting racial and culhral homogeneity, We hiked up a mountainln a famoushot spring this linguistic gulf was a revelation to me. Yearslater bath but weredisappointed to seehow dilapidatedit I leamedabout the distinctivenessof the various was,a conditionmirrored in mostof the housesand Ryukylr langlrages,but at the time it just didn't fit structures.We ateon the doclkwith provisionsfrom into any of tlhemodels about the Japaneselanguage I our boat,and later,shared a room at a smellyand hadlearned. dingy inn thatflourished with ants,but it only cost Two otherislands we visited beforereachins Y1,000for six of us. I hadn't beenprepared for Amami Oslurnawere Kodakarajima and fakarajima, impoverishmenlsince the "Jiapan"I wasfamiliar noteworthynot only due to their fabulous coral reefs with was moreprosperous. I rdidn'tunderstand why but alsobeczLuse of the friendly peoplewe met. theseresidents weren't alsoparticipating in Japan's Kodakarajimawas a tiny island with many natural postwaraffluence. onsen.Ithadt a smallundeveloped harbor (we Sailingfrom Kuchi-no-Erabujimato Yakushim4 basicallythrew a ropeover a big rock), andblack we sawfantastic, Gaudi-like'volcanic outcrolppings cows and black pigs roaming aroundlush green that sprangright out of tlre ocreanYakushima is one terrain.We rdsiteda hot springshigh on somecliffs, of the oldestinhabited islands south of Satsuniawith wherewe could sit in nahral rock baths overlooking archaeologicalsites dating to the Jdmonera. We atea the wavesbreaking on the shore.One eveningthere hot mealat an old-fashioneddiner, and took a lons- was an impromptu party held for us at the headman's housein Toshimavillage. We drankmuch sh6ch:ft, Before departingAmami Oshimawe visited and at somepoint during the eveninga woman came tounstslnops where we boughtcoral jewelry, bottled screaminginto the room rclaimingthat a strange;rnan sakewith pickledlizards and snakes inside, and wasasleep in her bath.One of our crewmembershad objectsmade from tortoiseshells. Sadly, for members decided,in his drunkenstate, that what hLereally ofour gloup,these islands were only a localevisited wantedwas a goodsoak, and had found her bath llor its rurturalbeauty, an exotic playgroundfar irresistible. enoughilway from home to confer relaxing freedom I rememberthe headr:nansaying that there were lliom soc;ialconstraints, but closeenough that their only a handfirlof families living there.Some of the .lapanesercould be understoodby locals.We were headman's rnixedRyulqnran-Japanese strleech was oblivioursto local sentimentsor issuesof polity or lacedwith antiqueEnglish expressionsreminiscent of identity.It wasa placewhere anyone's bath was a 1950sNero Wolfe noverl,things like "that's l}terefor our pleasure,and we could wear scru& cracke{ack!"for somethingswell. He seemedto sandalsand wrap towels aroundour headslike the know someAmerican GI occupationpidgin--one I fishermamdid, krrowing it was an affectationthat recallwas "skosh" for "a little" and"more skosh"for r,vouldqrnickly be discardedonce back home. "a little more." Years later, as a graduatestudent, I From the perspectiveof the Osakans,the Amami learnedthat the mixed Rlulqruan-Japanese-English peoplewere considered hicks, bumpkins, or worse.I I'd heardwas a linguisticvariety sometimes termed lhink this waswhen I fust heardthewordgenshijin BambooEnglish. This vir;it to theseislands was one or "aboniginal,"a term supposedlyused injest. of severalexperiences that led me to questionmass J3xistingclass distinctions among the Osakans(such mediarepresentations of ,Iapaneselanguage and aswealthy yacht ownersvs. hangers-oncrew like culture, and motivated an interestin the relationship me) disappearedin their confidenceas "authentic" betweenlinguistic ideology and observatrlelanguage representativesof sophisticatedJapaneseness, this use. despitethe fact that they tlemselvesspoke a Everywherewe went fearlesstropicalt fish werre stigmatizedKansai dialect. The local food in visiblethrough clean transparent water. \y'arious particularwas denigrated,although there was praise membersof our groupreported seeing water snakes, lbr the potenry ofthe shdchfr.ln retospect,I feel searays and the dreadedpoisonous habu. One of our embarrassedby my ignoranceand easyacceptance of crewwas bitten or stunglly a honibly ugly brown my companions'prejudices. And I alsowonder if the fish that resembleda rock. I laterfound out that this mainlandperception of theseislands has changed at wasa particularlynasty qpecies called a stonefish. all. Therewas also sea urchfuL, tun4 dolphinsi,mirnows, snapper,angelfish, mora)' eels, jellyfish, mackertd, llhe autlhor: andother fish. Recentdevelopment and pollutiorr in Professo:rLaura Miller is a sixth-generationLos the regionhas had a devastatingimpact on thesecoral Angelinawho teachesat Loyola UniversityChicago. reefsald vibrantsea life. (Animal species,such as Iipecialjournalissues she has edited include "Social the rareAmami black rabbit,are also endangere

