Japan Press Weekly

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2021 November 17 - 23 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Lawyers and plaintiffs in 4 Fukushima nuclear accident lawsuits ask JCP to work to gain relief for all victims

Victims of the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident and their lawyers on November 16 requested the Japanese Communist Party to press the national government and the Fukushima plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. to develop compensation criteria to meet the government's and TEPCO's legal responsibility.

The petitioners are plaintiffs and their lawyers in the Fukushima, Gunma, Chiba, and Ehime cases pending in the Supreme Court, demanding that the state and TEPCO restore victims’ original living conditions and pay full compensation to the victims.

Representatives of the plaintiffs and of their lawyers visited JCP Takahashi Chizuko (Lower House), Iwabuchi Tomo (Upper House), and Yamazoe Taku (Upper House) in the House of Councilors members' office building.

Meeting with the petitioners, Iwabuchi said, "Our party will increase the public movement nationwide with a wide range of people in order to put pressure on the government and TEPCO to accept their legal responsibility." Takahashi said, "It was the government itself which created 'voluntary evacuees' by unilaterally drawing a line demarcating forced evacuation zones. The government is seeking to lift all evacuation orders with a view to bringing an end to reconstruction work. However, that will not be the end of the issue."

Managi Izutaro, a lawyer in the Fukushima case, said in response, "Several problems will remain even after the Supreme Court makes its judgement: What will happen to the victims other than the plaintiffs? What kind of relief other than compensation issues the victims receive? We need discuss more with the defendants about these issues."

The petitioners made similar representations to the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, the "Reiwa Shinsengumi" party, and the national government.