Over 70% of voters reject U.S. base transfer in Okinawa referendum

More than 70 percent of voters in Okinawa rejected a decades-old plan to relocate a U.S. air base within the prefecture in a referendum on Sunday, giving fresh impetus to the Okinawa government's attempt to stop the transfer.The prefectural referendum is viewed as no more than symbolic, however, as the result is not binding on Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government, which has already pushed ahead with work to build a replacement facility for U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma.The central government will stick to the plan but may face public backlash if it continues to ignore the Okinawa …READ FULL ARTICLE