Also noteworthyis Midwest Japan SeminarNews @ditor: Laura Miller). As its inauguralissue (Winter 2001) indicates,the publicationis a rich sourceof informationon tlre currentresearch, publishing andother activitiei of Japanesestudies scholars based in US Midwest.lFrom the listing of numerouspublicationJ on unusualtopics (Okinawabeing one of them) one sensesthat the scopeof Japanesestudlies has lately expandedgreatly, no longer limited by the ChrysanthemumClub orthodoxy.Congratulations to all c;oncerned!--- Ed. A lRespornseto Criitics

I would like to take this opporrunity to fi)spond to the "Declaration of Concern" published in the previous issue of T-heRyulq,aanisf regarding my bool<:Women of the Sacred Grives: Divine Priestessesof Okinaw,z. The crafters of this self-describerC"declaration" felt it necessaryto "caution general the reader against uncriticarlacceptance ,of her [my] text." However, the "declaration" itself seriously misrepresentsmy work in a number of significant ways, thereby both trivializing substartial researchand causing me deep personal pain.

In the Introduction to Womenof the Sacred Groves I includeclseveral pages of detailed explanation of my methodology. ln rrferring to this explamation,the authors of the "declaration,, pulled out of the Introrluction one out-of-context paragraph,and then choseto omit critical parts of that one paragraph. In the passagethat is reprinted below, I harvereinserted and hishliehted in bold type the sentencersthat were rermovedfrom this paragraphby the crafters of the- "declaration". I hardly needto point out that the rvriters o,fthe "cleclaration" retained the sentencesin which I olpenly describedthe limitations of nnyworl<, but deletedthe sentencesin which I explained horn,I compensatedfor thLoselimitatiorrs. Whijte I welcome genuine critique. and discussion of all of my scholarly work, I wonder wha.tpurpose the deliberate deleting of critical portions of the text might serve. As the following passagomakes clear, there is no needto "warn" the "general reader" about rny book Throughout the book I plainly state how I did my work, what my interests were, and how I anived at my otrservationsand interpretations. I am quite sure that the general reader is capableof assessingrny findringsin light of my methods for him or herself.

Although I had studied Japanersebefore coming to the fiell, when I first arrived in okinawa, my knowledge of Jarpanesewas perfunctory; wirth the patience and encouragementof villagers, it impror,'edthroughout the ye,ar.Because of my initially weak lianguageskills, I made great use of a tape recorder: r would record conversations and thr:n listen to them agnin, sornetimeswith the aid of an interpreter. Working this way turned out to be ifortuitous becauseit has allowed me to cite exaci:comments mradeby villagers rather than the usual summaries found in many ethnographies.Given that the intellectualcontext for this project is the study of religion and gender rather than Japanesestudies, my less-than- rudimentary Japaneseliteracy has not proven to be an overrwhelmingdrawback. Henza priestessesdo not have a literate tradition or a corpus of sacredtexts; the books that have been left unread by them (and by nne)were written by outsiders or by members of the Okinawan (mostly' malle)literary elite. Although there has been a school in the village for many years, the priestessesamonpi whom I carried out my researchdo not seem interesterdin reading; they know holv to read headlines and advertisements,but I rarely sa'wthem readinga book or newspaper.As much as possible,I have tried to compensatefor my poor Japaneseliteracy through lengthy discussionswith sociologvarnd anthropology pr.ofessorsat the University of threRyukyus. ('tl/-omenof the SacredGrove,c p.20).

