How US Occupation Forces and Pre-war Borders Created an Environment for Smuggling in the Post-war Ryukyus
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Volume 19 | Issue 2 | Number 2 | Article ID 5530 | Jan 15, 2021
The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus
How US Occupation Forces and Pre-war Borders Created an
Environment for Smuggling in the Post-war Ryukyus
Ibrahim Jalal
Abstract: This article examines how the often- Keywords: Post-war Japan, Smuggling,
overlooked era of Okinawan smuggling in the Okinawa, Ryukyu, Military Occupation,
years 1945-1950 was fostered by two factors. Borderlands, Taiwan, China
The first was the contradiction between US
Occupation rules that forbid free trade and
movement coupled with a lack of supplies
essential for survival. Okinawans continued to
make use of the borderland status that had
existed under the Japanese Empire at the
intersection with Japan, Taiwan and mainland
China, While the military government branded
smuggling as criminal and opportunistic, for
the people of Okinawa smuggling was a
necessity to survive in an economy that had
been devastated by war. Local police and
guards often turned a blind eye to the black
market, and in some cases were even involved
in the theft of goods for smuggling. Those
throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago were in a
unique position to trade surplus military goods
and scrap metal for necessary resources such 1950 aerial photograph of Okinawa
as food and building materials due to their
location between Japan, Taiwan and China as
the unguarded coastline made it possible to
avoid detection. Even children helped gather
resources for smuggling, and many women Introduction
took part in the trade. During this era, the
archipelago’s westernmost island of Yonaguni In Okinawa Kuhaku no Ichinen 1945-1946,
grew into a prosperous borderland outpost for Kabira Nario details the environment
illegal trade and the population boomed. By the Okinawans found themselves in immediately
mid-1950s the era of large-scale smuggling had after the Battle of Okinawa. Kabira describes
come to an end, as harsher US clampdowns, 1945-46 as a ‘blank year’ devoid of records and
stronger borders in Taiwan, coupled with the often only briefly covered in post-war histories
relaxation of measures that allowed Okinawans of Okinawa.1 This article examines one aspect
to freely trade gradually brought the golden of life that began during this blank year:
age of smuggling to an end. smuggling and two factors that facilitated it in
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the years 1945-50. The first was the shortages resulting from the population
Occupational authorities’ insistence that bar increase. 4 Some studies of contemporary
trade outside Okinawa, coupled with a lack of Okinawa focus on the base problem such as
supplies for civilians. This was coupled with a those of Maeda Tetsuo, Gabe Masaaki and
consciousness that Taiwan and China to the Hayashi Hirofumi, noting that the land of many
South and Japan to the north had been part of a Okinawans was taken over by military bases.
single economic region under the Japanese These researchers have focused on the
Empire. In the immediate aftermath of the war immediate situation in Okinawa itself. But
Okinawa’s borderland status became more smuggling links all of these factors. This article
pronounced. links these better-known elements of post-war
Okinawa history to the lesser known history of
There is currently limited research on post-war post-war smuggling.
smuggling throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago,
and this is likely linked to two factors. The first The social scientist Iwashita Akihiro has
is that individuals partaking in the illegal introduced the concept of borderland studies to
activity seek to remain anonymous, so primary Japan and its former territories under the
sources are scarce. Even documents that are empire, particularly Sakhalin and the Kuril
available, such as US military government Islands. Iwashita has contrasted state borders
documents, frequently contain large amounts of defining political entities in contrast with the
censored texts. The scope of smuggling also actual living space of people when writing
transcends Okinawa itself with routes about Japan’s northern territories. This article
connecting mainland Japan, Taiwan and China. looks at smuggling through the perspective of
Given this multinational complexity and the Okinawa as a borderland region.5
nature of the Battle of Okinaw, it is not
surprising that studies have focused on the This perspective of a more localized view
war’s aftermath in the devastated regions. rather than the top down state approach
examines how Okinawa fared, and to some
The most comprehensive work on post-war extent continues to fare, within the American
smuggling is the political scientist Koike empire. Smuggling is an area where there is a
Yasuhito’s ‘Ryukyu retto no mitsuboeki to chance to look at what contemporaries
kyokaisen: 1941-1951i’ (‘Smuggling in the considered their actual living space, and their
Ryukyu Archipelago and its Borders’). Koike ability to transcend borders, rather than
interviewed traders and used ocupation examining Okinawa through state-imposed
documents to examine the role of smuggling in formal boundaries.
