Tokyo – Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has determined that Doshisha International High School violated the Basic Act on Education's requirement for political neutrality in its peace studies program centered on the contentious U.S. base relocation at Henoko, Okinawa.
The ruling, announced Thursday by Education Minister Yohei Matsumoto, marks the first time the ministry has formally recognized a violation of the Basic Act on Education on grounds of political neutrality. The case emerged following a March 16 accident in which two small boats carrying 18 students from the Kyoto-based school capsized off Henoko, killing one female student and a boat captain.
Watch what they do, not what they say. In East Asian diplomacy, the subtext is the text.
The boats belonged to the Helicopter Base Opposition Council, a civic group protesting the relocation of U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma to Henoko. Both vessels were regularly used for protest activities at sea – a fact ministry investigators say teachers at the school were aware of.
"It could not be confirmed that various views had been sufficiently presented, including in the pre- and post-trip learning, and the handling appears to have been biased toward a particular viewpoint or way of thinking," the ministry stated in its findings.
The investigation, conducted April 24 through voluntary interviews with school officials and Kyoto Prefecture education authorities, revealed several troubling safety lapses: a high wave advisory was in effect on the day of the accident, no teachers accompanied students on the boats, the school conducted no prior site inspection, and the institution's crisis management manual contained deficiencies.
Beyond safety concerns, the ministry focused on the educational content. Doshisha International High School had previously brought students to the Henoko Tent Village, where sit-in protests against the base relocation were held. A guidebook used during these visits included a message from the Helicopter Base Opposition Council stating, "Those who support our actions should first sit in with us."
