Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: article of October 7^th, 2015 edition of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper)
▼Click the image to enlarge it and read the caption.

A team led by Toshihide Tsuda, a professor of environmental epidemiology at Okayama University, has published the results of a study claiming that many of the thyroid cancer cases found in Fukushima Pref., after the Fukushima Daiichi disaster, are ascribable to exposure to radiation. The result is published in the e-journal, dated October 6^th, of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology. Some other experts say, however, “It is still too early to conclude such a cause-effect relation.”

Prof. Tsuda’s team analyzed thyroid examination results conducted by the end of 2014, sponsored by the prefectural government. Those examinations covered some 370,000 residents in the prefecture who were 18 years old or younger when the disaster took place. The team obtained the annual crisis rate of those samples, which is some 20 to 50 times higher than Japan’s nationwide average prior to the Fukushima Daiichi disaster. Within Fukushima Prefecture, furthermore, the crisis rate differs depending on the region, by up to 2.6 times. The team concludes: “The crisis rates of Fukushima are way greater than the national average. It is hard to ascribe such differences to any other factor than radiation.”

Actually, following the Chernobyl disaster, we discovered many health related issues only several years after the tragedy hit. Similarly, we can justly expect that a long time will be necessary before conclusions can be reached on health hazards caused by the Fukushima meltdown.

Many cases of this type of cancer have been found following the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown, and it would be very helpful to many if the causes of thyroid cancer in Fukushima’s children are identified. Are these cases ascribable to external exposure to radiation or to internal exposure caused by contaminated foods and drinks? Depending on the causes, future countermeasures can differ significantly. Possibly, some young people would be relieved from unnecessary worry if appropriate countermeasures were clarified. I am worried, however, that the longer it takes to confirm the health effects of radiation exposure, the longer it will take to identify the causes and take appropriate countermeasures

I asked the mother of a child living in Koriyama, Fukushima, what was the most serious anxiety she had recently experienced. Her reply was, “The future health of my child.” To help people protect their children’s health, I hope medics will reach a conclusion about the increase of thyroid cancer among the children of Fukushima as soon as possible, so that the causes can be identified and the right countermeasures can be developed.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: articles of October 1^st, 2015 editions of the Fukushima Minpo and Asahi Shimbun newspapers)

▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

The level of stress experienced by children and their parents living in Fukushima Prefecture as refugees from the vicinity of TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), which experienced a disaster, kept diminishing until last year. A survey by the Center for Psychological Studies of Disaster, Fukushima University, however, discovered that the reduction in stress among refugees stopped this year. The survey results were published on September 30^th.

The Center’s Director, Yuji Tsutsui, a professor of symbiotic systems science, analyzes this leveling off of the reduction in stress levels and describes the cause, saying, “After all the decontamination work, the radiation level remains higher than it was before the meltdown. Those refugees are still living every day with the fear of radiation. Thus, their stress level does not come down anymore. Their stress level might remain as it is for years to come.”

The survey results also show that those mothers and children living as refugees in or out of Fukushima Prefecture suffer from higher levels of stress than those living in the same prefecture, but not as refugees. Says Professor Tsutsui, analyzing this survey result, “Those refugees can experience stress with every change they face in their lives as refugees, be they changes in work, housing, schools, etc.”

The survey also found that residents in southern Miyagi Prefecture (bordering on northern Fukushima) suffer from levels of stress similar to what many Fukushima residents experience. Assistant Professor Hiroko Yoshida,  at Radioisotope Research and Educational Center, Tohoku University, has been measuring the air dose rates of radiation since shortly after the Fukushima disaster. She reports, “The doses (in southern Miyagi) are no lower than those in northern Fukushima, such as in Soma and Date. Psychological suffering is not an issue for Fukushima residents alone.”

I (the author) live in Koriyama, Fukushima, and I cannot escape the fear of radiation, even though more than four years have passed since the earthquake of March 2011. In everyday conversations here, people will say aloud that they don’t care about radiation—because they are not “supposed” to say they care.

Actually, most residents here are doing what they can to alleviate radiation in their everyday lives. Speaking aloud about radiation can create friction with others, ruining good relationships with them. Thus, as time goes by, the people here are talking less and less about radiation. Nevertheless, people are in fact worried about radiation. To live in this neighborhood, they have no choice but to live with some radiation.