6
the post-war years.2
This article, beginning with the initial
However, most studies on post-war Okinawa background of post-war Okinawa and the
focus on other elements. This includes the imperative to smuggle in the immediate post-
sociologist Oguma Eiji, who in a comparative war environment given the contradiction
study of Okinawans as subjects of the Japanese between a lack of supplies and the necessity to
Empire examined such elements of post-war rely for survival on US military government
Okinawa as the difficulties resulting from a lack policies and provisions. The second section
of school infrastructure and ideas of an looks at some of the routes chosen for
independent Ryukyu.3 Others including Arakaki smuggling, particularly the activity in
Yasuko highlighted the influx of Okinawan Yonaguni, the most western island in the
migrants overseas who were forced to return to archipelago and a borderland region that
Okinawa after Japan’s defeat, including food played a large role in the trade. The latter half
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of this article examines the attractiveness of Ryukyuan economy, natives seized (the)
smuggling for individual actors before opportunity for personal profit by
concluding with the crackdown on this trade in smuggling consumer goods from Japan,
the 1950s coinciding with imposition of more China and Formosa, using as a medium of
formal boundaries on the Ryukyu Archipelago exchange items sold and donated to
coupled with Occupational reforms that indigenous economy through the (civil
reduced the necessity for smuggling for administration) and strategic and non-
survival. strategic items of American military origin
or under occupation control. As smuggling
US military rule of parts of the main island of and black market profits are lucrative,
Okinawa began as early as April 1, 1945, the hundreds of natives and foreign (nationals)
day US troops landed on Okinawa during the are engaging in the unlawful activity. Of
final battle of the Pacific War. Fleet Admiral even greater import is that the smuggling
Chester Nimitz declared that the Ryukyu boats are transporting illegal and
7
Archipelago was now under US rule. US subversive elements into and/or through
military rule had already begun by the end of the Ryukyus.8’
March on the neighboring islands of the
Kerama Archipelago, and by the end of August
1945 it covered the entirety of the island of
Okinawa. The journalist Okuno Shūji has given a more
romantic portrayal of the post-war smuggling
After the war, Okinawans were gradually period as one that harked back to the golden
allowed to return through the war-torn age of trade by the Ryukyu Kingdom in the
landscape to their homes to begin to rebuild 15th to 16th centuries. During this period,
their lives under the new regime. However, before the Ryukyu Archipelago became a semi-
large military bases, built throughout the colony of Japan in 1609, the kingdom sent ships
ongoing battle in order to launch an attack on throughout Asia, trading with China, Japan and
mainland Japan, now stood on what had been Korea, and in South East Asia as far as present
the homes and fields of tens of thousands of
day Indonesia.9 However, by 1945 Okinawa had
Okinawans. Resources were scarce with cattle
been incorporated as a prefecture of Japan
and crops obliterated by bombardment from
since 1879, with a transition to a mainly
the navy, air and army forces on both sides. In
agricultural economy.10
the wake of Japan’s surrender, given the
inadequate provisions provided to the Okuno acknowledges that Okinawans took part
Okinawan people by the occupying forces, a in the smuggling to survive throughout the
black market developed. Ryukyu Archipelago in the wake of the Battle of
Okinawa with its devastating casualties. The
Smuggling was facilitated by the surplus of
contemporary Okinawan historian Arasaki
goods that the US bought to the islands in
Moriteru has estimated that 65,000 mainland
preparation for an attack on the Japanese
troops were killed in addition to 30,000
mainland. A 1951 United States Civil
Okinawan military personnel, at least 94,000
Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR)
civilians and 10,000 Koreans who had been
memo described the trade:
conscripted as military porters, nurses, or
11
comfort women. As the battle progressed
southwards, first to the base of the Japanese
‘Upon cessation of (the) Pacific War and army beneath Shuri Castle in Naha, and then to
(the) collapse of Japanese controlled the most southern point of the island, entire
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villages were destroyed and families wiped aboard boats to catch fish, other cans of
out.12 various sizes became pots, cups and buckets.15
Even military uniforms were repurposed into
makeshift wedding dresses, and what has
become one of the iconic symbols of the
immediate postwar era the traditional
Okinawan stringed instrument, the Sanshin
which was made out of cans and dubbed the
‘kankara sanshin’ (clattering or hollow
Sanshin), as opposed to the traditional Sanshin
made of wood and snakeskin.16 The Sanshin had
long been one of the most popular instruments
from the days of the Ryukyu Kingdom, and
there was something quintessential about the
kankara sanshin that captured the atmosphere
of the postwar poverty.
When some Okinawans were allowed outside
the camps to work under the supervision of the
US forces advance in ruins of Naha during
US army, they discovered the destruction of
the Battle of Okinawa
their land and houses. Uku Teruko was sixteen
(Naha City Museum of History)
at the time took up a cooking role, and on one
occasion when she was being transported by a
US military vehicle, she saw her hometown of
The bombardment by both armies not only Shuri:
killed thousands but also destroyed 90% of the
buildings throughout Okinawa, as these were
concentrated in the heavily populated southern
“There were Japanese soldiers wearing
half of the island where the brunt of the battle
military clothes in a state of
took place.13
mummification all over the place. The
beautiful vestiges of pre-war Shuri were
The postwar era for many Okinawans began 17
nowhere to be seen. ”
when they were captured or surrendered to US
forces and taken to a civilian internment camp.
Excluding those on the Kerama islands, on the
1st day of the battle, April 1, 1945, only 21 Aguni Yoshi, 25, was part of a vanguard group
civilians had been brought under the US that was permitted to leave the camps early to
regime; by the second day this had swelled to make it livable for others, a movement initiated
1,023, by the 5th day 8,909, by the 10th day by Nakayoshi Ryōkō (1887-1974) the mayor of
44,367, and these numbers rapidly increased Shuri. Aguni describes the remains :
until by August about 85% of the surviving
population had been bought into the
internment camps. 1 4
“(Shuri) was in ruins, a mere shadow of its
Inside the camps people had to make do with former self, no matter where one went in
the precious few resources that they could find. Shuri there were the remains of the
Fuel tanks for planes were cut in half and put deceased, whether it be in houses, inside
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caves or even in the wells.18” Likewise in the village of Ginowan. The
Americans had begun building the airbase on
arable land at the settlement’s center. Villagers
returned to find that 33% of what had been
At Shuri men began building houses using trees their former homes was now off limits to
from Kunigami, a less damaged area of the civilians. In Yomitan the American army had
forest region of northern Okinawa, while expanded the Japanese base, and when the
women acted as nurses. While the land in the villagers returned in August 1946 they were
populated parts of Okinawa had been ravaged, permitted to live on a mere 5% of the former
there was still some food, as described by Uku: 22
village land. Military bases occupied the
flattest land, the prime agricultural land whose
loss to villagers made the growing of crops and
“Wherever we went the burned remains of rearing livestock far more difficult than in the
houses and corpses became fertilizer, and pre-war era.
