Tokyo and Washington have agreed to amend a 1960 pact to limit preferential treatment towards U.S. military personnel under the U.S.-Japan Status of Forces Agreement, which is also commonly known as SOFA. This is due to frequent violations of Japanese law by military personnel, and a rising number of crimes committed by U.S. service persons in Japan.

While the gesture is more symbolic than practical because of its inability to amend the actual agreement, some understand this move as the ruling party’s appeal to Okinawan voters ahead of the July elections for the Upper House. “Japan and the United States are currently reviewing the treatment of Americans subject to the agreement and we are making final arrangements to swiftly compile effective measures,” said Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda at a press conference.

The plan will limit the meaning of the “civilian component” in the agreement, which refers to American civilians working for the military, but it does not elaborate on their employment conditions. The previously non-amended pact did not allow Japanese prosecutors to indict U.S. military personnel if crimes were committed when the offender was on official duty. Additionally, the agreement did not grant investigators access to U.S. military bases and facilities in Japan, providing military employees impunity from Japanese law. Before the changes, the agreement applied to U.S. military personnel and dependents in Japan, as well as certain U.S. citizens working at military bases.

According to the Japan Times, the civilian component will be narrowed down to four categories: civilians paid by the U.S. government to work for the U.S. military in Japan, civilians working on vessels and aircraft operated by the U.S. military, civilians working for the U.S. government and staying in Japan solely for official purposes in connection with the U.S. military, and technical advisers and consultants staying in Japan at the official invitation of and solely for the U.S. military. The update also excludes those who have permanent residency status in Japan from the civilian component.

The changes are a result of growing anti-U.S. sentiment on Okinawa, a key bastion of U.S. military power in Asia. Protests have risen after a series of crimes, which includes murder, rape, assault, and incidents of drunk driving involving U.S. military personnel.

In May 2016, former U.S. Marine Kenneth Franklin was arrested on suspicion of stabbing and strangling a 20-year-old Japanese woman near the U.S. Kadena Air Base in Okinawa. He reportedly admitted to raping and committing her murder. During his historic visit to Japan in May, U.S. President Barack Obama expressed “his sincerest condolences and deepest regrets” over the Okinawa woman’s death at the hands of an ex-Marine. “We want to see a crime like this prosecuted here, in the same way we would feel horrified and want to provide a sense of justice to a victim’s family back in the United States,” he said.

Okinawa is home to half of the 54,000 U.S. troops based in Japan. The protests have held up negotiations to relocate an important U.S. Marine Corps air base on Okinawa. Protesters have also complained about the noise and congestion associated with the presence of U.S. military in Okinawa. In June, the military leaders temporarily banned alcohol consumption and limited personnel movement after a series of alcohol-related incidents involving U.S. troops. However, in July 2016, just days after officials lifted the June alcohol ban, Japanese police arrested an American serviceman for allegedly driving drunk in Okinawa.

“Today’s agreement is a further indication of the commitment of the U.S. government,” Ambassador Caroline Kennedy said when she announced the agreement at the start of a meeting with Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, Defense Minister Gen Nakatani and Lt. Gen. John Dolan.