DFA confirms Filipina rape complaint in Japan

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By Veronica Uy

MANILA, Philippines -- (UPDATE) The Department of Foreign Affairs on Friday confirmed that a Filipina has complained of having been raped by a US soldier on Japan’s southern island of Okinawa.

But DFA spokesman Claro Cristobal refused to give personal details of the Filipina or the circumstances surrounding the alleged rape. He said the Filipina has asked that her privacy be respected.

The Philippine embassy in Tokyo was sending an official to Okinawa to help the Philippine honorary consulate in Naha in extending full assistance to the Filipina, Cristobal said, citing a report of from Consul General Sulpicio Confiado in Tokyo.

On Thursday, the US military in Japan said it was investigating the new allegation of rape as Japan and the US tighten rules for troops living off base after a series of incidents involving US servicemen in Okinawa.

Earlier this month police on Okinawa island arrested Staff Sergeant Tyrone Luther Hadnott, 38, on allegations that he raped a 14-year-old local girl in his car, sparking an uproar.

A total of 44,963 US troops, non-military staff and their families were in Okinawa as of the end of January, of whom 10,748 lived off base, according to Japan’s foreign ministry.

US troops are stationed under a security treaty reached after World War II when Japan became constitutionally pacifist.

More than half of the troops live in Okinawa, which was under US occupation until 1972 and is a key hub due to its proximity to the Taiwan Strait.

Okinawa saw major protests in 1995 after three US military personnel gang-raped a 12-year-old girl, setting in motion a process to reduce the number of troops on the small island.

Source:inquirer.net

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