Article: Women finding a voice: Okinawan activists discover strength of purpose in battle to reduce U.S. troop presence.(Originated from Knight-Ridder Newspapers)

NAHA, Japan _ Politics in Japan could hardly be considered a female sport.

In a nation where few women even dare entertain the notion of a full-time career, only a handful have ever achieved significant political power. And most companies expect their female employees to quit by age 30 to have babies.

But in the fight to end the Pentagon's 50-year military domination over the island of Okinawa, a group of grass-roots female activists _ especially those who attended the 1995 United Nations Women's Conference in Beijing _ became a crucial force in Sunday's unprecedented islandwide referendum asking U.S. troops to leave.

``They transformed the discussion ...

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