Саипан: Крупнейший остров и столица Северных Марианских островов

Largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands

Saipan (/s//aɪ/'/p//æ//n/) is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a commonwealth of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Census Bureau, the population of Saipan was 43,385, a decline of 10% from its 2010 count of 48,220. The legislative and executive branches of Commonwealth government are located in the village of Capitol Hill on the island while the judicial branch is headquartered in the village of Susupe. Since the entire island is organized as a single municipality, most publications designate Saipan as the Commonwealth's capital. As of 2023, Saipan's mayor is Ramon Camacho and the governor of the Northern Mariana Islands is Arnold Palacios. The island is home to the majority of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas population, and home to many resorts, golf courses, beaches, nature sites, and WW2 historical sites. The people here are United States citizens since the 1980s, uniquely they had never been a part of the US before this, with about 400 years of Spanish rule, then about 15 years of German rule, and then 30 years of Japanese rule. The island after WW2 was put in United Nations Trust to determine its fate, along with rest of the Northern Marianas. After failing to reunify with Guam, which was also home to the Chamorro people, the islands joined the United States as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana islands. Saipan was hit by one of the strongest hurricane/typhoons ever to hit the United States in 2018, Typhoon Yutu, causing widespread damage.

Traces of human settlements on Saipan have been found by archaeologists ranging over 4,000 years, including petroglyphs, ancient Latte Stones, and other artifacts pointing to cultural affinities with Melanesia and with similar stone monuments in Micronesia and Palau.

Saipan, together with Tinian, was possibly first sighted by Europeans by the Spanish expedition of Ferdinand Magellan, when it made a landing in the southern Marianas on March 6, 1521. It is likely Saipan was sighted by Gonzalo Gómez de Espinosa in 1522 on board of Spanish ship Trinidad, which he commanded after the death of Ferdinand Magellan who died in the Battle of Mactan in Cebu, Philippines. This is likely to have occurred after the sighting of the Maug Islands between the end of August and the end of September 1522. Gonzalo de Vigo deserted in the Maugs from Gomez de Espinosa's Trinidad and during the next four years, living with the local indigenous Chamorro people, visited thirteen main islands in the Marianas and possibly Saipan among them. The first clear evidence of Europeans arriving to Saipan was by the Manila galleon Santa Margarita commanded by Juan Martínez de Guillistegui, that wrecked on the island in February 1600 and whose survivors stayed on it for two years, until 250 were rescued by the Santo Tomas and the Jesus María. The Spanish formally occupied the island in 1668, with the missionary expedition of Diego Luis de San Vitores who named it San José. After 1670, it became a port of call for Portuguese, Spanish, occasional English, Dutch and French ships as a supply station for food and water. The native population shrank dramatically due to European introduced diseases and conflicts over land. The Chamorros were forcibly relocated to Guam fearing the spread of leprosy in 1720 for better control and assimilation. Under Spanish rule, the island was developed into ranches for raising cattle and pigs, which were used as provision for Spanish galleons originating from the Philippines on their way to Mexico vice versa. Around 1815, many Carolinians from Satawal settled Saipan during a period when the Chamorros were imprisoned on Guam, which resulted in a significant loss of land and rights for the Chamorro natives. The Caroline Islands suffered from a devastating typhoon destroying crops. initial leader of this company was an individual named "Chief Aghurubw" their leader sailed to Guam and asked the Spanish governor permission to settle on the islands. The Spaniards allowed Chief Aghurubw to settle on the island of Saipan The Marianas archipelago was under the protectorate of Spanish General Government of the Philippines, which the Guardia Civil and Macabebe soldiers of the Province of Pampanga frequently made port calls to the islands ensuring law and order.

After the Spanish–American War of 1898, Saipan was occupied by the United States. However, it was then sold by Spain to the German Empire in 1899. The island was administered by Germany as part of German New Guinea, but during the German period, there was no attempt to develop or settle the island, which remained under the control of its Spanish and mestizo landowners.