we were able to get our hands on a
While tens of thousands of civilians had died
surprising quantity of vegetables.19”
during the battle of Okinawa, there was a
postwar population boom as many of the
38,000 Okinawans who had immigrated
Such salvageable resources could be put to use overseas were repatriated.23 By 1940 Okinawa
while the majority of Okinawans remained had the highest percentage of emigrants of any
inside the internment camps, yet they were prefecture or city, 9.9% of the total population,
insufficient to support the population. This far higher than second place Kumamoto 4.78%,
scarcity opened the door to a black market and and third place Hiroshima 3.88%, with
the smuggling that sustained it. approximately one in ten Okinawans having
emigrated overseas, including to Japan.24
The war-torn landscape was not the only factor
that put pressure on resources. When the first A year after the Battle of Okinawa, on the
Okinawans were released from internment August 15, 1946 the military government began
camps in October 1945, they discovered that allowing overseas Okinawans to repatriate, and
military bases such as Kadena were already from August to December of 1946 to December
being built and expanded on the former about 140,000 returned to Okinawa.25
airfields of the Japanese army. In the village of
Chatan residents returned to find the former The majority of the Okinawa emigrants came
1,500-meter runway had been extended to from mainland Japan and the Japanese South
2250 meters fit for B29 bombers. With the Seas Mandate of Micronesia. As was the case
airbase taking up much flat land, the 10,000 for the South Seas Mandate, many Okinawans
villagers were forced to rebuild clustered close were forced to return from other parts of the
together around the hills.20 Japanese Empire including China. Other
Okinawan immigrants in allied territories had
The Kadena base cut across the old village of been deemed suspicious since the 1941 attack
Chatan which was divided into two on Pearl Harbor and were forcibly sent back at
administrative regions, the village of Chatan the war’s end from such places as the
and the village of Kadena. In Kadena the base Philippines and New Caledonia. While the
took up 83% of the village’s land, while in population of Okinawa was just above 300,000
Chatan Camp Zukeran occupied 53% of the in the immediate postwar era, the Okinawa
land.21 historian Aniya Masaaki has estimated that by
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1952 there were 170,000 Okinawan
repatriates, and by 1950 the population of
Okinawa had already surpassed the pre-war
26
levels.
Altogether, the ravaged land, the expansion of
permanent military bases and a swelling
population put pressure on a people with few
resources and smuggling between territories
that had all been part of a single Japanese
Empire expanded rapidly.
The Contradiction between Occupation
US Civil Administration of the Ryukyu
Restrictions and Lack of Supplies
Islands (USCAR) HQ
From 1945 to 1950 the US military government
In the immediate post-war period, the military
that controlled the Ryukyu Archipelago in the
government provided up to 80% of food,
wake of the Battle of Okinaw was called the
leaving Okinawans to make up the final 20% to
United States Military Government of the
survive.29 While trade had the potential to fill
Ryukyu Islands (USMGR). From 1950 this was
this 20%, in March 1946, USMGR issued
rebranded as the United States Civilian
Proclamation No. 7, which imposed a ban on
Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR)
foreign currency and foreign trade throughout
which would continue ruling Okinawa until the
the Ryukyu Archipelago.30 Such measures were
islands return of administration to Japan in
driven by the military government’s long-term
1972. 2 7 From 1946 to 1950 the Okinawan
goal of making Okinawa a permanent military
Civilian Administration existed under the
base.
military government, although real power
remained with the US military government. The The immediate postwar years under occupation
Okinawan Civilian Administration was replaced were the strictest. Not until March 1947 were
with the Guntō (military) Government for each Okinawans permitted to move without official
of Okinawa’s four archipelagoes: Amami, papers, and private trade between Japan and
Miyako Okinawa and Yaeyama. The Guntō the Ryukyus would not be legalized until
Governments continued until 1952 when they 1949.31
were replaced with the Government of the
Ryukyus which lasted until 1972. 2 8 The Shortages were not only a problem for
government structure of the Ryukyu Okinawa. The Ryukyu Archipelago can be
Archipelago may have had superficial changes broadly divided into four groups of islands. At
from 1945-1972, but the core of Okinawan the northern end is the Amami group, which
civilians being ruled by an occupying military stretches from northern Okinawa to Kyushu,
force explains some of the dissonance between Japan. South of Amami, is the Okinawa group,
the official reports of USMGR/USCAR and the the most populated region of the archipelago.
behavior of some Okinawans who engaged in While Amami and Okinawa are relatively close
smuggling, as discussed below. together there is a 300-kilometer gap of open
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sea between the two southern island groups, The desperate islanders had little choice but to
which are collectively known as Sakishima.32 cut down sago palms and process these into an
40
The eastern group of Sakishima is the Miyako emergency food source to cope with famine.
group, to the west is the Yaeyama group, of Eating the sago palm raw was poisonous, and
which Yonaguni is just 118-kilometers from while processes such as fermentation could
Taiwan, making it the ideal relay point for nullify this, the sago palm led to islander
trade.33 deaths.41
While Miyako and Yaeyama did not experience For different reasons then, Amami, Okinawa,
a land battle, both groups of islands confronted Miyako and Yaeyama all faced devastating
conditions including death from diseas and
scarce resources in the immediate postwar
malnutrition in the final stages of the war and
period. From the start of the battle of Okinawa,
severe shortage of supplies following it.
imports to Miyako and Yaeyama from Okinawa
were cut off, and with rapid inflation people However, as the US army and Navy was
soon resorted to bartering. In Miyako’s largest planning to launch an attack on mainland Japan
settlement, Hirara, it was common to see after the Battle of Okinawa to force surrender,
women and children at street corners peddling more than half a year of supplies had been
matchsticks, soap and tobacco.34 stored in the camps.42
The people of Yaeyama faced evacuation orders
from the Japanese army, forcing civilians to
take refuge in the mountains and forests of
islands such as Ishigaki, Iriomote and Yonaguni
home to the malaria-transmitting anopheles
mosquito. The orders were in anticipation of
allied troops making landfall in the south of the
Ryukyu Archipelago, something which never
came to pass. Throughout Yaeyama, 53.8% of
the population (16,884 people) became infected
with malaria with 18.2% dying (3,075).35 The
wartime malaria devastated vast swathes of the
population, as in Ōhama village where 89.3%
were infected (4,930) and 20.6% died (1,018).36
One of the most devastated islands was
In Miyako smuggling began as a small
Hateruma where one-third of the population
operation between local islands, but soon
died.37 became part of a larger network that extending
throughout Okinawa, and then to Japan, Taiwan
When the Hateruma islanders were allowed to
and China. 43 Before long many in both Japan
return from Iriomote after half a year, the fields
and Taiwan realized that there was profit to be
lay barren and Japanese soldiers had sacked
made from transporting their goods to and
the islander’s houses. 38 Immediately before throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago.
