Exporting Nuclear Reactors Is Invasion! - Protest against Accords with Turkey and UAE

Some 40 people opposing export of nuclear reactors by Japan staged a protest in front of the Upper House Members' Office Building in the evening of April 11. The accord agreed with Turkey and the United Arab Emirates on exporting nuclear reactors to these countries were debated on in the House of Councilors that day after the approval by the House of Representatives on April 4.  (The upper house passed the accords on April 18.) The Abe administration is keen to sell nuclear reactors abroad while the causes of the Fukushima Daiichi plant were yet to be determined and radioactive contamination from the crippled plant is expanding farther into the Pacific Ocean and the air.  The protesters demanded that the administration refrain from clearing the accords in the upper house forcefully, condemning export of nuclear reactors as a form of invasion.  In the rally, a letter from the Turkish Anti-Nuclear League, a coalition of nearly 100 civic associations, requesting Diet members to oppose to the accord with Turkey was read out.(OZAWA Kuniko)

Photo: The sign says “Export of nuclear reactors is invasion. No to nuclear accords.”

Photos (in the full report written in Japanese)   

原発輸出は侵略だ！トルコ・UAE原子力協定反対！～国会前で抗議

4 月11日（金）夜、参議院議員会館前に集まった約40名は、日本の原発輸出に反対し、声を上げた。福島原発事故後、日本が署名したトルコおよびアラブ首長 国連邦（UAE）との原子力協定 が、4月4日、 衆議院を通過し、参議院に送られた。いまだ原発事故の原因を解明できず、 海に放射能を流し、世界に放射能汚染を拡散させながら原発を輸出しようとする安倍政権 。「原発輸出は侵略だ！参議院での採決強行を許さない！原子力協定を批准するな！」と声を上げた。集会では、トルコの100団体近くの市民団体が加盟する トルコ反原発同盟が、日本の国会議員に宛てて送ったトルコとの原子力協定に反対することを求める手紙が紹介された。（尾澤邦子） 報告・4.15参議院前座り込み＆アピール

Protest Staged against the Basic Energy Plan Approved by “Inmature and Brutal” Cabinet of PM Abe

The Abe administration approved the Basic Energy Plan in the cabinet meeting held on April 11. The plan is to reverse the zero nuclear plants policy widely supported by the general public after the Fukushima nuclear disaster of March 2011 and resume promotion of nuclear power generation. “How come the ministers dare to approve such a plan when causes for the Fukushima disaster are yet to be determined and nobody knows how many more years it will take to fix up and clean up the mess of the accident!?” “Did they forget the Fukushima disaster completely!?” “Repeal the cabinet approval!” - Protesters voiced their anger in the Friday no-nukes demonstration in front of the prime minister's office on the day of the cabinet approval. The plan will benefit those who have imposed on the public an enormous burden of cleaning up the unprecedented nuclear accident and shamelessly kept escaping from taking responsibility. It is hard to recall an administration in the modern history of Japan that was as terrible as the current one: They deceive, intimidate and exploit the general public as if the people were of no value at all. What they do shows no signs of maturity, consideration or dignity a government of a democracy should have. Unless we clean up such a toxic administration soon, the people of Japan will keep seeing a hell. (By shinya)
  Video (by KINOSHITA Masaaki, 5 min., no subtitles)

「エネルギー基本計画」を白紙に戻せ！～「幼稚で乱暴」安倍政権に怒りの声

4 月11日、安倍政権は「エネルギー基本計画」を閣議決定した。3.11後の民意、「原発ゼロ」を踏みにじる積極的原発推進計画への転換だ。11日 夜の官邸 前金曜行動には、「未だ事故の原因究明さえ出来ず、未だ収拾のめどの立たないのに、なんでこんなことが決められるのか」「福島を忘れてしまったのか」「閣 議決定を白紙に戻せ」との怒りの声が上がった。この「エネ計画」は、人類の歴史に残る大事故の後始末を国民に担わせ、何ら責任を取らない原子力ムラの恥知 らずを再び肥え太らせるものだ。これほど国民を欺き、脅し、搾り取り、虫けらのように扱う、幼稚で乱暴で品位のない政権があっただろうか。危険な安倍政 権、一刻も早く除染しなければ地獄が待っている。（shinya)
 動画（木下昌明撮影 5分）

“Respect locals' decision!” - Rally to Oppose Coercion by Education Ministry with Civics Textbook

A Rally was held on April 8 in Tokyo to protest against the intervention by the education minister into adoption of civics textbook to be used in junior high schools in the town of Taketomi, Okinawa Prefecture. The education board of Taketomi town in the Yaeyama district, Okinawa, last year selected a textbook to be used in FY2014 that is different from the one agreed upon by the district council. After the town education board refused to accept the ministry's advice to redo the adoption process, education minister SHIMOMURA Hakubun on March 14 invoked a provision of the Local Autonomy Law to directly demand that the town board change its earlier decision. The rally was organized by citizens groups composed of town residents and supporters and took place in one of the Diet Members' Office Building. Some 90 people including TAKASHIMA Nobuyoshi, a professor emeritus of University of the Ryukyus, NAKAHARA Michiko, a professor emeritus of Waseda University and 4 opposition Diet members representing Okinawa participated.  Two petitions demanding that the ministry respect the town's decision and a statement of protest were handed to a deputy director of the textbooks division of the elementary and secondary education bureau. The petitions were prepared by a resident of the town and a group of residents and supporters, signed by 8,676 and 2,383 people respectively. The statement was drafted by a local group and endorsed by 1,068 people.  (By YATABE Mitsuaki)

