Hiroshima Prefectural Medical Association plans health checkups of A-bomb survivors in North Korea
Sep. 6, 2010
by Takamasa Kyoren, Staff Writer
On September 3, the Hiroshima Prefectural Medical Association revealed its plan to undertake health checkups of A-bomb survivors in North Korea in spring 2011. The association had planned the checkups twice before, but they were put off due to international conditions. The exact dates for the checkups have not yet been decided.
A group led by Shizuteru Usui, president of the association, held a press conference at Hiroshima City Hall. Board members of the association, who attended the World Congress 2010 of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) held in Switzerland this past August, and representatives of IPPNW's North Korean branch reportedly agreed to the plan for the checkups. The association will dispatch five doctors to North Korea on a five-day mission and the team will conduct checkups in Pyongyang and Sariwon, cities where many A-bomb survivors, exposed to the blast in Hiroshima, live. The Japanese doctors will see about 100 survivors.
The association sent doctors to North Korea in September 2008 and studied the number and health conditions of the A-bomb survivors there. Subsequently, the association twice planned to pursue checkups in North Korea. However, the plan was postponed in response to a government request following nuclear tests conducted by North Korea and the sinking of a South Korean patrol ship.
Dr. Usui said that the group's plans are sometimes impacted by international events, but he would like to fulfill the effort as soon as possible. The association is planning to seek the government's approval of the new plan.
(Originally published on September 4, 2010)
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IPPNW World Congress to be held in Hiroshima in August 2012 (Sept. 1, 2010)
On September 3, the Hiroshima Prefectural Medical Association revealed its plan to undertake health checkups of A-bomb survivors in North Korea in spring 2011. The association had planned the checkups twice before, but they were put off due to international conditions. The exact dates for the checkups have not yet been decided.
A group led by Shizuteru Usui, president of the association, held a press conference at Hiroshima City Hall. Board members of the association, who attended the World Congress 2010 of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) held in Switzerland this past August, and representatives of IPPNW's North Korean branch reportedly agreed to the plan for the checkups. The association will dispatch five doctors to North Korea on a five-day mission and the team will conduct checkups in Pyongyang and Sariwon, cities where many A-bomb survivors, exposed to the blast in Hiroshima, live. The Japanese doctors will see about 100 survivors.
The association sent doctors to North Korea in September 2008 and studied the number and health conditions of the A-bomb survivors there. Subsequently, the association twice planned to pursue checkups in North Korea. However, the plan was postponed in response to a government request following nuclear tests conducted by North Korea and the sinking of a South Korean patrol ship.
Dr. Usui said that the group's plans are sometimes impacted by international events, but he would like to fulfill the effort as soon as possible. The association is planning to seek the government's approval of the new plan.
(Originally published on September 4, 2010)
Related articles
IPPNW World Congress to be held in Hiroshima in August 2012 (Sept. 1, 2010)