evacuation the Hateruma islanders had been
ordered to slaughter all livestock, and many Smuggling was so extensive that USCAR
islanders returned to face malnutrition and estimated that fully 60% of Okinawan vessels
malaria.39 were involved in smuggling, to such an extent
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that this held back the development of the came in two colors, a darker ‘Colombo’ and
Okinawan fishing industry.44 lighter ‘khaki’.50
Not all raw materials taken from the Ryukyus
to Japan were scrap and salvage. Of particular
note is the unrefined sugar from both Amami
51
and Okinawa. Sugarcane had been introduced
Routes and Smuggled Goods
to Amami around the early 1600s, and the
Ryukyu Kingdom official Zama Shinjō had
Numerous routes linked the Ryukyus, Japan
overseen the introduction of wringers to create
and Taiwan, then continuing on to Hong Kong,
Macau and mainland China. Smuggling brown, or black sugar as it is known in Japan.52
operations in Okinawa were usually carried out When the Satsuma samurai invaded the Ryukyu
at night, often involving bartering. In general, Kingdom in 1609, they took direct control of
the boats from Yaeyama and Yonaguni were Amami, and by the mid-18th century were
seven to eight tons, from Okinawa 30 to 40 selling sugar in Osaka and other Japanese
tons, and from mainland Japan as large as 100 cities.53 The value of sugar again came to the
tons.
45 fore in the post-war era, with sugar from
Amami and Okinawa sold in the black market in
While those in Japan and Taiwan had greater Japan.
resources, the Okinawans were limited to what
goods they could obtain from the military Overall, the scale of smuggling to Japan was
government, whether donated for civilian use large and hundreds of reports detail the
or stolen. 46 In some cases USCAR released quantities of goods seized by Japanese
surplus goods to Okinawan civilians which went Customs. Goods exported from Japan to the
straight into the black market. By 1951 over Ryukyus ranged from barrels of soy sauce,
USD 100 million of supplies and equipment had pickled vegetables, and fruit to timber. 54 In
been declared surplus and distributed to the addition, there were sewing machines,
Okinawans.47 These items were often channeled medicine, razor blades, green tea and kettles.55
to brokers who stockpiled them for sale in While such necessities were of importance,
Japan, Taiwan or China.48 books, magazines and film were also became
profitable items imported from Japan.
Japanese Customs reports show some of the
items that smugglers attempted to bring into In the case of the Kasuga-Maru, in June 1949 a
Japan, as well as noting the participation of group attempted to smuggle 20,000 books and
Okinawans, Japanese and Korean nationals in magazines into Okinawa but were caught by
the trade. civilian police at Nago.56 The ringleader of this
operation was a repatriated Okinawan who was
Items from Ryukyu include raw materials such also the chairman of the Okinawan Fisheries
as timber, scrap metal (mainly copper, iron and Cooperative who had learned that reading
brass), cotton, rubber, lighter oil and gasoline, materials purchased in mainland Japan could
as well as goods such as US army shirts, other be sold in Okinawa for up to 70 or 80% of its
US clothing, cartridges and metal from guns fixed price.
(both scrap metal), US made toothbrushes, US
cigarettes, and telephones.49 Much of this came The books and magazines were purchased in
directly from the US army, Lucky Strike Tokyo for JPY 300,000 and included an array of
cigarettes were particularly emblematic of the popular magazines such as King, Kodan,
trade, as were the military work clothes which Kurabu, Fujin Sekai, as well as short stories for
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children.57 Okinawans in Kyushu receive the was suspected of smuggling it was escorted to
goods, with the Okinawan League in Beppu, Ishigaki, and seven days later was ordered to
Ōita Prefecture receiving the books and leave Ryukyuan waters. This did not deter the
magazines on multiple occasions in April, Taiwanese smugglers and they were spotted
1949. again off the coast of Yonaguni only a day later.
The three individuals aboard the boat were
The next matter of importance involved hiring a unarmed Taiwanese nationalist soldiers in their
crew for the chartered Kasuga-Maru. This task late twenties and early thirties. Carrying with
had been completed by May 17, 1949, with them for sale on Yonaguni was a cargo of egg,
many crew members bringing their own 62
shrimp, pork, onions and lumber. They were
collection of goods that they hoped to sell in by no means the only Taiwanese who sought to
Okinawa. With the goods loaded aboard, the smuggle to Yonaguni. In December 1949 three
Kasuga-Maru left port from Beppu Harbor Chinese motorhead junks, the Yunghua,
without a permit at 18:00 on May 17.58 On May Hangsheng and Fuchinshum went missing,
18, the ship called at Saeki Harbor, south of most likely stolen for smuggling to Okinawa.63
Beppu at 13:00, and then had to make an
unscheduled stop at Totoro Harbor further Of particular demand in China was scrap metal
south due to engine trouble at around 22:00 at that could be used in the continuing warfare
night. The ship again set out in the middle of between the Communists and the Nationalists
the night on May 19. Yet on May 22, the as well as to rebuild after a prolonged war with
Kasuga-Maru again stopped at Tanegashima Japan. Thus, the main item that was smuggled
south of Kyushu for repairs.59 to China from Ryukyu was non-ferrous
64
metals.
