Fukushima nuclear crisis: man's responsibility
Tokyo (AsiaNews)
- What happened on 11 March 2011, when two of the six nuclear plants built near
the city of Fukushima (north-east of Japan) exploded is the responsibility of
man. The
damages plant leaked 400 mSv / h (millesieverts) of radiation that forced the
local population to evacuate. A level 7
nuclear disaster like Chernobyl, increasing Japan's level of radioactivity.
A man made disaster
TEPCO
(Tokyo Electric Power Co.), which owns the exploded reactors, was quick to
indicate nature (earthquake and tsunami) as the cause of the explosions, but
the report of the investigating committee appointed by the Diet (parliament), attributes
the disaster to the NISA agency (Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency) and
TEPCO, the two agencies which, even before the earthquake and tsunami, were
aware of the need to improve plant safety.
The
committee report, the result of six months of investigation, was delivered in
early July to the presidents of the two branches of the Diet by Kiyoshi
Kurokawa, President of the investigating parliamentary committee. The
nuclear crisis in Fukushima, he said, "can not be regarded as a natural disaster,
but a man-made disaster."
Industry,
government and bureaucracy the real culprits
The
committee analyzed the causes of the disaster in broader perspective: the chosen
members were from a former diplomat, two lawyers, a chemist, a scientist and a
journalist.
In
the foreword to the report "Man," which is referred to as the factor responsible
for the tragedy, is Japanese man, is concretely identified in TEPCO, i.e.
industry, the "regulators", i.e. the bureaucracy, and Naoto Kan, then-Prime
Minister: "All three lacked preparation and vision to effectively address
a crisis of this nature and scale ... The direct causes of the crisis were all expected
before 11 March 2011, when the earthquake of magnitude 9 struck the Tohoku
region (north-east of Japan) but (managers) of the nuclear states were unable
to first prevent and later tackle the huge disaster. "
"There
were many opportunities for checks (the NISA: Nuclear and Industrial Safety
Agency and the Nuclear Safety Commission) and for TEPCO to take measures to
prevent the crisis," the report reads. But
(those responsible) were incapable of either foreseeing or later implementing
measures (if necessary) or made decisions based on the interests of their
respective organizations. "
It
also criticized the action of the then Prime Minister (Kan), who with his immediate
and harsh intervention "severed the planned chain of command."
The obstacle of Japanese culture
Kurokawa
has shown a high degree of courage, honesty and clarity for neither did he
spare Japanese culture. After
saying that the crisis was the result of a "multitude of errors and
voluntary negligence" he did not hold back from also putting, so to speak,
Japanese culture on trial. He
dared to blame "our passive obedience, our reluctance to question
authority, our devotion to being faithful to the program, our sense of group
and insularity" for the disaster.
The
American Mire Dickie, Tokyo correspondent of The Financial Times, praises the value of the report of the
independent commission. "The
explanations of TEPKO after the earthquake were irrational, he wrote, and the
insistence on the tsunami as a cause of damage is an attempt to dodge responsibility."
Looking to the future
Over
the last hundred years, Japan has faced a serious crisis that brought it to its
knees. It has
always been able to learn lessons and rise again with honor. We wish it well now.
The
final part of the report has shown the way. Kazuaki
Nagata, editor of The Japan Times, summarized
as follows: "To improve nuclear safety on the basis of what has been
learned from the crisis in Fukushima, now we must review the laws on energy and
nuclear safety as first priority, and create a commission Parliamentary
that will check if the "regulators" are doing an adequate job of
government. "
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