Japan Press Weekly

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2012 March 14 - 20 [NUCLEAR CRISIS]

Most of complaints filed for TEPCO compensation unsettled

During the last 6 months, only 1.5% of residents’ complaints seeking TEPCO compensation for nuclear accident damages were settled with the mediation of the central government’s body.

The public institution, launched on September 1 last year, sends lawyers to mediate disputes between victims of the nuclear accident and Tokyo Electric Power Co., the operator of the crippled nuclear plant in Fukushima, over compensation for damages caused by the accident.

As of March 6, only 18 out of 1,211 complaints filed by residents reached settlement.

Kuboki Ryosuke, a lawyer supporting nuclear accident victims in Fukushima, criticizes TEPCO for trying to induce compensation applicants to agree to accept the lowest amount of compensation set by government guidelines.

The plant operator will fulfill its responsibility only when it provides appropriate compensation to residents, who lost everything from houses to jobs, to restore the same level of living conditions they had before the accident, Kuboki stressed.