Criminal Trial Begin For Ex-Tepco Executives Six Years After 3.11 Fukushima Nuclear Disaster

 

On Friday, June 30th, the Tokyo District Court held the first hearing of the criminal trial against former Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) executives over the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. The trial comes six years after the disaster, which resulted in the loss of livelihoods and assets for many of Fukushima’s residents, including those forcibly ordered to leave their homes. Given the massive scale and widespread impact of the disaster, it seemed an immediate investigation by police and public prosecutors was in order. Instead, Japanese law enforcement agencies—as if under orders from pro-nuclear forces within the government—did not pursue the matter despite public calls for an investigation. Without any recourse, survivors of the nuclear disaster took to filing several class-action lawsuits against Tepco. The prosecutors continued, however, to refuse pressing criminal charges against Tepco executives, ignoring the violation of basic human rights of Fukushima’s residents. After a prolonged battle to bring the case to court, the survivors’ grievances were finally accepted by the committee for inquest of prosecution, which oversees cases dropped by prosecutors, and prompted a criminal trial that will determine whether ex-Tepco executives are liable for professional negligence in the 2011 disaster (TERAHIMA Shigehiro).

東電経営者の刑事責任を問う裁判はじまる～3.11原発事故6年目

強制退去命令を受けた人々を含む広範な人々の生活を失わせ、かつ生業資産の価値をも失わせた3.11原発事故。それから6年過ぎた6月30日に、事故を起こした東電経営者の責任を問う刑事裁判の初公判が東京地方裁判所でひらかれた。本来、警察や検察は重大で広範な影響を与えた原発事故なので、直ちに捜査に取り組むものと思われた。しかし、世論に反し取り締まり当局は何もせず放置した。日本の司法の取り締まり当局は、原発推進の行政権力の下僕であるかのように振る舞った。被災者らは自ら東電への刑事裁判を起こした。ところが検察は不起訴の決定をする始末で、住民の基本的人権の侵害に対し目を閉じる正義に反する行為をした。こうした多難のなか、当事者たちによる検察審査会への不服申し立てが認められ、刑事事件の責任を問う強制起訴裁判が確定し、3.11から6年経過後の6月30日に初公判がひらかれた。（寺島栄宏）

6 years since 3.11 – Mourning and anger in front of TEPCO HQ

“TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company), apologize! Give Fukushima back to us!” On March 11, 2017, the sixth anniversary of the disaster of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, 550 people expressed mourning and anger in front of TEPCO headquarters in central Tokyo. Famous writers delivered speeches against nuclear power, followed by various performances in protest against the electric power company. Then, evacuees from Fukushima expressed their hardship that they have endured since that day. KAMEYA Sachiko, from Futaba Town, Fukushima, said, “We want to return home but we cannot”. MATSUMOTO Noriko said, gazing at the TEPCO headquarters, “TEPCO should make sure to provide housing to us. Do not force us evacuees to be exposed to radiation. If a nuclear disaster occurs again, there will be even more internally displaced persons like us”. The organizer of the rally gave a letter to the manager of the Nuclear Power Center of the company. The manager said, “We are sorry for still bothering many people”, followed by an outcry from one of the rally participants, “Think about it seriously! No more nukes!” (M) Photo flash, video (6 minutes), photos (shinya)

3.11から6年「追悼と怒り」～東京電力前で550人が声上げる

「東電は謝れ！福島を返せ！」。原発事故から6年目になった3月11日午後、東京電力前には約550人の市民が集まり、「追悼と怒り」に包まれた。手がかじかむ寒さのなか、神田香織、落合恵子、鎌田慧ら各氏のトークをはじめ、歌あり踊りありの賑やかな抗議行動が続いた。福島からの避難者が次々にマイクを握った。「帰りたいけど帰れない」、やり場のない怒りを双葉町の亀屋幸子さんは訴えた。松本徳子さんは「東電は住宅提供をちゃんとしてくれ、被ばくを強要しないでほしい。原発はもういらない。事故が起きたら私たちのような国内難民がまた生まれる」と東電本店をにらみながらアピールした。集会の代表が東電に申し入れ書を手渡した。受け取った原子力センター所長は「いまだに多くの人に迷惑をかけて申し訳ない」とコメントした。そそくさと立ち去るかれらの背中に「真剣に考えてくれ！これ以上原発はいらない！」の怒号が飛んだ。（M） 写真速報・動画（6分）

