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）
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