In 1914, during World War I, the island was captured by the Empire of Japan. Japan was awarded formal control of the island in 1919 by the League of Nations as a part of its mandated territory of the South Seas Mandate. Militarily and economically, Saipan was one of the most important islands in the mandate and became the center of subsequent Japanese settlement. Immigration began in the 1920s by ethnic Japanese, Koreans, Taiwanese and Okinawans, who developed large scale sugar plantations. The South Seas Development Company built sugar refineries and, under Japanese rule, extensive infrastructure development occurred, including the construction of port facilities, waterworks, power stations, paved roads and schools, along with entertainment facilities and Shinto shrines. By October 1943, Saipan had a civilian population of 29,348 Japanese settlers and 3,926 Chamorro and Carolinian Islanders.

Japan considered Saipan to be part of the last line of defenses for the Japanese homeland, and thus had strongly committed to defending it. The Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy garrisoned Saipan heavily from the late 1930s, building numerous coastal artillery batteries, shore defenses, underground fortifications and an airstrip. In mid 1944, nearly 30,000 troops were based on the island. The Battle of Saipan, from June 15 to July 9, 1944, was one of the major campaigns of World War II. The United States Marine Corps and United States Army landed on the beaches of the south western side of the island and, after more than three weeks in heavy fighting, captured the island from the Japanese. The battle cost the Americans 3,426 killed and 10,364 wounded. Of the estimated 30,000 Japanese defenders, only 921 were taken prisoner. The weapons used, and the tactics of close quarter fighting, also resulted in high civilian casualties. Some 20,000 Japanese civilians perished during the battle, including over 1,000 who jumped from "Suicide Cliff" and "Banzai Cliff" rather than be taken prisoner. Seabees of the U. S. Navy also landed, to initiate construction projects. With the capture of Saipan, the American military was only 1300 mile (2092 km)
from the Japanese home islands, which placed most Japanese cities within striking distance of United States' B 29 Superfortress bombers. The loss of Saipan was a heavy blow to both the military and civilian administration of Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tōjō, who was forced to resign. The wartime history is interpreted on Saipan at American Memorial Park and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Museum of History and Culture. After the war, nearly all of the surviving Japanese settlers were repatriated to Japan. After WW2 the U. S. bases on Saipan closed or were converted to other purposes, for example the Naval Advance Base Saipan from 1962 to 1986 was the headquarters for the U. N Trusteeship.

After World War II, Saipan became part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, administered by the United States. After WW2 the island put in U. N. Trust which allowed many of the islands that had been liberated to chart a course. The Northern Marianas settled on joining the United States. Since 1978, the island has been a municipality of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. East Field airbase was used as an airport until the 1960s, after its military use ended in 1946. Later on the area was made into a golf course.

On November 4, 1986, the islanders of the Northern Marianas including Saipan became United States citizens and the Northern Marianas formally became a part of the United States of America. This meant that U. S. citizens could visit or live in Saipan and the rest of the CNMI without a passport and vice versa.

Saipan is the largest island in the Northern Mariana Islands. It is about 120 mile (193 km) north of Guam and northeast of Tinian, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. Saipan is about 12 mile (19 km) long and 5.6 mile (9 km) wide, with a land area of
The western side of the island is lined with sandy beaches and an offshore coral reef creates a large lagoon. The eastern shore is composed primarily of rugged rocky cliffs and a reef. A narrow underwater bank of Marpi Reef lies 28 mile (45 km) north of the Saipan, and CK Reef lies in the west of the island. The highest elevation on Saipan is a limestone covered mountain called Mount Tapochau at 1560 feet (475 m). Unlike many of the mountains in the Mariana Islands, it is not an extinct volcano but is a limestone formation. To the north of Mount Tapochau towards Banzai Cliff, is a ridge of hills. Mount Achugao, situated about 2 miles north, has been interpreted to be a remnant of a stratified composite volcanic cone whose Eocene center was not far north of the present peak. Saipan has some additional semi attached islets, one of which being Bird Island, which is a nature reserve for birds. It is connected to Saipan only at low tide. Forbidden Island is similar, but larger on the south east side of Saipan. Mañagaha is a small 100 acre island off the west coast, and is a popular tourist destination. Access is by ferry, which is about ten minutes from the mainland. An underwater limestone canvern called the Grotto, is up to 20 meters (70 feet) deep.