The "declaration" fiurther statesthiat, "Sered completely ignor,esvital and valuable historical records of her field sitercompiled by the vill:rgers (both female ald male) themselves." In fact, I spent a great deal of tirne at the Henza town hall going through various volumes published by villagers. In addition, arsI clearly explain in the Introduction to thLebook - on the very samepage paragraph - as the partially cited in the "decla:ration" my steady lpartnerin the fieldwork was a Henza villager and one time resirCentof Chicago, who himself has published several volumes of Henza history and folklore. It soundsfrom the tone of this "cleclaration" that I have been working in isolation from the community of Ryukyuan scholars,but in fact throughout the time of the research,the writing of the book, and the post publicertionperiod I have been in touch with numerous local and non-local Okinawan scholars, including but not limited to some of the signers of the "declaration", Furthermore, as the bibliographl, of the book explicitly shows, I have read a great deal of scholarly literature addressingOkinawan culture and aria studies;I have in no way dismissedthis vah"rLableliterature and I c;iteit throughout the book. If the "declaration" writers had made the tlpical collegial gesture of contacting me directly (easy enoughto do through the Editor of The Ryulqtuanit'r,through my publisher, or through my University d-partment) beiore publishing their er$raordinary document,they would have found that straightforward communication wirth me could have pre'irentedsome of the misinformation in the "declaration.,'

No scholaris an expert in all fields,theoretical approaches, and methodologicalstrategies. Experts in RyukyuLanhistory are knowlerdgeablein certain ways and bring crucial skills to their work, but so do experts in folklo:re, ethnobotany,archeology,, and genderitudies. To imply that there is only one lt:gitimate approachto scholarship demeansand diminishes the quest for knowledge and understanding.I oontinue to feel stromglythat the gender studies orientation of Womenof the Sacred Groves adds important dimensionsto tihestudy of Okinawan culture. Among the issuesrlxplored in the book are the workings of power in a society that values egalitarian relatiorLships,ways in which gender intersectswith other social categoriessuch 'f'emale' as age and class, distinctions between as a cultural category and women as individual and 'nafiiralistio' 'sociological' collective social at;tors,and distinctionsbetween and gender ideologies.

I believe that b'y framing Womenof t,heSacred Groves in terms of gender studies rather than in terms of Okinawart or Japanesehistory, I have introduced some of the truly remarkable accomplishmentsr:'f Okinawa and OkinaLwanscholars to many readerswho might not otherwise have become acquainted with the,peopler and culture of Okinawa. My own to "o-rnitment understandingthe prominent religious role of Okinawan woman againstthe backdrop of male dominance of almr:rstall other religious r:ontextsaround the world does not detract from the importance of Okinawan scholarshipbutl rather enhancesit. I look forward to future collaborative work with scholarl; whose extensiveknowledge of Okinawanrlanguage,culfure and history can enrich and be enriched by my knowledgreof gender theory anLdreligion lProfessorSusan Serred is with Wonlen'sStuLdies in ReligionProgreun, Harvard Divinity ,"r""::;;:, Avenue,Cambridge., MA 02138.E-rnail: All views expressed in this response arethe views of the rauthorand do not necessarilyreflect the views of The Ryukyuanist.. . .Ed.]

l0 Publications(XL) We gptefully acknowledgethe folkrwing giLftsof publications.

