Armed GSDF troops march through a shopping mall in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, on Sept. 17.

It was the first time troops from the local garrison paraded in the mall with weapons. Wearing combat fatigues and carrying rifles and bayonets, the GSDF personnel marched about 1 km in the center of the city.

"This is an outrageous act that intimidates the public and glorifies military activities," one of the activists said.

Troops from Sasebo's Ainoura garrison began parading in the city in 2002 to mark the garrison's founding day.

Partly because the 2002 parade was part of ceremonies to mark the 100th anniversary of Sasebo's founding, GSDF members did not carry weapons in the mall, heeding the city's advice it could be considered "provocative."

In 2003 and 2004, the garrison skipped the shopping mall and paraded on a nearby national road with weapons, with GSDF officials expressing hope the public would see the troops "as they really are."

GSDF units across Japan normally hold anniversary parades inside their garrisons.

The Japan Times Weekly: Sept. 24, 2005
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