Ending Evacuation Support

Prefectural government of Fukushima decided that it would terminate a policy to provide with houses for volunteer evacuees in severe accident of First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant at the end of March, 2017. For those who need a house outside of hometown, it will pay for a part of the rent. While the government emphasized the necessity for early return to hometown, it also focused on cutting cost for evacuees. But, the evacuees are frustrated with the policy, saying it is too early.

After the nuclear accident in First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, there appeared certain area in Fukushima, where people could not live, due to high radiation. Abiding by the order of national government, one hundred thousand people are still living in somewhere out of their hometown. In addition, there are people who left their town without any order of the government, escaping from bad effect of radiation. The Fukushima government calls them voluntary evacuees and has been paying for their rent. The estimated number of voluntary evacuees amounts to twenty-five thousands.

Main reason for ending rent payment for volunteer evacuees was the progress in building reconstruction public housing. About five thousand rooms will be build for the evacuees. Consulting with national government, Fukushima government realized that, along with progress in decontamination of residential area, the policy needed for urging evacuees to get back home. “It is difficult to maintain a policy of emergency rescue,” told the Governor of Fukushima, Masao Uchibori.

Volunteer evacuees have four options: moving to reconstruction public house, buying a house with compensation from Tokyo Electric Power Company, getting back to home or finding an alternative house somewhere else. Different from temporary houses, where most volunteer evacuees live, reconstruction public house requires the residents monthly rent. For those who lost their job or property, it is hard to pay for the rent. For those who are afraid of negative impact of remaining radiation, they need to make a hard choice whether they return to or abandon their hometown.

Mainichi Shimbun reported an example of a woman who evacuated from Fukushima with two little children, leaving her husband in Fukushima. She had to find part time job, while her husband could not send her money for evacuating life to pay for housing loan. The couple divorced after he refused her request to leave Fukushima. She suffered from alcoholic addiction with psychological pressure to raise her kids with scarce income. For her, finishing rent support would be a fatal damage for her life.

Both national government and local government need to understand the true situation of the evacuees. While Fukushima government expects more people coming back to their hometown, the policy may cause separation between who can get back and who cannot. It is possible that the go-home policy may turn out to be a homeless production policy.