Leaving Tanegashima on May 22 at 20:00 the
ship headed south, where the engine once While scrap metal could be found throughout
again broke down off the coast of Amami Okinawa, this was out of reach of the Chinese
Ōshima, sometime between 10:00 on May 23 due to US military occupation of the
and 18:00 on May 25. The Kasuga-Maru then archipelago. Metal from Okinawa was so
drifted towards northern Okinawa where the lucrative that there ammunition and weapons
smugglers finally reached their destination.60 were stolen from storage locations, individual
quarters and the police. Another commodity
Having arrived at Nakijin on May 28, the books prone to theft was rubber tires, with large
and magazines were unloaded and transported stocks being stolen from military stock or even
to Nago. Meetings then took place to find a vehicles before being transported to Hong
buyer with the private Education Society Kong and Macau.65
agreeing to purchase the materials on May
31.61 The materials were finally seized by the There were also hidden caches of ammunition
Nago police stymying the smugglers, however and weapons from the recent battle throughout
many others pulled off successful smuggling Okinawa. 66 Metal was also taken from the
operations. stocks of private contractors and builders, as
well as from Okinawan agencies.67 Metal was
The desire to sell goods to war-torn Okinawa also lying in plain sight throughout Okinawa, as
also came from Taiwan to the west. One such on the island of Iejima where crates full of
example is the ‘Hai Foo’, a Taiwanese motor shells had been carried ashore for an expected
vessel that was spotted by a Ryukyu Command mainland invasion.68 Moreover, after the war,
headquarters (RYCOM) patrol off the coast of brass shell casings were scattered all over
Yonaguni on September 3, 1950. After the ship Okinawa, and alongside abandoned vessels off
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the coast. Farmers and school children for ‘wealthy person’ and Nijūnichi means 20
collected the metals, which made their way into days (in standard Japanese), roughly the time
the smuggling trade.
69
to make a round trip from Hong Kong to
Okinawa. USCAR was also aware that one
China coast trip in a 35 to 34-ton vessel could
generate profits of US$ 9,000, over one million
Japanese yen. 74 By the 1950s, however, this
vision of Hong Kong as a place to get rich quick
had ended due to oversaturation of Okinawan
goods such as sugar, and the falling price of
metal.75
Yonaguni as a Borderland
The central relay point for smuggling was the
port of Kubura on the island of Yonaguni. From
1895 to 1945 there had been no border
between Taiwan and Yonaguni, after Taiwan
Mound of shell cases in Naha became part of the Japanese Empire following
the defeat of China in the first Sino-Japanese
war.76 The islands had a close relationship, with
Taiwan visible with the naked eye from
As of July 1951, USCAR estimated that at least Yonaguni on a clear day.
50,000 tons of non-ferrous metal had been
removed from throughout the Ryukyu For those in Yonaguni who had access to the
Archipelago, including 1,000 tons of scrap lead neighboring metropolis of Taipei, there were
and 120 tons of co-axial cables.70 state of the art hospitals, luxurious department
stores and an Imperial University, on a level
Taiwanese were also deeply involved in unavailable in Okinawa. People in Yonaguni
smuggling between Okinawa and China. came to think of themselves as more
Forexample, the Taiwanese entrepreneur who cosmopolitan than those further north
first introduced the pineapple industry to throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago.77 Students
Yaeyama, Lin Fa, used his connections to who had recently graduated in Yonaguni would
support the smuggling trade in Okinawa.71 go to Taiwan seeking jobs, the Katsuobushi
(dried tuna) trade between Japan and Taiwan
Customs officers in Hong Kong were also an enriched the island, and while houses
obstacle for Okinawan and Japanese smuggling throughout Okinawa in the pre-war era
vessels. 7 2 However, much smuggling was typically had wooden planking floors, many in
carried out off the coast of Hong Kong, Macau Yonaguni had Tatami mats, as those who had
or mainland China with goods loaded onto gone to work in Taiwan returned home
smaller boats and take them ashore.73 wealthier than the locals.
78
A successful smuggling expedition to Hong After the war many residents of Yonaguni
Kong could make one wealthy. Okinawans continued to look to. In 1946, Yonaguni had a
referred to smuggling to Hong Kong as population of a few thousand but at the peak of
‘Nijūnichi Wēki’, the word Wēki is Okinawan the smuggling era the population swelled to
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15-20,000 and at times as many as 100 ships needs.86 Kubura’s haphazard urbanization also
could gather at Kubura. 7 9 Most of this created jobs to support the smuggling, such as
population was involved in smuggling and just Miyako women who came to Yonaguni to work
87
over 5,000 were registered residents of in the restaurants and bars.
Yonaguni.80
Contrary to the military government’s view of
Yonaguni was a central point in this trade, smuggling, which saw the trade as merely
where goods coming in both directions were opportunistic, testimony from the smugglers
stored, prepared or sold. In some cases, items themselves shows how it served a necessary
brought from Yonaguni to Okinawa that function in the era. Imori Tokio the leader of
originated in China could be sold for twice the the young people’s association on Yonaguni
price; the same was true for Okinawan goods recalls:
brought to Yonaguni that were destined for
China.81 There was antimalaria medicine, tires,
rubber, US military clothes known as
herringbone blouse and trousers, sugar and “In Shōwa 21 (1946) there was one
rice. The island was also a melting pot of occasion when the American army
people, with islanders from Okinawa, Ishigaki delivered supplies to Yonaguni. The
and Miyako, as well as smugglers from across American army was present carrying
numerous bags of rice. But this was only
Japan, Taiwan and China. 82 The island was
on one occasion, after this Yonaguni fell
awash with currency, including US dollars and
into food shortages and there was nothing
military payment certificates, which were
that could be done. Following this,
either stolen or traded to Okinawans by US
numerous ships came to Yaeyama to
troops.83 The local Yaeyaman historian Makino
smuggle, but the Yaeyaman politicians
Kiyoshi (born in 1910) recalls the wealth of
opposed this, and believed we should not
goods flowing through Yonaguni during a time
go near them. I decided then to start
they were hard to find in Okinawa and Japan:
working on a smuggling ship in Yonaguni.
This wasn’t a political problem, it was a
necessity for the people of Kubura to
“Not only was there gold and silver, but survive.88”
the island was overflowing with foodstuffs.
