FUKUSHIMA,
Japan (Reuters) - At last, victims of Japan's nuclear crisis can claim
compensation. And they are angry.
They are furious at the red tape they have to
wade through just to receive basic help and in despair they still cannot get on
with their lives seven months after the huge quake and tsunami triggered the
world's worst nuclear disaster in 25 years.
Shouts fill a room at a temporary housing
complex where seven officials, kneeling in their dark suits, face 70 or so
tenants who were forced to abandon their homes near the Fukushima nuclear plant
after some of its reactors went into meltdown after the March 11 quake struck.
"We don't know who we can trust!"
one man yelled in the cramped room where the officials were trying to explain
the hugely complex procedures to claim compensation.
"Can we actually go back home? And if
not, can you guarantee our livelihoods?"
About 80,000 people were forced to leave their
homes by the nuclear crisis.
While the owner of the plant, Tokyo Electric
Power Co, has made temporary payments to some victims, it was only last month
that it finally began accepting applications for compensation.
But the procedure is so complicated that it
seems to just make things worse.
After claimants have read a 160-page
instruction manual, they then have to fill in a 60-page form and attach
receipts for lodging, transportation and medical costs.
"It's too difficult. I'm going to see how
it goes. I don't want to rush and mess up," said Toshiyuki Owada, 65, an
evacuee from Namie town, about 20 km (12 miles) away from the plant.
Owada is one of many who still has not applied
for compensation even though they have lost jobs or businesses and are running
out of cash.
COMPLEX
AND UNFAIR
The complexity of the task is one deterrent.
There is another -- the perception that Tepco
is not playing fair.
Confidence in the authorities is low. The
government is seen as having bungled its early response to the crisis and being
secretive about what was really happening.
Tepco is accused of failing to take sufficient
safety measures at the Fukushima plant even though it knew the risks and then
deliberately underplaying the extent of the accident.
It is also seen as insensitive.
One clause in the original instruction booklet
telling victims they would have to agree to waive their right to challenge the
compensation amount in order to receive payment provoked a public uproar.
Chastised by the government, the company
promised to drop the clause, issued a simplified 4-page instruction booklet and
assigned 1,000 employees to Fukushima prefecture to help victims with the
process.
"There may be times when the content is
difficult to understand or in some cases our employee in charge may not grasp
it fully, but we would like to explain and respond as carefully as
possible," said Tepco spokesman Naoyuki Matsumoto.
A government panel overseeing the compensation
scheme estimates claims are likely to reach 3.6 trillion yen ($46.5 billion) in
the financial year to next March.
FEW
CLAIMANTS
But so far just 7,100 individuals have applied
to Tepco for compensation out of the 80,000 it send forms to.
And of the 10,000 businesses in the Fukushima
area, a mere 300 have submitted claims.
The company expects a total of 300,000 claims
from businesses given that the impact of the radiation crisis has been so
widespread.
Victims can sue but that is rare.
Junichi Matsumoto, a Tepco official, said the
utility faces about 10 lawsuits so far. He declined to disclose details but
said some were seeking more than the firm deemed appropriate.
Yuichi Kaido, an attorney and the secretary-general
of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, said lawsuits are considered a
last resort in conservative rural northeast Japan.
"In the end, many lawsuits could take
place," he said.
"But the majority is thinking of first
speaking with Tokyo Electric or seeking mediation . "
SENSE
OF RESIGNATION
The final compensation depends on whether and
when victims will be able to return to homes within a 20-km evacuation zone.
That question remains unanswered, breeding a growing sense of resignation among
evacuees.
Some said they doubt they will ever be able to
go home and suggested their entire towns simply be relocated and many worry
about long-term health effects of radiation.
An Asahi newspaper poll showed this month that
43 percent of evacuees still want to return, down from 62 percent in June.
For many, what is now on the table --
reimbursement for moving and transportation costs associated with evacuating,
compensation for damage to health, lost jobs, and psychological suffering --
only deepens frustration over what they have lost.
Tokyo Electric said it will pay about 100,000
yen a month for the period to end of August as compensation for psychological
trauma. After that, the sum will be halved.
"Evidence that we have lived our lives is
completely destroyed and for that, we are told that we will be compensated
100,000 yen for our psychological suffering. That's it?" said 75-year-old
restaurant owner Sumiko Toyoguchi, who had to leave her home in Namie.
"What's at the root of our frustration is
that we cannot see what our tomorrow will be like."
($1 = 77.365 Japanese Yen)
Yoko Kubota | Reuters
(Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Jonathan
Thatcher)
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Consulting, Investment and Management, focusing three main economic sectors: International PR; Healthcare & Wellness;and Tourism & Hospitality. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programs. Sign up with twitter to get news updates with @SaigonBusinessC. Thanks.
No comments:
Post a Comment