Japan Press Weekly

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2012 August 15 - 21 [GREAT EAST JAPAN DISASTER]

JCP assembly members demand gov’t continue to support 3.11 victims

Japanese Communist Party representatives from the 3 prefectures hit by the March 11 disaster on August 20 requested the welfare ministry to continue measures to support disaster victims.

JCP prefectural committee members of Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima, and JCP members of these prefectural assemblies visited the ministry on this day.

The national government is going to discontinue a series of support measures for the sufferers at the end of September. These measures include the reduction or exemption of medical fees, premiums on the National Health Insurance and the Long-Term Care Insurance.

JCP member of the Miyagi Prefectural Assembly Yokota Yushi said that it is difficult for the prefecture and municipalities to pay the expenses for the measures as they cost 34.5 billion yen a year. He demanded that the central government continue to assume responsibility for maintaining these steps.

Miura Kazutoshi, another JCP member of the prefectural assembly, handed to a ministry official a petition for keeping up the measures signed by 31 leaders of community associations of residents of temporary shelters in Ishinomaki and Kesennuma cities. He explained that the residents of temporary housing areas are forced to lead a hard life. In Ishinomaki City, as many as 17,000 people are still living in temporary housing units.

A parliamentary secretary of the ministry replied, “We have the same opinion as you. We will see if the state can provide some support for local governments.”

After that, the JCP group visited the industry ministry, demanding that the administration continue its project to help restore the facilities of small- and medium-sized businesses damaged by the disaster.