Especially serious is the stress experienced by mothers raising children. A certain mother of a child living in Koriyama still does not dry her laundry outdoors. All her family members, after coming home from outdoors, change their clothes, wash their hands and gargle to remove radioactive substances as far as they can. They don’t open windows on a windy day. They avoid vegetables grown in Fukushima. She advises her child not to play outdoors.

The vulnerable in society, such as women and children, bear greater risks from radiation, while they cannot even speak about their worries. Today, the Japanese government is again becoming a nuclear-powered nation, claiming that it will produce more wealth. I believe, however, that a world where mothers and children can live with peace of mind would bring about the true “happiness” we need and want.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: article of September 19^th, 2015 edition of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper)

▼Click the image to enlarge it and read the caption.

Following the meltdown of TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), numerous residents and employees of facilities for the elderly were evacuated from the NPP’s vicinity. This evacuation, needless to say, freed them from the risk posed by radiation. The evacuation, however, exposed them to other kinds of risk, which are almost 400 times greater than that from radiation, according to an academic paper published in the U.S. science journal POS ONE by a study team consisting of scientists from the University of Tokyo and other institutions. To elderly people, many of whom suffer from disabilities and/or a chronic disease, emergency evacuation can mean risks to their wellbeing far greater than those from radiation. Thus, according to the study, evacuation can shorten their lives.

Needless to say, however, no one can claim that such people should remain in the radioactive areas. This is one of the highly troublesome complexities accompanying a NPP accident. A member of the study team, Mr. Michio Murakami, currently an associate professor at Fukushima Medical University and formerly an assistant professor at the Institute of Industrial Science at the University of Tokyo, says, “We need to develop and prepare less burdensome means of transportation and facilities to evacuate to. Also, such facilities need to be equipped with medicines and food. Then, we should be able to reduce the accompanying risk.”

Shortly after the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown began, among those facility residents and hospitalized patients being evacuated, one victim after another passed away in the confusion accompanying the sudden evacuation. Many consider those deaths ascribable to physical and mental stress, burdens accompanying the evacuation, and insufficient medical care.

When the Sendai NPP was restarted, the prefectural government of Kagoshima specified evacuation destinations only for those facilities within 10km (6.2 miles) of the NPP. Learning from the tragedy of Fukushima, however, we see that there is a high probability that many facilities outside the 10km radius may also face the need for evacuation. This means that many such facilities could face the very tough decision of running away from a disaster or not.

If another NPP disaster hits and creates a situation similar to that of Fukushima, such facilities say they will have to choose to evacuate. Any facility for the elderly located close to a NPP needs to prepare many emergency measures to secure the safety of its residents and employees.

Starting with Sendai’s restart, Japan is reverting to a country powered by NPPs. This means we might face another NPP tragedy at any time. We need to learn lessons from the Fukushima Daiichi disaster. One urgent task is to develop and prepare a great variety of risk-reduction measures in case of a NPP accident. Otherwise, such an accident could shorten the lives of many.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: article of September 20^th, 2015 edition of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper)
▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

While the Japanese government is striving to restart the nation’s nuclear power plants (NPPs), 58% of the Japanese citizens surveyed were opposed to it, far exceeding the 37% who were in favor of the restarts, according to a nationwide poll on energy conducted on September 12^th and 13^th by the Japan Association for Public Opinion Research, of which Fukushima Minpo is a member.

To the question, “Do you think residents around a restarted NPP, in case an accident occurs, can evacuate as planned?” a total of 74% of the respondents replied either “No, I do not think they can” or “No, not very well.” This exceeded by far the total of 25% who replied either “Yes, they can” or “Yes, to some extent.”

Though Kyushu Electric Power last August restarted Unit 1 of its Sendai NPP, located in Kagoshima, Kyushu, most citizens are seriously worried over countermeasures to an accident, as the poll discovered.

The most common reason (39%) to oppose a restart is that “The safety measures are insufficient, such as accident prevention measures of NPPs, resident evacuation plans in case of an accident, etc.,” followed by “They have yet to decide what to do with radioactive waste from NPPs” and “We have yet to bring an end to the disaster at Fukushima Daiichi.”

