Serious consideration of A-bomb disease certification system yet to begin
Nov. 4, 2009
by Kohei Okata, Staff Writer
On October 30, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, at a question-and-answer session of the Lower House, vowed to "establish a new A-bomb disease certification system that will reflect the reality of the atomic bombing." His statement was made in line with the manifesto issued by the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) during the latest Lower House election, but serious consideration of this issue has yet to begin.
Akira Nagatsuma, the minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, also expressed his intention to consider reviewing the A-bomb disease certification system at a news conference immediately after he assumed his current post. Other DPJ politicians linked to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, such as Vice Minister Hiroyuki Nagahama and Parliamentary Vice-Minister Kazunori Yamai, have begun conducting interviews on this matter, including with Daisuke Matsumoto, a DPJ member from Hiroshima's second constituency and the secretary general of the DPJ group on issues involving A-bomb survivors. Still, the ministry has fallen short of giving shape to the new system.
The DPJ, from the time it served as an opposition party, has argued for a drastic review of the A-bomb disease certification system in pursuit of the complete settlement of class action lawsuits over A-bomb disease certification. The party has been aiming to revise the Atomic Bomb Survivors Relief Law. In the meantime, the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations is calling for the revision of the law, including national redress, as well as a review of the A-bomb disease certification system. The DPJ and the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations differ on their specific policies, however.
Hidenori Yamamoto, assistant general secretary of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations and the leader of the nationwide group of plaintiffs involved in the class action lawsuits over A-bomb disease certification, is appealing for government action. "It’s time for a drastic revision of the Atomic Bomb Survivors Relief Law to bring it in line with the reality of the damage wrought by the atomic bombing," he said. "The government should hold careful discussions in view of the wishes of atomic bomb survivors."
(Originally published on October 31, 2009)
On October 30, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, at a question-and-answer session of the Lower House, vowed to "establish a new A-bomb disease certification system that will reflect the reality of the atomic bombing." His statement was made in line with the manifesto issued by the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) during the latest Lower House election, but serious consideration of this issue has yet to begin.
Akira Nagatsuma, the minister of Health, Labor and Welfare, also expressed his intention to consider reviewing the A-bomb disease certification system at a news conference immediately after he assumed his current post. Other DPJ politicians linked to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, such as Vice Minister Hiroyuki Nagahama and Parliamentary Vice-Minister Kazunori Yamai, have begun conducting interviews on this matter, including with Daisuke Matsumoto, a DPJ member from Hiroshima's second constituency and the secretary general of the DPJ group on issues involving A-bomb survivors. Still, the ministry has fallen short of giving shape to the new system.
The DPJ, from the time it served as an opposition party, has argued for a drastic review of the A-bomb disease certification system in pursuit of the complete settlement of class action lawsuits over A-bomb disease certification. The party has been aiming to revise the Atomic Bomb Survivors Relief Law. In the meantime, the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations is calling for the revision of the law, including national redress, as well as a review of the A-bomb disease certification system. The DPJ and the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations differ on their specific policies, however.
Hidenori Yamamoto, assistant general secretary of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations and the leader of the nationwide group of plaintiffs involved in the class action lawsuits over A-bomb disease certification, is appealing for government action. "It’s time for a drastic revision of the Atomic Bomb Survivors Relief Law to bring it in line with the reality of the damage wrought by the atomic bombing," he said. "The government should hold careful discussions in view of the wishes of atomic bomb survivors."
(Originally published on October 31, 2009)