Hawaii United OkinawarAssociation. 200 I -02. interestingmemorandunq dated 1713, by Uchinanchu,Issues 83 -86 (June/July, Satr;uma-no-kamireviews how Rlulqu has AugusVSeptember,November/Decemb er, corneunder Satsuma's domination and at the SpecialIssue, February,rMarch). The Sprecial samLetime continuesto be an attachmentto Issue,also numbered 8(i, commemoratesthe 50th China(Dait:6fuy6no kuni) Qry.92-96).This can anniversaryof the formation of the Havraii be considerr:dSatsuma's recognition of Rlukyu's United OkinawaAssociiation. HUOA started "dualsuborrlination," which may imply ,'dual with 14 chartermember clubs. Today it has50 suzerainty"of China and Japanover Ryulrlu. memberclubs and one affiliate. Issue 8t5 (Yet the two "suzerains"never officially (regular)reports the inaugurationof the 2002 conferredbetween them over Ryulqruanatrairs.) presidengGladys Tokurnga-Asao. The outgoing This volume also containsa usefirl kaisetu presidengJames Y. Iha writeshis "thankyou" (aneilysisand explanation)of high lights of message. Ryulclu-Satsuma-Balefirrelations of this period, pp. 185-192.@or Ryulq,u-China relations, see HoseiUniversity Institurte of OkinawanSfudies Rekidaihdan.) 2002.Okinawa bunka tkenkyfr(Studies in OkinawanCulture)No. 28. 438+29pp. Contains Idern.2002. Shohd (Institute Report), No. 51.66 nine articles.Five aredr:voted to historicaland pp. Leadingpieces commemorate the 30th ethnologicaltopics like neligiousgarmernts of armiversaryof the establishmentof the Institpte. noro (profuselyillustrated by numerousphotos), Sevencenter pieces are devotedto Miyako, successionrites of ritual rolesin Karimata makingthis issuea "specialedition" (tolanhL\on (lvliyako),songs blessingvoyages, gods and Miyako. Tolpicsdiscussed relate to headtax, goddessesof Kumejimaas seenin Omoros6shi, Kugai villag;e,archeology of thegusulat period, andHeike legends in Yaeyama.Four ardclesare yonamata(mermaid) legend, meanings of on morerecent topics: prolitical parties in 1945- tamasii(soul, spiril etc.),Nevsky conjecture on 51 centeringon the OkinawaPeople's Party, the moonand immortality, and librariesin colonialeducation in Okinawaand Taiv,,an Miyako. Thr:seare Miyako-specific, rather aroundthe Sino-JapaneseWar (1894-95), arcanesubjects. However, the presentationsare traditionalcrafts and,{.1insri fabrics of Ishigaki, characterizedby thoroughnessof researcllrigor and the stateof public fi nancein Okinawa of analysis,and efforts to put the findings in Prefecture. broaderpersrpectives. Book reviews,a discussion forurn,and recent events fill the restof the issue. Idem.2002. Ryukyu norh6gen@ialects of Ryukyu),No. 26. 170pp. Reportson various ITO, Matsuhiko(ed.) 2000. Okinawa no aspectsof dialectsin Kikaijima Onotsu, toshokan(L,ibraries of Okinawa).Tokvo: OkinawaShuri, Taketorni, Miyako Nishihara, Ky6iku Shiry6Shuppankai. 33I pp. +iSOO+ tax. andMiyako Bora. A hisl.oricalarticle examines Okinawa'slibraries were almost totally destroved oneword from Omorosdsftl: "sura." According in the lastwar. The subsequentgrowth of to the author,its literal rneaningis "ffee-top"but librarieson lhis "groundzero" represents an in realitymeans a shipyimdwhere ships are made important aspectof Okinawa'sintellectual andlaunched as birds noston, andfly away history.In this book,numerous contributors join from, the treetop. Ships,especially fast ships, forcesto offor multi-dimensionalviews of the arelikened to birds.Thery sail as if flying -- historicaldevelopment and contemporarystatus aacientimagery. of Okinawa'slibraries.

Idem.2002.Ryukyu dfiurkumonjo oyobi KAN: History, Environment, Civilization. kanren shiry6 (IIf) @ocumentsto andfrom 2002.A QuarrterlyJournal on Lerningand the Ryul,f'uand related histrrrical materials). 192 pp. Arts for GlolbalReadership, Vol. 9 (Spring). Datesof the documentsmnge from 168lLto Tokyo:Fujirvara Shoten. Pp. 542.*2,800 + tax. 1722,a periodof RyuJryu'srevival and Despitethe l3nglishtitle of thejournal, its stabilizationof relationswith Balafr and contentsare all in Japanese.The encompassing Satsuma.The Ryukyuking, earlierdemeaned to themeis "GrandDesign for 2lst-CenturyJapan," bearingthe title ofkokushi (governor),recovered led offby intterviewswith Michel Beaudand tle royaltifle in L'7I2.htcormection with RobenBoyer. Two articleson Okinawa: Ryukyu's tributary relatir:nshipwith Chin4 an "Okinawa'sGrand Design" by