The flora of Saipan is predominantly limestone forest. Some developed areas on the island are covered with Leucaena leucocephala, also known as "tangan tangan" trees, which were spread broadly sometime after World War II. Tangan Tangan trees were introduced, primarily, as an erosion prevention mechanism, due to the decimation of the landscape brought on by World War II. Remaining native forest occurs in small isolated fragments on steep slopes at low elevations and highland conservation areas of the island. Coconuts, papayas, and Thai hot peppers – locally called "donni' såli" or "boonie peppers" – are among the fruits that grow wild. Mangoes, taro root, breadfruit (locally called "Lemai"), and bananas are a few of the many foods cultivated by local families and farmers. Saipan is home to multiple endemic bird species. Among them: the Mariana fruit dove, white throated ground dove, bridled white eye, golden white eye, Micronesian myzomela and the endangered Saipan reed warbler. The island used to have a large population of giant African land snails, introduced either deliberately as a food source, or accidentally by shipping, which became an agricultural pest. In the last few decades, its numbers have been substantially controlled by an introduced flatworm, Platydemus manokwari.

Saipan has a borderline tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af)/tropical monsoon climate (Köppen Am), moderated by seasonal trade winds from the northeast from November to March, and easterly winds from May to October. Average year round maximum temperature is There is little seasonal temperature variation, and Saipan has been cited by the Guinness Book of World Records as having the least fluctuating temperatures in the world. However, the temperature is affected by elevation; hence, the island shows considerable variations between the coastal and mountainous areas. The drier season runs from December to June and the rainier season from July to November. Typhoon season runs from July to December, and Saipan, along with the rest of the Mariana Islands, is subject to at least one typhoon each year.

Music on Saipan can generally be broken down into three categories: local, mainland American, and Asian. Local consists of Chamorro, Carolinian, Micronesian Hawaiian Reggae and Palauan music, often with traditional dance for many occasions. Mainland American consists of much of the same music that can be found on U. S. radio. Asian consists of Japanese, Korean, Thai and Philippine music, among others. There are seven radio stations on Saipan, which play mainly popular and classic English language songs as well as local and Philippine music. In 2017, an album called Music Of The Marianas: Made In Saipan Vol.1, featured 20 songs from a diverse collection of CNMI artists, released by 11th World Productions. The CD features artists ranging from Church choral works, to mellow acoustic works, and underground island hip hop. Latte Stones (old stones structures from the island's past), Mount Tapochau (highest point with views of Saipan), this site is known for its views and its possible to see other islands on clear day and is topped by statue of Jesus Christ. Last Command Post (War history site of a Japanese command post in the WW2 Battle of Saipan), Bird Island Sanctuary beach (beach by Bird Island sanctuary), faces east. There is also a Bird Island observatory to the south for observing the birds), Forbidden Island, this small island connected to Saipan is connected at low tide and can be hiked onto, but at high tide the water separates it. There is a lookout near this small island., NMI Museum of History and Culture, and The Grotto, a large underwater limestone cavern. When the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) expired in 2005, thus eliminating quotas on textile exports to the United States, Saipan's garment factories started closing one after another. From a high of 34 garment factories in the late 1990s, By March 2007, 19 companies manufactured garments on Saipan. In addition to many foreign owned and run companies, many well known U. S. brands also operated garment factories in Saipan for much of the last three decades. Brands included Gap, Levi Strauss, Phillips Van Heusen, Abercrombie & Fitch, L'Oreal subsidiary Ralph Lauren (Polo), Lord & Taylor, Tommy Hilfiger, and Walmart. By January 15, 2009, the island's last garment factory shuttered their doors. On November 28, 2009, the federal government took control of immigration to the Northern Mariana Islands. More recently, casino gaming has come to Saipan with at least five casinos now operating on the island. As of 2016, Imperial Pacific International Holdings, a Chinese company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (but majority owned by billionaire businesswoman Cui Lijie), which develops and operates casinos, hotels, and restaurants in CNMI, was reportedly the largest taxpayer in Saipan. In 2014, Imperial Pacific was granted a 25 year license to build and operate casinos on Saipan with an option to extend the license for another 15 years. The Imperial Pacific Resort, still unfinished as of June 2019, is set to include a luxury hotel, casino, restaurants, retail space, and leisure facilities. The complex was supposed to be completed by August 2018. The existing casinos are already handling over $2 billion monthly in VIP bets, more than the largest casinos in Macau, leading to accusations of money laundering. There has been criticism by local doctors after dead and seriously injured Chinese workers have appeared at the hospital, often illegally working under tourist visas.

