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Prime minister seeks final report on A-bomb disease certification by year’s end

by Osamu Kido and Kenichiro Nozaki, Staff Writers

On August 6, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that he has instructed Health and Welfare Minister Norihisa Tamura to complete, by the end of the year, the final report by a special commission the ministry established to review the certification system for A-bomb diseases. In the midst of a number of lawsuits filed over the certification process, Mr. Abe is seeking to expedite the review work in order to expand and accelerate the certification of A-bomb diseases.

The prime minister revealed his intentions at a meeting with representatives of A-bomb survivors designed to air their requests. The meeting took place at a hotel in downtown Hiroshima following the Peace Memorial Ceremony.

The review commission was formed in December 2010, launched by the previous Democratic Party of Japan administration after applications for A-bomb disease certification continued to be turned down even after the certification criteria was relaxed in 2008. Mr. Abe told the A-bomb survivors at the meeting, seeking changes in the system, that the members of the commission have been discussing ways to improve the process and he will ask that their report be compiled by the end of this year.

Despite the relaxed criteria, a number of A-bomb survivors have challenged the rejection of their applications by filing lawsuits. As many as 100 people are suing the Japanese government at district courts in Hiroshima, Tokyo, Kumamoto, and other locations, according to a group in Tokyo comprised of lawyers nationwide who are supporting the class action lawsuits involving A-bomb disease certification. On August 2, the Osaka District Court ruled in one lawsuit that all eight plaintiffs suffered from A-bomb diseases and ordered the central government to officially certify these survivors.

At a press conference held after the meeting, Mr. Abe also commented on the Japanese government’s decision not to support a joint statement on the humanitarian impact of nuclear weapons issued at the preparatory committee for the review conference of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) in April. He acknowledged considerations involving Japan’s difficult security environment in Asia, but added that the government will give serious thought to the possibility of joining a similar statement in the future.

(Originally published on August 7, 2013)

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