The bananas were really something to
behold. There were sugar and pineapple
processing factories and a wealth of rice, I
have no recollection that finding food was
84 The Role of Women in Smuggling
a problem. ”
The masses of smugglers at Kubura led to the
rapid growth of a small city with the port
gaining the moniker ‘the second Hong Kong’
and ‘the Hawaii of the Orient.’ 85 The streets
resonated with restaurants and bars, Okinawan
theatres, cinemas showing both Japanese and
western films, warehouses and tents that had
sprung up to accommodate the smugglers’
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their male counterparts did, including
offloading goods off the coastKinjō Seiko
recalls some of the macabre details that were
part of bringing smuggled goods to Okinawa,
as bones of the recently deceased lay scattered
across the beaches:
“There was no place to put one's feet, the
bones reflected a pallid white under the
moonlight. When walking, the bones would
crunch under foot, I held my hands
together and walked (thinking) ‘sorry,
Postwar photo of Sabani in Tomari or
Itoman please protect us’.92”
(Naha City Museum of History)
Many women took up smuggling using the
small Okinawan boats known as Sabani to carry
goods. 89 While men took up more prominent
roles as smuggling increased in scale,
numerous women held key positions as leaders
of smuggling operations or as brokers, many
being women from Itoman.90 Kanagusuku Kane
was one of these women. She had returned to
Okinawa from Saipan in 1946 and began Unidentified remains in Itoman (1955)
carrying firewood from Iheyajima to Okinawa.
This soon developed into transporting potatoes
and rice, then exchanging food and clothing
with Okinawan repatriates from Japan, and
eventually to smuggling. Kanagusuku recalls
Occupation Attempts to Crack Down on
that:
Smuggling
The military government tried to crack down on
“From that time anyone who was selling smuggling, but was initially overwhelmed by
was connected somehow or other with the sheer number of cases as well as lack of
smuggling. There was an astounding cooperation from both local and foreign police.
shortage of goods at that time, so the life As late as 1950, USCAR was reporting to
and economics of the people were based General Headquarters of the Far East
on smuggling, so even the police turned a Command (GHQ) in Tokyo that it did not have
blind eye.91 the necessary patrol crafts or personnel to
ensure Ryukyu compliance with local fishing
regulations, let alone smuggling.93
The women involved in smuggling had to do all There were numerous occasions when a
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smuggling ship was apprehended but the whole Okinawan civilians view smuggling as a crime.98
ship or some of the crew were able to escape.94
Ships from the Ryukyu Archipelago could get Nakamura recalls one occasion when he was
as far as Kobe, Yokosuka and Yokohama before ordered to end operations on Yonaguni:
being seized by Japanese authorities, with ships
most often captured at Kagoshima.95 There was,
however, too much coast line throughout the
“One day I was called by Director of
islands of the Ryuyku Archipelago to constantly
Security for the Military Government, Paul
survey, a lack of occupation personnel to
H. Skuse. From White Beach (Uruma City)
oversee a clampdown, and at best halfhearted
I was brought on a Destroyer to Yonaguni
cooperation from local police.
to observe the smuggling trade. I thought I
would have no choice but to obey orders.
This smuggling occurred during a period in
When we arrived at Yonaguni there were
which the military and US government was
many boats which looked as if they were
preoccupied in the late 1940s with smuggling
participating in smuggling. There were
to China as Communist forces emerged
also restaurants and cinemas packed close
victorious.
together, rolls of banknotes were flying
USCAR had only 16 speed boats and harbor about all over the place. The situation was
crafts to patrol the entire Ryukyu Archipelago. out of control. When I returned to the ship,
As late as 1951 USCAR estimated that they Director Skuse said ‘we have to clamp
intercepted only 20% to 30% of the illegal down on smuggling. Please give an order
traffic.96 to the Yonaguni police.’ But I deliberately
99
did not give the order.”
The Okinawan police and guards had other
reasons not to clamp down on smugglers. As
officers in their community, by arresting every
This loyalty to one’s own people rather than the
smuggler, they would be depriving themselves
occupying forces can also be seen in Hong
and their families of food. The Chief of Police
Kong and Macau, where lower ranking police
for the Okinawan Civilian Government,
and customs officials permitted smuggling
Nakamura Kanenobu later commented:
vessels from Okinawa which used false bills of
lading, and how bribing such officials also
allowed smugglers entry.100 USCAR pressed UK
”In society there were goods circulating authorities in Hong Kong to crackdown on
that were not from the US military, goods smuggling there, particularly vessels with
for daily life. These were items that Japanese registration which were carrying oil
prevented people from starving; this is an to be illegally sold, which USCAR feared was
objective fact. If we had followed the US falling into the hands of the Chinese
military’s orders and clamped down (on Communists. 1 0 1 But informants relayed
illegal goods) we would have been cutting information to USCAR that this would only
the lifeline of the people of Okinawa.97” serve to make Macau the center of the
smuggling trade for military supplies to the
Communists in China.102
Since many local police viewed smuggling not By the late 1940s fear of Communism was
as a serious crime but as a necessity there was rapidly gaining ground in the US. In August
little motivation to pursue smugglers. Nor did 1949 the Soviets carried out their first nuclear
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APJ | JF
test. Two months later the People’s Republic of measures used to entice Okinawans away from
China was formed. This prompted plans to smuggling in a 1949 report promoting
revitalize the Japanese economy so it would not legitimate trade “in order to break down area
fall to the Communists, and the beginning of isolation and create surpluses in deficit
the more long-term view of Okinawa as the regions.109” This involved improving access to
‘Keystone of the Pacific’ and the building of credit, the establishment of a strong Ryukyu
permanent military bases with particular Board of Trade in Okinawa and Amami, and the
attention to China.103 improvement of transportation between the
islands.110
For the military government, smuggling which
had always been a concern was now even more International developments also made
so, as it was actively aiding the Communists.104 smuggling to China more difficult. By 1950 the
Nationalists in China had been defeated but
There were also concerns that communist ideas Nationalist gunboats patrolled Taiwanese
would enter the Ryukyus and jeopardize waters. This made it harder both for Taiwanese
occupation rule. In the previously mentioned smugglers to reach Yonaguni and for Yonaguni
case of the Kasuga-Maru, the smuggling vessel smugglers to operate in Taiwan. There were
that attempted to bring 20,000 books and incidents of boats from Yonaguni being fired
magazines from Japan to Okinawa, the upon, and at least one case of a crew member
Americans were particularly concerned that dying.111 With this the fluid borders between
10% of these were dubbed ‘communist Taiwan and Yonaguni were firmly reasserted.