教科書選択に介入するな！～文科省の是正要求に抗議する院内集会

4 月8日、文科省の竹富町への是正要求に抗議する院内集会が開催されました。平日の昼間にもかかわらず、約90名が参加。琉大名誉教授の高嶋伸欣さん、早大 名誉教授の中原道子さん、「うりずんの会」4名の沖縄選出国会議員はじめ、集会参加者全体で成功裏に開催されました。これまで集められた竹富町教科書是正 要求撤回連絡会への署名8676筆、竹富町在住の田中むつみさんへ寄せられた署名2383筆、そして1068名の賛同を集めた町民の会の抗議声明が、文部 科学省初等中等教育局教科書課課長代理の渡邊浩人さんへ渡されました。（谷田部光昭） 

“They refuse to remain in poverty of 22K for another decade.” - Labornet TV Focuses on Taiwan's Sunflower Student Movement

Labornet TV program aired on April 9 featured the Sunflower Student Movement in Taiwan. As was extensively reported by various media, students had occupied the debating chamber of the Legislative Yuan, Taiwan's Parliament, from March 18 to April 10, demanding that the Cross Strait Service Trade Agreement with China be repealed. President Ma Ying-jeou went ahead with the agreement that is overwhelmingly disadvantageous for Taiwan without even consulting with the prime minister, leaving the people completely in the dark. The direct action by students, aiming to resist Ma's iron fist rule and protect democracy of Taiwan, gained strong public support and quickly developed into a large social movement. As many as 500 thousand people joined the demonstration on March 30. The people of Taiwan were angry more at the way Ma proceeded with the agreement and the fact that he completely ignored the people and democracy of Taiwan than the contents of the agreement.

In the program of April 9,  KAJIYAMA Ken'ichi, a specialist on Taiwan, and TAIYO Hanao of International Dept. of Labornet Japan explained the demands raised by the students and implications of the movement. According to them, poverty was one of the issues that motivated the students.  “They express a strong discontent with '22K' that means 22,000 Taiwanese Yuan (approximately US$727) of the average earnings of new graduates.  Prices are high in Taiwan, but the average wage of new graduates has stayed at 22K for last ten years, resulting in increasing poverty. The cross-strait service agreement is to allow large companies from the continent to deprive local industry of businesses and farther impoverish local people. In the sunflower movement, the people of Taiwan made it clear that they would refuse to accept another decade of 22K,” they said.  A woman living in Taiwan also provided a comment through skype. One of the commentator was putting on sunflower-shaped headdress and a yellow shirt (photo), enhancing the atmosphere in the studio. A group of Labornet members organized a solidarity program on April 11 where people from Taipei, Osaka and Tokyo discussed through skype. (By M)

Photo Report   

 

Photo: Citizens' demonstration in support of the students occupying the Legislative Yuan (from www. coolloud. org)

「年後も22Kの生活は嫌だ」～レイバーネットTVで台湾「ひまわり学生運動」

レイバーネット TV 4月9日の放送は、台湾特集だった。「台湾に圧倒的に不利なサービス貿易協定を馬英九総統は、首相にも知らせずたった一人で決めてしまった。大事なことが 全てブラックボックスで国民が無視された」。台湾民衆がこれほど怒ったのは、貿易協定の中身だけでなく「民主主義」が踏みにじられたことだった。番 組では、台湾専門家・梶山憲一さんとレイバーネット国際部・太陽花男さん（写真）が解説。「かれらの一番の要求は、“10年後も22Kの生活は嫌だ”とい うもの。22Kとは22000元（日本円で7～8万円）のことで新卒の平均賃金。台湾の物価は高い上に過去10年間22Kは変わらず、生活が苦しくなる一 方だった。今回 の協定で中国大企業が台湾を呑みこめば、かれらの生活破綻がいっそう進行する」。若者が立ち上がった背景には、こうした貧困問題があった。ひまわりグッズ や現地スカイプ報告もあり、スタジオは「ひまわり運動」一色に染まった。（M） 写真速報

「ひまわり学生運動」台湾でいま何が起きているのか！～東京・大阪で緊急企画

馬英九政権が 中国と結んだ「サービス貿易協定」撤回を求めて、3月18日に立法院を占拠した台湾の「ひまわり学生運動」は、30日に50万人デモが行われるなど台湾民 衆の大運動に発展している。この直接行動は、台湾の若者たちが、台湾と中国の対立か統一かという冷戦下での抗争を超えて、強権的な支配に抵抗し、台湾の民 主 主義を求めたものであったため、台湾全土の広範な人々の共感を呼んでいる。「暗闇の台湾に陽光を」とひまわりを掲げてたたかう人々。いま台湾で何が起きて いるのか。それはどんな意味を持つのか。9日（水）のレイバーネットTVは台湾専門家を招いて、緊急特番を放送する。また大阪では、11日（金）に「台 湾・若者たちに連帯する緊急交流討論の夕べ」が開かれる。両方とも現地とスカイプで結ぶ予定だ。
　＊写真＝学生を守れと立ち上がった市民（「苦労網」より）