Contesting economic development: Discourses, methods, and byproducts of the residents' movement against the oil industry in Okinawa, 1973--1983

The Ryukyu Islands were annexed by Japan during the Meiji Period in 1879, and became Okinawa Prefecture. The people of Okinawa were later involved in the Battle of Okinawa during World War II, which saw the Prefecture used as a battlefield for the U.S. and Japanese Imperial militaries. Following WWII, Okinawa was occupied by the U.S. Military and, while Japan regained its sovereignty in 1952 through the San Francisco Peace Treaty, in return Japan allowed the U.S. to continue its occupation of Okinawa.;In 1972, after 27 years of U.S. occupation, the reversion of control from U.S. military oversight under the Government of the Ryukyuan Islands to Japan's Okinawa Prefectural Government took place. The reversion plan concealed an agreement between the U.S. and Japan to support each other's agendas: the United States sought financial support from the Japanese Government for their military bases in Okinawa, and Japan was interested in maintaining a military alliance with the U.S. while relying on Okinawa's natural resources for economic growth nationwide. The Okinawa Prefectural Government uncritically supported positions in favor of the proposed developments, placing high expectations on the Japanese promise of high economic growth which, when put into practice, proved to compromise the natural environment and basic human rights.;Residents on the eastern coast of Okinawa Island created a post-reversion movement to protest oil industry development in Okinawa. The Kin Bay Struggle emerged in 1973 and continued until 1983, seeking to protect the natural environment in order to ensure the survival of local industries and lifestyle, and to revive the indigenous language and culture. During the struggle, many activities were also directed towards the attainment of self-sufficiency and autonomy. In order to explore the path and purposes of the Kin Bay movement, I employ social movement theories of framing, political opportunities, resource mobilization, and collective identity and culture.