No. 1201 Ten Years after Great Earthquakes in Tohoku Region
Ten years have passed after the nuclear catastrophe at the power plants in Fukushima. The Japanese government has never made a sincere policy review on nuclear power generation: at nine stations around the country reoperation has begun and at another seven plants resumption is authorized, including the Kashiwazaki-Kariha station operated by the Tokyo Electric Power Co. The government is planned to start operation at additional 11 power plants. Where does this country go, clinging to a profit-first policy and neglecting people’s life?
BOTH STATE AND PREFECTURAL GOVERNMENTS SILENCE VOICES OF WITNESSES
Evacuees and sufferers are witnesses of the nuclear tragedy. Meanwhile the state government is zealous to develop nuclear power generation at any cost; it repeatedly announces hollow terms like, ‘to abandon reactors after 40 years of service’ and ‘radioactive water is well managed’, blatantly shutting up voices of sufferers in the name to recover from devastation.
The authorities of Fukushima Prefecture, too, have declared to reduce ‘the number of evacuees to zero by the year 2020’. When the target looked implausible, both of the central government and the prefectural authority tried to silence voices of witnesses. This is today’s Fukushima after ten years.
Few people returned home
According to the Reconstruction Agency, the number of evacuees counted 165,000 in May 2012, approximately 50 thousand in February 2018, and 38 thousand in July 2020. The big reductions make us think as if almost 120 thousand people could have returned home safely.
Nevertheless, according to data compiled by the Headquarters for Nuclear Accident Relief Service, the number of residents increased only by 3,309 in eleven municipalities after the evacuation order had been lifted in the period from 2018 to 2019. The number of inhabitants in the year 2010, before the earthquakes, was 73,611, and it was only 13,131 in 2019 in these cities and towns.
The above-said figure of registered inhabitants includes workers involving in dissembling nuclear reactors and housing facilities. They occupy over a half in some municipalities. In other words the official figure shrinks, while a very few have returned home.
The Reconstruction Agency announced that 62 thousand people evacuated immediately after the nuclear disaster to other prefectures, which reduced to 29 thousand in July 2020, almost a half. But the number of evacuees who resettled inside the Fukushima Prefecture diminished immensely. It is because of statistical manipulation by the prefecture.
Reportedly, prefectural officials do not regard as evacuees those who relocated inside Fukushima Prefecture; people who live in the publicly-provided houses on the reconstruction plan and those who have gained their homes in Fukushima. Those who do not come back after lifting of the evacuation order are not counted in the statistics as they are classified as voluntary migrants.
Thirteen cities, towns and villages have issued the decree to let their inhabitants flee from radiation damages. The municipal offices counted the people as approximately 50 thousand. Media reports usually say in total over 40 thousand are relocated, which is underestimation.
No one can tell even today how many migrated voluntarily from the nearby zones where the coercive order was not issued.
Radiation level is concealed
A few weeks ago big earthquakes hit the Tohoku Region, registering Scale 6 of the Japanese Seismic Intensity. Many people prepared themselves again for risks of radiation. Surprisingly enough, however, the government is planned to remove 80% of the Radiation Monitoring Stations (a measuring device is set up) posted in the areas designated as a low-radiation-quantity zone by the end of Fiscal 2020. The municipal governments oppose the plan, claiming ‘keep the stations working until all the decommissioning process is over’.
Except for residential areas, decontamination works of radio-active substances have ended gradually without good results. The government tries not only to blur sufferers but also to hide radiation impact.