propaganda’.105
1950 was also the year that the prospering
smuggling settlement in Kubura was ended. On
21 June, 1950, four days before the Korean
War, the US Counter Intelligence Corps came
The End of Yonaguni and the to Yonaguni for twenty days to oversee the end
Reappearance of Borders of the island’s role as a smuggling base. This
was reinforced by rumors in mid-1949 that
With the fear of Chinese communism providing masses of weapons and gasoline at Kubura and
an impetus for crackdowns, the age of neighboring Sonai had made their way into the
smuggling mostly ended by the mid-1950s, with hands of the Communists.112
the occupying authorities using both carrot and
stick to clamp down. This article has shown how smuggling was
shaped by Occupation policy and borderland
On 16 October 1948 the military government status of the archipelago that allowed for
announced that trade between Okinawa and relatively free movement at a time when the
Japan would reopen for the first time since the domestic Okinawan economy was suppressed
Battle of Okinawa. 1 0 6 By November 1949 by US policies, notably the expansion of US
Ryukyu-Japan trade was permitted, and in the military bases at the expene of Okinawan
1950s international trade under the supervision farmers. Through smuggling, many in the
of the military government was permitted.107 Ryukyu Archipelago effectively used the
October 1949 also saw the creation of the Bank region’s borderland status to evade authorities
of Ryukyu. With this, private enterprise was and profit, most notable being the smuggling
officially re-established.108 outpost of Yonaguni. Taking advantage of the
long coastline of numerous islands, and the
Colonel Jesse Green explains some of the substantial resources brought to Okinawa by
1419 | 2 | 2
APJ | JF
the US military, the people were able to Manuscript. September 1950. Okinawa
address resource shortages through the black Prefecture Archives Entry 34173 B / Box 14.
market. While smuggling was branded a crime
by the US military authorities, many Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance
Okinawans, facing extreme poverty in the wake (Japan). Quick Report 424-454-254, May-June
of the Battle of Okinawa and loss of their land 1949. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
and livelihood, viewed it as a necessity for Archives Okinawa Prefecture Archives RG 338 /
survival. Since smuggling was illegal, it has not Entry 34173 A /Box 6.
been commemorated in the post-war national
Colonel Green, Jesse P. Deputy Chief of Staff
memory compared with other events such as
Military Government of the Ryukyu Islands.
life in the internment camps, but it is
Smuggling. 16th July 1949. Manuscript.
nevertheless central to the experience of those
Okinawa Prefectural Archives APO 331.
throughout the Ryukyu Archipelago in the
years after the Battle of Okinawa. Oguma, Eiji. "Nihonjin" No kyô k ai Okinawa,
Ainu, Taiwan, Chô s en: Shokuminchi Shihai
Kara Fukki undô Made = The Boundaries of the
Japanese. Tôkyô: Shinyôsha, 2012.
General Headquarters Far East Command.
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Ibrahim Jalal completed his postgraduate studies (MA) at Waseda University’s Graduate
School of Pacific Studies (GSAPS) on the Yaeyama Archipelago’s position as a borderland. A
historical work on another historically peripheral area of Japan by the author, ‘Hokkaido – A
History of Japan’s Northern Isle and it’s People’ (Earnshaw Books) is scheduled for
publication in 2021.
Notes
1
Nario Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen (Yoshikawakobunkan, 2011).
2
Yasuhito Koike, Ryukyu Retto No Mitsuboeki to Kyokaisen: 1949-1951 (Shinwasha, 2015).
3
Oguma Eiji, "Nihonjin" No kyôkai Okinawa, Ainu, Taiwan, Chôsen: Shokuminchi Shihai Kara
Fukki undô Made (Tôkyô: Shinyôsha, 2012).
4
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen Ron
8 Joseishi (Haebaru: Okinawa ken kyōiku iinkai, 2016), 342.
5
Iwashita Akihiro, Nyūmon kokkyōgaku: ryōdo Shuken ideorogī (Tōkyō: Chūō Kōron Shinsha,
2016).
6
Pedro Iacobelli and Hiroko Matsuda, eds., Rethinking Postwar Okinawa: beyond American
Occupation (Lexington Books, 2019).
7
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 52.
8
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
9
Okuno Shūji, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō (Tōkyō: Bungei Shunjū, 2007), 15.
10
Tomiyama Kazuyuki, Ryūkyū, Okinawa Shi No Sekai (Tōkyō: Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, 2003),
77.
11
Arasaki Moriteru, Nihon Ni Totte Okinawa Towa Nani Ka (Tōkyō: Kabushiki Gaisha Iwanami
Shoten, 2016), 4.
12
Machida Munehiro, Kinjō Hiroyuki, and Miyauchi Hisamitsu, Yakudō Suru Okinawakei Imin:
Burajiru Hawai o chūshin Ni (Tōkyō: Sairyūsha, 2013), 59.
13
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 3.
14
Ibid, 42.
15
Okuno Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 15.
16
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 55.
17
“証言集 沖縄県史第9巻（1971年琉球政府編）及び同第10巻,” 証言集:沖縄戦関係資料閲覧室 - 内閣府, accessed October 10,
2020, 1054.
18
Ibid, 1090-1091.
19
Ibid, 1054.
20
Maeda Tetsuo, "Okinawa" Kichi Mondai o Shiru Jiten (Tōkyō: Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, 2014),
3.
