Still Unable to Return

Japan is approaching the 6^th anniversary of East Japan Great Earthquake and severe accident in First Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant. The government of Japan is going to lift evacuation order for the residents in four towns or village around the plant in March 31^st or April 1^st. While the resident can choose one of two options, return or stay, most of them are supposed to stay in the city where they have lived for six years.

After the accident in the plant, which emitted a huge amount of poisonous radioactive materials with break down of nuclear reactors, Japanese government issued evacuation order to 81 thousands of people living around. In 2012 and 2013, it rearranged the evacuation area into three categories, difficult to return, restricted to live and preparing for lifting evacuation order. All the evacuees except from the area difficult to return were planned to be able to return their home by March 2017.

The evacuees will be separated between the 57 thousands who can go home and 24 thousands who cannot. In the area which the government decided to be returnable, they kept on cleaning the land for removing radioactive materials. Recognizing the land to have been decontaminated to the level of annual 20 mSv or lower, the government offers the people getting back home.

However, only a few evacuees are supposed to return. The residents of Naraha town, to whom evacuation order was lifted in September 2015, did not get back home except 11% of them. Although the order for the evacuees from Katsurao village was lifted in June 2016, only 9% of them have returned. The main reason is because basic infrastructure such as supply of electricity, water or doctors in hospital are not sufficient for their ordinary life. But, basic concern is that the standard of radiation level set by the government would not be safe enough.

In an interview to Asahi Shimbun, Professor in University of Fukushima, Akira Imai, indicated that lifting evacuation would conceal the sufferers of nuclear accident, recognizing the damage of accident would continue for a long time. “The greatest problem is that the government integrates lifting evacuation into finishing financial supports,” said Imai. Primary reason why the government hurries up for lifting evacuation order is to end the compensation for them.

Most evacuees realize that they cannot get back home forever. Their empty homes are severely damaged without repair for these six years. While they hope to return their homeland as it had been, the government or Tokyo Electric Power Company cannot make it. The world needs to realize that it is the actual consequence of nuclear accident.