Misa Sakurabayashi at ZakZak has been devoted to covering the SDF’s response to the recent triple disaster in Tohoku, and her latest article is just one example of the respect she holds for Japan’s servicemen and women:
For Others: Forgoing Basic Necessities, SDF are ‘Self-Sufficient’
Equipment such as this field cooking trailer, powered by a generator, is one example of self-sufficiency, but the SDF have it in among each other too
Among the people who have been to the disaster area, you often hear: “There was plenty of accommodation for relief works, but there were no SDF members staying there.”
While it sounds unfortunate, for the SDF it is completely natural.
The SDF is an organization with the ability to be self-sufficient, i.e. they can handle anything by themselves. Even on deployment for their disaster relief mission, they have no need for accommodation: they just put up their tents and make their own food. Within the organization, they characteristically respond immediately to the members’ needs by supplying necessary equipment.
During the current disaster, the all-terrain Type-96 Wheeled Armored Personnel Carrier (WAPC) was dispatched for use as emergency transportation, with hand-rails and steps installed to make it easier for victims of the disaster to get on and off. Furthermore, such demands are requested ‘as soon as possible’.
First, after assembling the necessary parts and materials, the GSDF Kanto Logistics Depot quickly gets to work. After much thought, the vehicles are given fresh life as easy-to-board, safe transportation.
“We went without sleep for 3 days…” One staff member recalled.
In response to the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear accident, the MSDF received barges from the US for towing ships: one large tugboat (multi-purpose support vessel) and three yard tugboats (for use inside docks).
To protect these boats from the radiation, the Construction Department of the Yokosuka Logistics and Repair Depot made the inside of the boats air-tight and used tungsten sheets to protect the pilothouse.
The decision to implement these measures came on the evening of March 24th: with towing operations scheduled to begin the next morning, the staff begin their ‘hellish work’.
Furthermore, as the boats were to be sent to Onahama (in Iwaki, Fukushima), construction work continued on the ground.
Such struggles at the ‘rear’, apart from the spectacle of the disaster relief mission, failed to be noticed by the public. Yet without these men, the SDF’s operations would not have been possible. The SDF’s ‘self-sufficiency’ does not mean that it does not need the power of its people. Rather it is about ‘Only the power of the people”. It is the same in their families.
This is what one SDF member felt at his home during rest and recuperation, the day before they return to the disaster zone. His wife and daughter were waiting patiently.
“Here, take this.”
They handed over a string of 1000 origami cranes. It took only three days to make, they said. “Thank you…” They shared as they welled up with emotion.
Self-sufficient – but the SDF is made up of people standing arm in arm.
Please feel free to look at the Japanese article and offer some translation suggestions – there were quite a few things I struggled with in there – but hopefully most of the meaning is on the nose.
I am considering looking at some of Miss Sakurabayashi’s other articles at ZakZak, she is certainly covering an interesting human-interest angle.
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A former contributor to World Intelligence (Japan Military Review), James Simpson joined Japan Security Watch in 2011, migrating with his blog Defending Japan. He has a Masters in Security Studies from Aberystwyth University and is currently living in Kawasaki, Japan.
His primary interests include the so-called 'normalization' of Japanese security (i.e. militarization), and the political impact of the abduction issue with North Korea.
James Simpson has 254 post(s) on Japan Security Watch
3 comments
Gray says:
Jun 7, 2011
Miss Sakurabayashi is a long time commentator on the JSDF, both in print and on tv, and can be considered one of the public faces of the defense forces. She has written some interesting things about them but from what I've seen she suffers somewhat form a lack of critical analysis. He writing is frequently overly enthusiastic or supportive rather than taking a more balanced look at the pro and cons of particular topics or situations.
I certainly am not chiding her support for the defense forces, before Tohoku, she was one of the few who highlighted their input to Japan's security, and that of the broader defense industry, in human terms. At the same time, to properly support any issue, you have to be aware of and willing to admit to flaws and failings.
Of her writing I'd recommend "The defense industry no one speaks of" (誰も語らなかった防衛産業 ) purely for the relevance of the topics discussed. As my reading ability remains atrocious I'm still trying to work through it at a basic level and can't offer any reliable review of the arguments made.
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James Simpson says:
Jun 8, 2011
I hear you, she is a cheerleader – like many military otaku. What I find interesting is the human side that I think is often missed in English language coverage but which is important to know in order to understand the culture and self-image of the SDF. It's absolutely right though that such positive coverage is missing a lot of good that could come from approaching the issues more critically.
Thanks for the recommendation though, but I'm in an even more rickety boat as far as my reading goes
I'll put it on the to-do list 
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Sankei sits down with Commander of Joint Disaster Response Taskforce says:
Jun 29, 2011
[...] nutrition from canned rations and having to refrain from using the bathroom in the field. This, as other translations at JSW have shown, has been a large part of the coverage of the SDF’s relief operations. The SDF have been [...]