避難者・被害者は原発事故の生き証人だ。原発推進を強行する権力は、生き証人の隠蔽を企み、「４０年で廃炉」や「汚染水アンダーコントロール」と空虚な復興を公言する。
福島県も「２０年までに避難者ゼロ」を掲げていた。これらが虚構であることが露呈すると、国や県は生き証人の隠蔽に走る。それが１０年目の福島の姿だ。
避難者数は復興庁によれば、１２年５月の約１６万５千人が１８年２月には約５万人、２０年７月には約３万８千人と激減している。これで見ると、1２万人近くが故郷に「帰還」できたかのようだ。
ところが原子力災害対策本部の資料によれば、１１市町村の避難指示解除後の居住者数は、１８〜1９年にかけて３３０９人しか増えていない。1９年の解除地域の居住者は、１０年の７万３６１１人に対し、わずか１万３１３1人だ。
しかも、居住者には廃炉や家屋解体作業などに従事する住民登録が含まれ、半数以上と推測される地域もある。つまり国発表の避難者数は減っているが、帰還した住民はごくわずかなのだ。
復興庁発表による県外避難者は、事故直後の６万２千人から２０年７月に約２万９千人と半分しか減っていないのに、県内避難者は激減している。県内避難者の激減は、県当局の操作があるからだ。
復興公営住宅の入居者や県内に自宅を取得した人、避難指示解除後も帰還しない人を県は、「自主避難者」扱いし、県内避難者の統計から排除しているという。
避難指示が出された1３市町村が集計した県内避難者だけで約５万人。避難者は、「全体で４万人以上」と言われているが、いかに過少であるか推測できる。
避難指示地域以外から「自主避難」とされた住民の正確な実態は、未だに把握されていない。
先月の震度６強の地震の時、多くの住民が避難を覚悟したのに国は、「低線量地域」でのモニタリングポスト（線量測定器）の８割を２０年度末までに撤去する計画だ。「廃炉作業が終わるまでは残せ」と市町村も反対だ。また、除染も居住地以外の効果はないまま打ち切られ始めている。生き証人の隠蔽に加え「線量」の隠蔽までするのか。
英訳版↓
No. 1201 Ten Years after Great Earthquakes in Tohoku Region
Ten years have passed after the nuclear catastrophe at the power plants in Fukushima. The Japanese government has never made a sincere policy review on nuclear power generation: at nine stations around the country reoperation has begun and at another seven plants resumption is authorized, including the Kashiwazaki-Kariha station operated by the Tokyo Electric Power Co. The government is planned to start operation at additional 11 power plants. Where does this country go, clinging to a profit-first policy and neglecting people’s life?
BOTH STATE AND PREFECTURAL GOVERNMENTS SILENCE VOICES OF WITNESSES
Evacuees and sufferers are witnesses of the nuclear tragedy. Meanwhile the state government is zealous to develop nuclear power generation at any cost; it repeatedly announces hollow terms like, ‘to abandon reactors after 40 years of service’ and ‘radioactive water is well managed’, blatantly shutting up voices of sufferers in the name to recover from devastation.
The authorities of Fukushima Prefecture, too, have declared to reduce ‘the number of evacuees to zero by the year 2020’. When the target looked implausible, both of the central government and the prefectural authority tried to silence voices of witnesses. This is today’s Fukushima after ten years.
Few people returned home
According to the Reconstruction Agency, the number of evacuees counted 165,000 in May 2012, approximately 50 thousand in February 2018, and 38 thousand in July 2020. The big reductions make us think as if almost 120 thousand people could have returned home safely.
Nevertheless, according to data compiled by the Headquarters for Nuclear Accident Relief Service, the number of residents increased only by 3,309 in eleven municipalities after the evacuation order had been lifted in the period from 2018 to 2019. The number of inhabitants in the year 2010, before the earthquakes, was 73,611, and it was only 13,131 in 2019 in these cities and towns.
The above-said figure of registered inhabitants includes workers involving in dissembling nuclear reactors and housing facilities. They occupy over a half in some municipalities. In other words the official figure shrinks, while a very few have returned home.
The Reconstruction Agency announced that 62 thousand people evacuated immediately after the nuclear disaster to other prefectures, which reduced to 29 thousand in July 2020, almost a half. But the number of evacuees who resettled inside the Fukushima Prefecture diminished immensely. It is because of statistical manipulation by the prefecture.
Reportedly, prefectural officials do not regard as evacuees those who relocated inside Fukushima Prefecture; people who live in the publicly-provided houses on the reconstruction plan and those who have gained their homes in Fukushima. Those who do not come back after lifting of the evacuation order are not counted in the statistics as they are classified as voluntary migrants.
Thirteen cities, towns and villages have issued the decree to let their inhabitants flee from radiation damages. The municipal offices counted the people as approximately 50 thousand. Media reports usually say in total over 40 thousand are relocated, which is underestimation.
No one can tell even today how many migrated voluntarily from the nearby zones where the coercive order was not issued.
Radiation level is concealed
A few weeks ago big earthquakes hit the Tohoku Region, registering Scale 6 of the Japanese Seismic Intensity. Many people prepared themselves again for risks of radiation. Surprisingly enough, however, the government is planned to remove 80% of the Radiation Monitoring Stations (a measuring device is set up) posted in the areas designated as a low-radiation-quantity zone by the end of Fiscal 2020. The municipal governments oppose the plan, claiming ‘keep the stations working until all the decommissioning process is over’.
Except for residential areas, decontamination works of radio-active substances have ended gradually without good results. The government tries not only to blur sufferers but also to hide radiation impact.
March 9, 2021