Japan Press Weekly

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2011 April 20 - 26 [NUCLEAR CRISIS]

JCP calls for investigation of residents’ radiation dose

Japanese Communist Party lawmaker Tamura Tomoko on April 19 at a House of Councilors health committee meeting urged the government to determine the extent of radioactive contamination and radioactive doses of residents near the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Tamura pointed out that the Japanese government has already received 30,000 personal dosimeters from the United States as well as from other countries such as France, Canada, and Britain. She demanded that the government distribute these dosimeters to the local residents so that they can measure their radiation exposure level.

Vice-Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Otsuka Kohei replied, “At the moment, we have no plan to determine the dosage.”

Tamura stressed that the government’s assertions, such as, “The level of radiation causes no immediate damage,” do not help to reduce the residents’ anxiety. She requested the government to take measures to care for the residents in collaboration with experts, including doctors, who have information relating to radiation exposure of the A-bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.