Filipino, Japanese activists protest alleged rapes by US servicemen

PHILIPPINES: Filipino and Japanese activists marked International Women's Day a day early by marching to the U.S. Embassy in Manila to demand the prosecution of American servicemen accused of raping a Japanese girl and a Filipino woman in Okinawa.

About 100 members of the Unity of Women group and four Japanese activists protested the U.S. military presence in their countries Friday, saying American troops pose a threat to women and children.

"Abuse of women and children abounds where U.S. military personnel are stationed - this is true in Japan and Korea as well as Mindanao," said group spokeswoman Virginia Suarez Pinlac, referring to the southern Philippine region where U.S. counterterrorism troops arm and train Filipino soldiers battling al-Qaida-linked militants.

Japanese activist Susumu Omori, a member of the Santama Peace Cycle group, said it was angered by the alleged rapes in Okinawa. "The criminals should be punished by Philippine law and Japanese law," he said.

The U.S. courts-martial protect their own soldiers, evading the judgments of the Philippine or Japanese courts, he added. Last month, American and Japanese officials said a U.S. serviceman was under investigation for the alleged sexual assault of a Filipino woman on the southern island of Okinawa.

Manila, Friday, AP