il MATSUSHIMA Yasukatsqand "For Okiniawa's OkinawaPrefecture. Kenritsu ToshokanShtry6 Future"by SAKIMII Michio. Henshfishitsu(Prefectural Library, Office for Editing llistoricai Materials). 2002.Rekidai Ma, L EveArmenftout. 2001. Farms, Firnrs, H0an l'akuch0bonDai l3-satsu@iplomatic and Runways.Perspectives on U.lS.Military Papersof the RyulgruKingdom, Translated and Basesin the Western Pacific. Chicago:Imprint Annotated,Vol. 13).viii, 484 pp. Translatedand Publications.225 pp. A numberof authors annotatedby MSHIZATO Kik6. Documents examineorigrns andjustifications of US mititary from theperiod of 1841-1850.Several basesin EastAsia and WesternPacific. documentsare memorialsfrom Kings ShoIku Following the editor'sintroduction and thre,l and ShoTai to the Emperorsof China overviewessays by others,focused discussion is embodyingoaths of fealty. ShoTai (reign:1848- devotedto tluee host countries:Okinawa, 79) callshimseHHeir (not yet King of Ryulq.u) Philippines,and Guam.Okirnwa drawsthree in thesememorials. (IIe was officially, that is, by chapters:"The Explosive Natue of Okinawa's 'Land the Emprerorof Qing, createdKing in 1866.) Issue'or'Basr:Issue,' 1945-1977 A Dilemmaof United lStatesMilitary JPolicy"by L. [dem.2002.Rekidai Hdan YakuchfibonDai Eve Armentrout Ma; "Milita-ry Land Usagein l3-satsuGochfi Ichiranhy0 (Consolidated Okinawa"by ShiniclfLiKyan; and "lr Treatyin Indexesof Arurotationsfor Vol. 13). 2051items Crisis:U.S. Military Baseson Okinawa"by areclassified into two groups:words and TadaeTakubo. Kyan pointsout that the "huge phrases,and names ofpersons and places. Each enclavesecured by the U.S. military" on groupis arrangedin two ways:by nurnberof Okinawa has displac;edmany Okinawanswlfro strokesin a character(kanji) as in a kanji like refugeeshave mLigratedto distantareas ano dictionary,and by Japanesealphabetical order as foreign countries.However, Takubo views in a Jap:rnesedictionary. Okrnawanprotests against this andrrther human rightsviolations by the US military as YAMAGUCHI, Eitetsu.2001. Rlukyuko instigationsof a vocal minority (Ltkehitotsubo karano hish6:f,'rom Ryuklus with Hope. jinushi) underthe influenceof unsorLrnd Ginowan,Okinawa: YOju Shorin.4+241pp. ideologies. S1800+l.ax.A collectionof autobiographical essaysover the author'slifetime from childhooc OkinawaIntemational University Institute of in Naha"through World War II andyears of RlrrkyuanCulture. 2i.00 1. Yaeyama, Taketomi- teaching;at Yale, to teachingin Okinawain the chdchdsa hdkokusho (3) (Reporton lastfew years.Quality prose. Also contains Investigationsinto l'aeyamaTaketomi-cho) (3). critical commentson teachingof Japaneseat Ginowan.III+42pp. Six articlescovering Americumuniversities, an illuminating geography,agricultuLre, religion, rituals, contributionto comparativelinguistics. language,and songs

C o m m un icatio n : Dr. PatrickBeillevaire writes : This messageis aboutthe publicationof the l0-volumeseries of westerndocuments on Ryulgru/Okinawa,which waspre-announced in TheRyulqtuanlsf, No. a7 (Spring2000)" The publicationis at ltastcompleted. ,.. More precisehforrnLation ab,out it is:

Beillevaire,Patrick ('ed.). 2000. Ryukyu Studiesto 1854:Western Encounter, Part I. Richmond,UK: CurzonPress; Tokyo: Edition Synapse. 5 vols. 1594pp., illus., [52]5/*115,000. Beillevaire,Patrick (ed.). 2002. Ryukyu StudiesSince 1854: Western Encounter, Part tr. Richmond, I-IK:Curzon Press; llokyo: EditionSynapse, 5 vols. 2015 pp., illus , t5254115,000.

The collectionis entitledin JapaneseSeiiyd no deatta Dai-Ryukyu. It gathersbooks, chapters or extractsfrom booksand articleson R1utrq,1r/Okinawa,145 item.s in all--in English,Frencl; and German,with the original illustrationsand maps. Some French material was previously unpublished. The periodcovered stretches from 1515to the eveof World War II. The collectionnotably includes mostof the articlesfrom the Japan-baserlEnglish newspapers ctealing with the 1879-1880Sino- Japanesedisputes over Ryrrkyu.

The Ryukyuanist isredited by Koji Tairaat ILIR-UIUC, 504F,.Armory, Champaign,IL. 61820.E-mail: Tel:217-333-1482 (for message).Fax:217-2t14-9290. Sub: Free on demand.Also availableat a websitiaof flre Univemiitye1Bsrul'

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