21
Ibid.
22
Ibid, 4.
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23
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 224.
24
Takeshi Miki, Kūhaku No Iminshi: Nyūkaredonia to Okinawa (Naha: Shinema Okinawa,
2017), 117.
25
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 340.
26
Munehiro et al, Yakudō Suru Okinawakei Imin: Burajiru Hawai o chūshin Ni, 16-19.
27
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 270.
28
Ibid.
29
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 148.
30
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 368.
31
Ibid, 376.
32
Higa Masao, Okinawa Kara Ajia Ga Mieru (Tōkyō: Iwanami Shoten, 1999), 44.
33
Umi No kurosurōdo Yaima (Naha: Okinawa Kenritsu Hakubutsukan Bijutsukan, 2010), 7.
34
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 366.
35
Umi No kurosurōdo Yaima (Naha: Okinawa Kenritsu Hakubutsukan Bijutsukan, 2010), 23.
36
Ibid.
37
Ōya Hanayo, Okinawa "Sensō Mararia": kyōsei Sokaishi 3600-Nin No shinsō Ni Semaru
(Tōkyō: Akebi Shobō, 2020), 4.
38
“証言集 沖縄県史第9巻（1971年琉球政府編）及び同第10巻,” 証言集:沖縄戦関係資料閲覧室 - 内閣府,
accessed October 10, 2020, 170.
39
Ibid, 176.
40
Ibid.
41
Ibid, 176 - 177.
42
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 137.
43
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 372.
44
USCAR & RYCOM. smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
45
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 146.
46
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 15.
47
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
48
Ibid.
49
Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance (Japan). Illegal import(export) trade from(to)
Ryukyu (and Amami Oshima) Report 148-165. Manuscript. September 1950. Okinawa
Prefecture Archives Entry 34173 B / Box 14.
50
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 24-25.
51
Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance (Japan). Quick Report 424-454-254, May-June 1949.
Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives Okinawa Prefecture Archives RG 338 / Entry
34173 A /Box 6
52
Tanigawa Kenichi, ed., Okinawa Amami to Yamato (Dōsesisha , 1986), 76.
1819 | 2 | 2
APJ | JF
53
Nagoshi Mamoru, Amami No Saimu Dorei Yanchu (Kagoshima: Nanpō Shinsha, 2006), 38.
54
Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance (Japan). Illegal import(export) trade from(to)
Ryukyu (and Amami Oshima) Report 148-165. September 1950. Manuscript. Okinawa
Prefecture Archives Entry 34173 B / Box 14.
55
Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance (Japan). Illegal export trade to Amami Oshima
(Okinawa) Quick Report 471-364-225-723. October 1948 – June 1949. Manuscript. Okinawa
Prefectural Archives Okinawa Prefecture Archives RG 338 / Entry 34173 A /Box 6.
56
Office of the Military Governor of the Ryukyu Islands. Smuggling of Books into Okinawa
from Japan. 24th August 1949. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives APO 331.
57
Nago Police Station. XXXX and Thirteen (13) Others, smuggling from JAPAN proper to
OKINAWA – 1st report of. 20th June 1949. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives 400-49.
58
Ibid.
59
Idid.
60
Idid.
61
Idid.
62
General Headquarters Far East Command. Incoming Message. 19th September 1950.
Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives RG 338/ Entry 34173 B / Box 14.
63
General Headquarters Far East Command. Outgoing Message. 24th November 1950.
Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives RG 338/ Entry 34173 B / Box 14
64
USCAR & RYCOM. smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
65
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
66
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 210.
67
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
68
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 215.
69
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
70
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
71
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 222.
72
Ibid, 219.
73
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
74
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa. 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z
75
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 229.
76
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 239.
77
Oguma Makoto, "Kyōkai" o Koeru Okinawa: Hito, Bunka, Minzoku (Tōkyō: Shinwasha,
2016).
78
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 42-43.
79
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 143-145.
1919 | 2 | 2
APJ | JF
80
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 52.
81
Ibid, 25.
82
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 143.
83
USCAR & RYCOM. smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
84
Okuno. Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 144.
85
Ibid, 51.
86
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 145.
87
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 372.
88
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 146.
89
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 372.
90
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 146.
91
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 375.
92
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 27.
93
General Headquarters Far East Command. Outgoing Message. 29th December 1950.
Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives RG 338/ Entry 34173 B / Box 14
94
General Headquarters Far East Command. Outgoing Message. 7th November 1950.
Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives RG 338/ Entry 34173 B / Box 14
95
Bureau of Customs, Ministry of Finance (Japan). Illegal import(export) trade from(to)
Ryukyu (and Amami Oshima) Report 148-165. September 1950. Manuscript. Okinawa
Prefectural Archives RG 338/ Entry 34173 B / Box 14
96
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
97
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 147.
98
Okuno. Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 25-26.
99
Kabira, Okinawa Kuhaku No Ichi Nen, 148.
100
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
101
United States Civil Administration of Ryukyu Islands. Smuggling of oil from Okinawa to
Hong Kong and Macau. 25th June 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives DA 94895
102
USCAR & RYCOM. Smuggling in Okinawa, 3rd July 1951. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural
Archives 031030Z.
103
Arasaki, Nihon Ni Totte Okinawa Towa Nani Ka, 18.
104
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 347.
105
Office of the Military Governor of the Ryukyu Islands. Smuggling of Books into Okinawa
from Japan. 24th August 1949. Manuscript. Okinawa Prefectural Archives APO 331
106
Okinawa Ken Kyoikuchō Bunka Zaika Shiryō Henshūhan, ed., Okinawa Ken Shi Kakuhen
Ron 8 Joseishi, 376.
107
Ibid.
108
Okuno, Natsuko: Okinawa mitsubōeki No Joō, 263.
109
Colonel Green, Jesse P. Deputy Chief of Staff Military Government of the Ryukyu Islands.
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