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Governor Inamine's Comments
at the Conclusion of the G8 Summit
July 23rd, 2000
From it's beginning with the arrival of the delegates from Germany at 4:12 pm on July 20th, to the departure of the Canadian mission, the Kyushu-Okinawa Summit was completed on schedule over July 21st, 22nd, and 23rd.
The full schedule of the Kyushu-Okinawa Summit, including the Meeting of Finance Ministers in Fukuoka Prefecture and the Meeting of Foreign Ministers held in Miyazaki Prefecture, have all been completed.
On the one hand, like so many of the people of Okinawa Prefecture, I was looking forward to the summit being held here, while at the same time feeling the responsibility of playing host to the highest level of international conference. I was relieved that a typhoon did not strike, probably the worst worry for me, and that we were blessed with pleasant weather. There were neither great troubles nor hindrances in our operations and I am happy that the meeting was completed without incident. As well, the opportunity Okinawans had to come in contact with the heads of state and government was deeply significant for us, and with the eyes of the world on Okinawa, we were able to show the world Okinawa in its true reality.
I, as well as all the people of Okinawa, am overjoyed at having the summit achieve its results and having it completed without incident.
I would especially like to thank the people of Okinawa for all their cooperation from the preparatory stages right through to the holding of the actual event, including their active cooperation in making arrangements for receiving our guests, in the clean-up operations, and in environmental beautification activities as well as in other areas. I sincerely thank you all. I would also like to thank you for observing the traffic restrictions and controls that were put in place.
I apologize if any of the activities of the summit caused inconvenience or bother.
In addition, for all their guidance during our preparations, I would like to offer my deep appreciation to Prime Minister Mori, the personnel from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other ministries for their efforts, day and night, during the summit. I also extend these thanks to those who came to the prefecture to assist - including the police involved in security on land and sea, the firefighters, health service personnel, and those in the tourist and hotel industries. I am also sincerely grateful to those who offered assistance in a variety of areas including transport, traffic and road services, information and telecommunications, those who helped with the electrical, water and other essential utilities, and those in the cultural and performing arts areas, education, media, food and weather services.
Furthermore I would again like to express my appreciation to the many people who made contributions, offered materials and space, and cooperated in the operations of the Okinawa G8 Summit Host Preparation Council.
I would also like to express my thanks for the efforts of the volunteers who acted as interpreters and essential service personnel for guests from overseas, and to all the members of the Summit Regional Safety & Support Committee.
Here, again, I would like to express my deepest appreciation to late Prime Minister Obuchi for his decision to hold the summit here, one that has allowed us to come this far.
This summit has acted as a bridge to the 21st century, and under such keywords as greater prosperity, peace of mind and world stability, the vital issues of conflict prevention, the Information Technology (IT) revolution, debt relief, measures against communicable diseases, trade issues, measures to combat international crime and illegal drugs, and issues relating to the life sciences and the environment were discussed. Consequently the G8 Communiqu Okinawa 2000 was adopted and sent out to the world from Okinawa.
Also, the centerpiece of this summit, the discussions on the influence of the IT revolution, resulted in the Okinawa Charter on the Global Information Society (IT Charter). It is a true honor that our prefecture's name is associated with this charter that is sent out to the world.
For this summit, along with the various heads of state, many governmental delegations and press personnel visited the prefecture from within and outside Japan. I believe one of the greater successes of the summit was to have the chance to meet and have exchange with these related personnel in different areas.
On July 21st, before the start of the summit meetings, we were privileged to receive visits from President Clinton of the U.S. to the Cornerstone of Peace monument, Chancellor Schroeder of Germany to Miyako Island, Prime Minister Blair of the U.K. to Chatan Town, Prime Minister Chretien of Canada to Haebaru Town, Prime Minister Amato of Italy to Ginoza Village, and President Prodi of the European Commission to Yomitan Village. In addition, after the end of the scheduled meetings, President Putin of the Russian Federation visited Gushikawa City, attending events in the region and engaging in various exchanges and social events with local residents.
In particular, during the visit to the Cornerstone of Peace by President Clinton, I was given an opportunity to convey in my address to the President the hopes for eternal peace of the Okinawan people embodied in the construction of the Cornerstone of Peace monument and our wishes for the reduction and realignment of U.S. military bases in our prefecture.
As I showed President Clinton around the monuments, we were able to discuss reducing the burden of 55 years of military bases, revision of the Status of Forces Agreement, limitations on the length of use, as well as ways to prevent incidents and accidents relating to the bases from occurring.
In his message to the people of Okinawa, President Clinton spoke of his desire to make efforts to realize the SACO (Special Action Committee on Okinawa) recommendations, to reduce the footprint of the U.S. military in Okinawa, to carry on the responsibilities of being a good neighbor, and to establish new scholarship programs.
The President also spoke of the military base issues by saying, "I am glad to have heard the frank opinions expressed today. I understand what you wish to say." He also expressed his desire to give his utmost to help swift implementation [of the above measures].
In regards to exchange with the heads of state and government and other officials, at the welcome reception on the evening of the 22nd, officials were able to have exchange with representatives from Okinawa. I believe we were able to introduce Okinawa's superb culture to the world including displays of ancient costumes and traditional dance, deepening understanding of Okinawaﾕs history, and we were able to convey to the world the spirit of Okinawa.
At the Welcome Reception for Delegations and the Press and at the Summit Opening Festival both held at the Forest for the 21st Century Park in Nago City on July 21st, approximately 15,000 people from the prefecture participated in exchanges with the delegations and press. While appreciating the traditional performing arts of Okinawa, it was an enjoyable time for all.
I am confident that we were able to satisfy the heads of state and government and all the other related personnel that visited our prefecture for the summit.
Concerning the response of the press, before the holding of the summit, we offered information and continuous cooperation in the gathering of news, conducted press tours during the summit and I believe accurately portrayed the military bases here as well as the situation in Okinawa as it stands.
Aside from this, through the information desks at the airport and in hotels, at the Okinawa Showcase pavilion within the International Media Center, and through the offering of Okinawan specialty items at the Welcome Reception, we were able to introduce some of Okinawa's products and tourist attractions to the world.
In this way we obtained very satisfying results and as a prefecture, I believe we were able to successfully hold the summit.
For our prefecture, fulfilling a great role as the local host on this historically significant stage will result in heightened appreciation of our prefecture, and will contribute to the confidence and pride of the people of Okinawa Prefecture.
At this point, we should not expect change from the summit [itself], but rather how to link the experience gained to our future and ask how we, as Okinawans, can effect change in Okinawa.
I think of the summit as an opportunity for us to open up the promotion and development of Okinawa and create an increasingly global perspective towards the 21st century.
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