Japan Press Weekly

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2012 September 12 - 18 TOP3 [NUCLEAR CRISIS]

Immediately depart from nuclear power generation: JCP

Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo on September 14 announced that his party strongly urges the government to “immediately realize zero nuclear power plants” in Japan.

At a press conference in the Diet building, Shii criticized a new energy and environment strategy the government released on the same day as calling for reduction in the country’s dependence on nuclear energy to zero by “sometime” in the 2030s. The government turns its back on the public demand for a swift departure from nuclear power generation, he stressed.

He referred to a proposal the JCP published in June 2011, which demanded that the government make a political decision to realize a Japan without nuclear power generation and draw up a program to achieve this within 5 to 10 years.

During the 15 months since then, damage being caused by the Fukushima nuclear accident has expanded, and the government forcibly reactivated the Oi nuclear power plant with no reasonable and scientific evidence ensuring its safety, he said.

The JCP chair also stressed that public opinion has greatly changed during this period of time and that now the majority of citizens demand that Japan end its dependence on nuclear energy.

Considering these developments, the JCP has put forth its latest proposal to demand an immediate departure from nuclear power generation, Shii stated.