Liberal lawmaker reports on Chernobyl and Fukushima

At a Friday anti-nuke protest on September 2, 2016 in front of the Diet Building, FUJINO Yasufumi, a Communist member of Japan’s House of Representatives, reported on his research on nuclear power plants in Europe. He said, “A dosimeter showed a sudden increase in radiation at a bush in Pripyat, near Chernobyl even 30 years after the nuclear disaster. Nothing has changed there. I also visited Kawamata Town, Fukushima. There, former residents said that they could not return to the hometown even if the national government ordered them to do so. A town official told me that, if they postponed their return, the Japanese Government strongly pressed them to come back as soon as possible. I have reassured that nukes and mankind can never coexist”. YANAGIDA Makoto from Tampopo-sha Anti-Nuke Plaza referred to the retraction of candidacy of IZUMIDA Hirohiko, the incumbent Niigata Governor in the coming gubernatorial election. According to Yamagida, Niigata Nippo, a local paper that has been at odds with the governor, has carried five big advertisements of Tokyo Electric Power Company since the beginning of this year, which is the operator of the currently idle Kashiwazaki Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in the prefecture. He said that this is a corruption. (KINOSHITA Masaaki) 

藤野議員が「チェルノブイリ・福島」 調査報告～9.2金曜行動レポート

9月2日、金曜日の反原発抗議行動。今夜は国会前で共産党の藤野保史衆院議員がヨーロッパでの原発調査の報告をした。「チェルノブイリは30年たってもプリピャチという労働者の街のヤブなどに線量計をあてるとビビビッとはね上がった。何一つ変わっていない。福島にも行ってきたが、川俣町では、国が住民に帰れといっても帰れないと。帰還予定を先送りすると国がものすごい圧力をかけてきたと町の職員が訴えていた。原発と人間社会は共存できないと改めて実感した」と。たんぽぽ舎の柳田真さんは、泉田新潟県知事が立候補をとりやめた件をスピーチした。それによると、知事と対立している『新潟日報』は、今年に入って5回も東電から大きな広告を出してもらっている。これは買収だ、と。

（木下昌明）

Ex-mayor sues TEPCO and the government

On August 21^st, the Fukushima radiation lawsuit filed by IDOGAWA Katsutaka,  ex-mayor of Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture, against the national government and the Tokyo Electric Power Company opened in Tokyo District Court. The plaintiff is suing for damages having been exposed to excessive radiation after the Fukushima disaster. 96 people queued up for seats in the court gallery. On March 12^th, 2011, the Mayor evacuated most of his citizens to the nearby town of Kawamata. But patients in hospitals and elderly care facilities were left behind. As the mayor was trying to evacuate these people, he heard a big thunder at 3:36 pm. and radiation fallout started to fall like snow. Hundreds of citizens who were there with him shared the same feeling; this is the end of the world. But the government was announcing on the TV that there was no “immediate effect” He had a strong sense of distrust, “What is this country? Are they abandoning us?” (HORIKIRI Satomi).  

92000倍もの放射性物質にさらされた！～井戸川克隆「被ばく訴訟」始まる

8月21日午後2時。東京地裁101号法廷で「原発事故で失われたふるさとそして被ばくの責任を問う 福島被ばく訴訟」が行われた。原告は前双葉町長・井戸川克隆氏（写真）。被告は東京電力株式会社と国。巨大な二つを相手に、たった一人で起こしたこの裁判に、96の傍聴席を求めて多くの人たちが列をつくった。2011年3月12日。大半を川俣町に避難させたものの、最後まで町内に遺されたのが高齢者施設や 病院の人たちだった。その避難誘導をしていた井戸川さんは15時36分、「ドン」という音とともに、ぼたん雪のように降る放射性降下物をみる。一号機が爆発したのだ。この場にいた数百人の町民と「もうこれでお終いだ」との思いを共有したという。同じころ政府のテレビ会見では「直ちに影響はない」を強調し、事態の深刻さをまったく伝えなかった。「なんだこの国は。我々を見捨てる気か」と、強い不信感を持たざるをえなかったという。（堀切さとみ）