Jack Abramoff and his law firm were paid at least $6.7 million by the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) from 1995 to 2001 to change and/or prevent Congressional action regarding the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and businesses on Saipan, its capital, commercial center, and one of its three principal islands. Later lobbying efforts involved mailings from a Ralph Reed marketing company and bribery of Roger Stillwell, a Department of the Interior official who in 2006 pleaded guilty to accepting gifts from Abramoff.

On March 23, 2017, one of Imperial Pacific's Chinese construction workers fell off a scaffold and died. This led the Federal Bureau of Investigation to search one of Imperial Pacific's offices and make an arrest. On February 15, 2018, Bloomberg Businessweek published an investigative report on the circumstances surrounding the death of this construction worker. An attorney for the Torres Brothers law firm which represented this worker said the report omitted several facts about the case. Imperial Pacific disputed all allegations of wrongdoing and sued Bloomberg for defamation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and U. S. Department of Homeland Security investigated the case and charged five individuals with harboring undocumented workers. Companies linked to the governing Torres family have close links to the corporation, receiving $126,000 in 2017. Saipan's population was 48,220, a drop of 22.7% from the 2000 US Census; the population decrease is largely attributed to working immigrants and their families either returning to their home countries after the collapse of the garment industry or moving to other locations with economic opportunities such as Guam and the United States mainland. The population of Saipan corresponds to approximately 90% of the population of the Northern Mariana Islands. Large numbers of Filipino, Chinese, Bangladeshi, Nepalese and smaller numbers of Sri Lankan and Burmese unskilled workers and professionals migrated to the Northern Mariana Islands including Saipan during the late 1900s, mostly during the 1980s and 1990s. In addition, a large percentage of the island's population includes first generation immigrants and their descendants from Japan, China, Korea, the Philippines, Bangladesh and immigrants from other Micronesian islands. According to the 2010 United States Census, Saipan was 50.9% Asian (35.3% Filipino, 6.8% Chinese, 4.2% Korean, 1.5% Japanese, 0.9% Bangladeshi, 0.5% Thai, 0.4% Nepalese, 0.3% Other Asian), 34.9% Pacific Islander (23.9% Chamorro, 4.6% Carolinian, 2.3% Chuukese, 2.2% Palauan, 0.8% Pohnpeian, 0.4% Yapese, 0.1% Kosraean, 0.1% Marshallese, and 0.5% Other Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander), 2.1% White and 0.2% others.

Saipan was a major part of the plot in the Tom Clancy novel Debt of Honor. The 1960 movie Hell to Eternity tells the true life story of GI Guy Gabaldon's role in convincing 800 Japanese soldiers to surrender during the WWII Battle of Saipan. Key to Gabaldon's success was his ability to speak Japanese fluently due to having been raised in the 1930s by a Japanese American foster family. Much of the action in the 2002 film Windtalkers takes place during the invasion of Saipan during World War II. In 2011, a Japanese film about Captain Sakae Ōba took place in Saipan. Titled Oba: The Last Samurai, it revolved around Oba holding out on Saipan until December 1, 1945. A significant part of the novel Amrita by Japanese author Banana Yoshimoto takes place in Saipan with regular references to the landscape and spirituality of the island. Saipan is the setting for the P. F. Kluge novel The Master Blaster. This novel is structured as first person narratives of five characters, four of whom arrive on the same flight, and the unfolding of their experiences on the island. The book weaves together a mysterious tale of historical fiction with reference to Saipan's multi ethnic past, from Japanese colonization to American WWII victory and the post Cold War evolution of the island. The Master Blaster is the home grown anonymous critic who blogs about the corruption and exploitation by developers, politicians, and government officials. Saipan is known in the association football community as the site of the training camp for the Republic of Ireland national football team prior to the 2002 FIFA World Cup in which an incident of heated argument occurred between then captain Roy Keane and then manager Mick McCarthy, which eventually led to the dismissal and departure of Keane from the squad. This incident has come to be known colloquially as "the Saipan incident" or "the Saipan saga". In 2016, a horror film directed by Hiroshi Katagiri was released on Netflix titled Gehenna: Where Death Lives in which American developers encounter a supernatural entity in a World War 2 hidden bunker while searching for land to build their resort.