The action was carried out as a sit-in protest.
The US helipads building was halted 2 years ago, but today, on the 22nd of July, it was launched again. In particular, the people are worried that helipads could be used by the Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, which is believed to be defective.
In exchange for construction of six helipads, the United States agreed in 1996 to return to Japan almost half of the 17,500 acres of land in the Yanbaru jungles, exploited by the US forces as a training camp. In its turn, the government of Japan had constructed 2 helipads, but building of four more was suspended in 2014, because of the public disaffection.