Japan Press Weekly

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2022 March 9 - 15 [SOCIAL ISSUES]

Gov't still restricts eligibility requirement to be officially-recognized Hibakusha in defiance of 'black rain' court ruling

Japanese Communist Party member of the House of Councilors Inoue Satoshi at an Upper House Budget Committee meeting on March 14 accused the Health and Welfare Ministry of ignoring the "black rain" court ruling and of still requiring applicants for Hibakusha benefits to have at least one of the eleven illnesses designated by the central government.

In July 2021, the Hiroshima High Court ruled that people who had been exposed to the “black rain” (radioactive fallout) following the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945 should be recognized as Hibakusha even if they have not developed any of the eleven designated diseases. The court also ruled that people who had been caught in the “black rain” outside the government-designated zones are Hibakusha as well. As a result, the government accepted this high court ruling and decided to not make a final appeal to the Supreme Court. Nevertheless, the government still maintains the eleven-illnesses-requirement.

Inoue asked "Why?" and Health and Welfare Minister Goto Shigeyuki answered, "Because it is not consistent with past related court decisions."

Inoue stated that the government must abide by the court ruling since it gave up on appealing the case. He demanded that the government criteria to recognize Hibakusha be drastically revised and that people who had experienced the "black rain" in Nagasaki also be recognized as Hibakusha entitled to compensation.

Inoue said, "Don't try to minimize the damage and aftereffects of the atomic bombings! Japan should help the world become aware of the 'inhumane consequences of nuclear weapons', including the seriousness of internal radiation exposure. Only by doing so can Japan help to advance the global effort to eliminate nuclear weapons."

Past related article:
> Gov't gives up on appealing 'black rain' court ruling [July 27, 2021]