To the question, “Who do you think should be held responsible for a NPP restart or accident?” 70% replied with “The national government.” This was far greater than the 15% who chose the runner-up reply, “The electric power company,” and 10% who said “The Nuclear Regulation Authority,” which held third place. Still, those parties have yet to clarify who should be held responsible for what.

The poll also asked for the respondents’ opinions about the decommissioning of TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi NPP. To this, 87% replied either “Not progressing very smoothly” or “Not progressing smoothly at all.”

When Tokyo invited the 2020 Olympics, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared to the whole world that Fukushima Daiichi’s contaminated water “is under control.” In fact, however, problems involving contaminated water have never been resolved from the time of the meltdown until today. The toughest issue about the decommissioning—the removal of the power plant’s nuclear fuel—has also yet to be resolved. They have not yet confirmed the current state of those melted fuels.

So, the national government keeps ignoring its people’s voices. Then, who does the government’s energy policy actually serve? I am convinced that the government is giving higher priority to something other than the people’s lives.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Sources: articles of September 10^th, 12^th, and 13^th, 2015 editions of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper and of August 12^th, 2015 edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper)

▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

A deluge hit much of Kanto and Tohoku, Japan, this September. On the 9^th and 11^th days of the month, some rain water containing radioactive substances ran into the Pacific Ocean out of a drainage at TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (NPP).

The contaminated flow went on and off out of “Drainage K,” within the NPP’s premises. Built to make rain water run out of the area around the buildings containing a reactor, this drainage system directly connects to the ocean outside the NPP’s port. Even before the recent deluge, TEPCO had discovered that some rain water containing radioactive substances had leaked and they took emergency countermeasures to fix the problem last April. Still, at least seven such leakages have been confirmed since then.

Fukushima Prefecture’s government is requesting the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) to set up a standard for detecting contaminated rain water. So far, no such a standard is in sight.

Japan’s Nuclear Reactor Regulation Law has no clear regulation on the treatment of contaminated rain water. The NRA is reluctant to set up a standard for detecting contaminated rain water since there is no law currently in place requiring such detection. A related source revealed that, “To detect and handle contaminated rain water, we need to amend the relevant law, which takes a long time.”

Radioactive rain water ran into the ocean again and again, even before the emergency measures taken last April. TEPCO, though it was aware of this fact, did not announce it until the end of February this year.

Against this background, most fishery operators have a deep-rooted distrust in TEPCO.

More typhoons are expected to hit Japan in the coming weeks. There are still some rumors claiming that marine products from the ocean close to Fukushima are contaminated. Such rumors no doubt hurt fishery operators’ livelihood. TEPCO is advised to take countermeasures with sincerity. Otherwise, among many other problems, more such bad rumors might arise.

Original Japanese written by staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Sources: articles of August 3^rd, 2015 edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper and of August 12^th, 2015 edition of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper)

▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

On August 11^th, 2015, Kyushu Electric Power restarted Unit 1 of its Sendai Nuclear Power Plant (located in Satsumasendai City, Kagoshima Prefecture, Kyushu). Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet is set to restart all of the nuclear power plants (NPPs) in Japan that pass examinations to be conducted by the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA).

With respect to the nation’s NPP restarts, however, accountability has yet to be clearly defined. The only thing that is clear is that we have a lack of clarity with respect to accountability.
Mr. Shun’ichi Tanaka (from Fukushima City), chairperson of the NRA, said, “We have examined whether the Sendai NPP meets the applicable standards. We are in no position to say whether it is safe or not to restart it.” No wonder this remark has caused wild repercussions among many.
Mr. Yoshihide Kan, Chief Cabinet Secretary, claimed that “the NRA should be held accountable to confirm whether a NPP is safe to restart or not.” Turning our eyes to the municipality which hosts the Sendai NPP, Satsumasendai City, Mayor Hideo Iwakiri said, “The NPP has passed the examination compliant with the standards set up by the national government. So, I believe it is safe to restart.” As you can see, the parties involved are shifting accountability onto each other. This vicious cycle of irresponsibility has yet to be resolved. Now, if a major accident hits the Sendai NPP, who is to be held accountable?
Yet another problem is exactly who are the “locals hosting a NPP.” Their consent is required to restart a reactor, and yet there is no clear definition as to which municipalities are such “locals.” I have to say the NPP businesses and authorities have yet to learn any lessons from the Fukushima Daiichi disaster.
In its essence, nuclear policy is established by the national government. If so, in the case of Japan, the Prime Minister should be the one to make the final decisions, and he should be held accountable for all relevant issues.

The tragedy of Fukushima continues today. Nobody knows how soon the tragedy will end – if it ever does. A NPP restart that ignores both an ongoing tragedy and all the suffering of its victims should not be allowed.

The government, as well as every single citizen, should learn more about the agonies and grief suffered by the victims of the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown. In the face of their suffering, we have to build a society powered by new, safer and cleaner energies.

Original Japanese written by staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Sources: articles of April 27^th and August 12^th, 2015 editions of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper and of July 10^th and 11^th editions of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper)
▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

“A luxury apartment without a lavatory.” That is the phrase often used in Japan to refer to nuclear power plants (NPPs) whose high-level radioactive waste, generated from the reprocessing of used nuclear fuel, have nowhere to “rest in peace.” The nation has been unable to secure a site for such waste – we are indeed “without a lavatory.”
Currently, therefore, having nowhere to store it, used nuclear fuel is simply resting in water pools inside NPPs all over Japan. Ever since the meltdown began, used fuel inside Fukushima Daiichi has been posing a serious danger.

Today, all in all, Japan’s NPPs are accommodating some 14,000t (15,435 short ton) of used fuel. This means the sum capacity of the temporary storage pools within all the NPPs of Japan is 70% occupied. The end is near. Thus, though the recently restarted Sendai NPP is estimated to have enough pool capacity to last another 10.7 years, more than a half of the other NPPs are expected to reach the limit of their storage pools within a decade should they too be restarted. The NPP closest to its storage limits is the Chubu Electric Power’s Hamaoka Plant, located in Shizuoka Prefecture. Should this plant be restarted, it will reach its storage pools’ limit in just a few years.
Even if most of the existing NPPs remain dormant for ever, it is still an urgent task to control and dispose of the used nuclear fuel already in their storage pools. It is a question of safety, environmental protection, etc.

The Japanese government, in May 2015, gave up on the traditional way of searching for a final disposal site – asking municipal governments to stand up voluntarily. The national government is now taking the initiative. Though the national government claims that it is searching, based on scientific analyses, for a place where used nuclear waste can be buried deep underground, one municipality after another is voicing their worries that the national government might force such a disposal site on them.

Now that Kyushu Electric Power has already restarted its Sendai NPP, we will have more nuclear waste in the years to come. This means we simply cannot afford to believe in a “later” solution to the problem of nuclear waste.
In Fukushima, they are having serious problems over where to bury the waste resulting from the meltdown of the NPP. Disposal of high-level radioactive waste is an urgent issue for the NPP industry to solve. As the voice of reason insists, without such a solution no NPP should be allowed to restart.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: article of August 12^th, 2015 edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper)

On August 11^th, 2015, Kyushu Electric Power restarted its Sendai Nuclear Power Plant. Volcanology experts, however, are questioning the power company’s planned countermeasures against volcanic eruptions. And those concerns are not limited to parties in Japan. Many outside media are voicing their concerns as well.

Within 160km (100 miles) of the nuclear power plant lie 39 volcanos, including Sakurajima and Mt. Aso, which are quite active. A geological survey found that, in the past, some pyroclastic flows from major eruptions reached the vicinity of the Sendai Plant. A pyroclastic flow is one of those disasters that no nuclear power plant’s planning can prevent or counteract.

Kyushu Electric Power claims that the possibility is very small of a major eruption occurring during the lifetime of the Sendai Plant. Also, says the power company, if it perceives signs of a major eruption, it will stop the reactor and carry out the nuclear fuel. Most volcanologists say, however, that a major eruption hits Japan once in ten thousand years or so, which means that science has yet to learn what the signs of a coming major eruption are. Yet another serious problem is where the nuclear fuels will go if removed from the plant.

Moreover, in the vicinity of the Sendai Plant there are at least five major craters, which shows that there have been large-scale volcanic eruptions in the past. Especially notable is the one called Aira, which is the closest to the plant among all five – only 50km (31.3 miles) away. If this one erupts again, many volcanologists warn, it could result in sheer devastation.

Says Professor Ryusuke Imura, a volcanologist at Kagoshima University:

“In case an eruption causes a nuclear plant disaster, some radioactive substance will adhere to volcanic ashes and be carried around by the wind, until they fall on much of the Japanese archipelago. Also, in case of an ultra plinian eruption of a caldera [crater], the total volume of such descending ashes can be equivalent to the whole volume of Mt. Fuji, the greatest volcano of the archipelago. That gigantic volume of volcanic ashes, carrying radioactive substances, can fall down all over Japan. This is a possibility we cannot afford to ignore.”

If this should happen, it would certainly be the end of Japan.

In March 2011, TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant was devastated by the greatest tsunami in recorded history. We, residents in Japan, should have learned through our experiences of the earthquake-tsunami tragedy that a natural disaster can go far beyond our predictions.

I (the author) have learned through Fukushima tragedy that our ability to predict the scope of natural and human-made disasters is limited. Actual disasters can easily go well beyond our wildest imagination.

Today, many volcanoes are gently asleep. Yet they might “awake” and go active at any time. We cannot afford to allow the restart of nuclear power plants under the banner of “money first.”

We cannot depend on “good luck” if we are to enjoy peace and safety tomorrow. Rather, I am convinced that we need to build tomorrow’s peace and safety on a solid foundation by making the correct choices today.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Source: article of July 9^th, 2015 edition of the Fukushima Minpo newspaper)

On August 11^th, 2015, after almost two “nuke-free” years, a Japanese nuclear power plant was restarted, without the majority of the people consenting.

Prior to the restart of Unit 1, Sendai Nuclear Power Plant of Kyushu Electric Power, many citizens of Japan were worried about the nuclear plants’ safety. The Japan Association for Public Opinion Research conducted a public opinion poll in June 2015, which found that 63% of the respondents were opposed to the restart, a much larger number than the 31% who were in favor of it. Thus, the Japanese Government kept claiming that “the restart was a business decision of the power company,” while facilitating the restart below the surface.

Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK, Japan Broadcasting Corporation) conducted another public opinion poll. In response to the question “Are you in favor of the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant’s restart or opposed to it?” 32% were in favor of it, with 57% of the respondents opposed.

The survey asked another question: “In response to the Fukushima Daiichi disaster, Japan has set up a new nuclear plant safety standard. Do you think a plant satisfying this new standard can, some day, be hit by an accident that necessitates evacuation of the residents in its vicinity? Or do you think such an accident will not take place?” 81% of the respondents said “yes,” with only 10% saying “no.”

Yet another question went: “The relevant municipalities are making evacuation plans to follow in case of a nuclear power plant accident. The national government says, while it will provide assistance to such planning, it has no need to examine the plans. What is your opinion on this attitude of our national government?” To this, 8% replied “Just giving assistance is good enough,” while 82% said “Just providing assistance is not good enough. I believe the national government should examine evacuation plans prepared by municipalities.”

Thus, all in all, the majority of the people are opposed to the restart. Facing this opposition, the national government says the Cabinet is in no position to affect the final decision of whether or not to restart a particular nuclear power plant. The decision is left to the plant’s operators.

(Source: article of August 25^th, 2015 edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspaper)

A nationwide phone survey by the Asahi Shimbun (a nationwide newspaper), conducted shortly after the Sendai Plant’s restart, found that 49% of the respondents said the restart was “no good,” outnumbering the 30% who said it was “good.” To the question what we should do with nuclear power, 16% responded “Eliminate it soon,” while 58% said we should “Eliminate it in the near future,” and only 22% responded “Retain it.”

Japan’s current Cabinet has refused to respond sincerely to the people’s opinions and approved the restart without sufficient consideration, consultations, etc. And now, many other power companies are trying to follow this example. When nuclear power plants are restarted against the will of the majority of the people, whom do they serve? I wish that everyone would learn about the agonies suffered by those affected by the Fukushima Daiichi tragedy. Then, I am convinced, no one would be pro-nuke.

Original Japanese written by  staffer
The English below translated from the original Japanese by Heeday
The English translation edited by Rev. Dr. Henry French, ELCA

(Sources: articles of May 5^th, 2015 edition of the Chunichi Shimbun and August 3^rd, 2015 edition of the Asahi Shimbun newspapers)

▼Click each image to enlarge it and read the caption.

In Satsumasendai City, Kagoshima Prefecture, on the southern edge of the island of Kyushu, the Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc. restarted Unit 1 of its Sendai Nuclear Power Plant, on August 11^th, 2015. This is the first nuclear power plant restart approved by the Nuclear Regulation Authority, which investigates and judges the safety of Japan’s nuclear power plants.

Following the Fukushima Daiichi disaster, this Authority was made independent of any of the existing Ministries and Agencies, which are mostly promoting nuclear power.
This restart marks the end of almost two years of a “nuke-free” Japan.

Shortly after the Fukushima Daiichi meltdown began, we had one case after another of a hospitalized patient or an elderly person passing away amid the confusion that accompanied their evacuation. At Futaba Hospital and its nursing care facilities, just 4.6km (2.9 miles) away from Fukushima Daiichi, some 230 hospitalized patients and nursing care residents were left behind in the evacuation process, and 19 of them passed away in the transportation mess.

Responding to this, in 2012, the Japanese Government expanded the Priority Disaster Area from 8 to 10km (5 to 6.3 miles) of a nuclear power plant to 30km (18.8 miles). In compliance with Japan’s Disaster Countermeasure Basic Act, the Government issued a guideline targeted at municipal governments which demands each medical and welfare facility, including special elderly nursing homes, to prepare an evacuation plan which covers where to evacuate to, the evacuation routes, the means of transportation, and so on.

Of the 85 medical facilities within 30km of the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant, only two have such an evacuation plan. Of the 159 welfare facilities, only 15. Within 10km of the power plant, all the relevant facilities have such a plan in place now. In March 2015, Governor Yuichiro Ito of Kagoshima Prefecture limited, on his own decision, the area of such planning to within 10km of the plant, saying “10km is good enough. Covering up to 30km is impossible.” The Governor decided that, for those facilities located 10km or more away from the nuclear power plant, the Kagoshima Prefectural Government should coordinate where to evacuate to, depending upon wind directions and other factors. The Prefecture’s Nuclear Safety Measures Section said, “We have reached this decision with the national government’s approval.”

The Nuclear Regulation Authority, meanwhile, said it was “in no position to evaluate [evacuation plans].” (Chairperson Shun’ichi Tanaka)  Thus, the Authority does not consider relevant evacuation plans as it gives the go-ahead to the restart of a nuclear power plant. Also, although the relevant law requires consent to a restart from certain municipalities, it is actually the Prefecture and the municipality hosting the nuclear plant whose consent matters. The other neighboring municipalities, while required to make evacuation plans, are legally in no position to exercise any influence over a restart decision.

In the case of the Fukushima Daiichi tragedy, the evacuation area exceeded the distance of 30km from the nuclear power plant. While much mutually contradicting information has been circulated, the fact is that numerous residents on the run were exhausted, both mentally and physically. Today, many of them are still suffering from the trauma of their agonizing experiences.

Shortly after the meltdown began, as invisible radiation spread closer to them, everyone within the vicinity of Fukushima Daiichi was simply at a loss. With the Japanese Government making only unreliable responses, every resident was overwhelmed by anxiety. Each and every one was forced to make a serious choice – to flee, or to stay. Yet the transportation system was paralyzed, with gasoline in serious shortage. There was discrimination between those who were able to escape and those who were not able to. As we witnessed with our own eyes, those in the more vulnerable positions of society, women, children, patients, etc., faced tougher hardships.

Today, some experts say that what affects health is the radiation dosage one is exposed to shortly after the meltdown began. Some in the hard-hit areas, therefore, blame themselves that they did not flee. On the other hand, some of those who made it away from such areas feel guilty that they abandoned their hometowns and villages. Everyone, in and out of the affected areas, are still living with an inner conflict, unsure as to whether they made the right decision or not.

In spite of the fact that so many evacuees have been left abandoned, the Sendai Nuclear Power Plant has been restarted. I must say that those who promoted the restart have no intention of learning from the Fukushima Daiichi tragedy. In Japan, we have a saying; “A disaster hits when we have forgotten about disasters of the past.” The Fukushima Daiichi disaster is something we have to keep in mind for ages to come.