By Miya Tanaka

HIROSHIMA, Aug. 4 Kyodo, The Hiroshima District Court ruled Friday that all 41 plaintiffs in a jointly filed suit should be certified as suffering from illness caused by atomic bomb radiation, voiding an administrative action to reject their applications for state recognition of their infirmity.

The ruling is the second decision by a Japanese court among a series of similar lawsuits filed in other courts around the country, following the one at the Osaka District Court in May which also ruled in favor of the plaintiffs.

Both rulings, though rejecting the plaintiffs' claims for compensation, acknowledged that the plaintiffs should be certified as sufferers of the bomb illnesses, calling into question the current government criteria in issuing such certification.

The Hiroshima court ruling said the state's yardstick for the certification has ''various limits and weak points'' as it does not reflect fully the radiation exposure brought on by residual radiation and internal radiation.

''The screening policy should not be mechanically applied...and its evaluation should be limited to use as a rough reference at one point in the past,'' the ruling said.

Currently, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry certifies victims of atomic bomb illnesses when it finds ''high probability'' that the illnesses have developed due to the atomic bomb radiation.

The probability is worked out with the estimated amount of radiation exposure calculated from where the survivors were from the ground zero point in the 1945 bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, along with such factors as age, sex and illnesses.

The court said what the dosimetry system the ministry is using can ''relatively accurately measure'' is the initial radiation and that other radiation exposure should be ''cautiously considered.''

''An overall and comprehensive consideration is necessary,'' the ruling said, while adding that acute radiation symptoms can also be an important factor in deciding whether the person is suffering from atomic bomb diseases.

Among the plaintiffs, aged between 62 and 94, many had suffered from acute radiation symptoms, such as hair loss and vomiting, shortly after the bombing. Later they developed cancer, liver disease, cataracts and other diseases.

They included victims exposed to radiation in areas up to 4.1 kilometers away from the hypocenter and those who went near the hypocenter after the bombing.

Meanwhile, the ruling dismissed the plaintiffs' damage claims, saying it cannot be said that the health ministry failed to perform its duties and illegally rejected the plaintiffs' applications seeking to be recognized as atomic bomb disease sufferers.

The plaintiffs and their lawyers praised the ruling, which was issued ahead of the 61st anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Sunday, and urged the ministry not to appeal to the high court.

Sumio Shigezumi, who leads the plaintiffs' group, said, ''I would like to somehow prevent (the state) from appealing. I was convinced that we would all win, but when I actually heard the ruling I was so happy that I thought I would cry.''

Takeya Sasaki, who heads the plaintiffs' lawyers group, said, ''I believe the ruling which came 61 years after the bombing will console the atomic bomb survivors and will lead to improve the government's support system for atomic bomb survivors.''

Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Jinen Nagase commented on the court decision at a news conference, saying, ''The ruling is extensive and I have yet to read it in detail. We would like to consider what response to give after reading it through carefully.''

A government source said the state will consider appealing the case to a higher court and defended the ministry's certification system, saying it has been compiled to meet international standards as well.

As of the end of March, among 259,556 people holding the atomic bomb survivors' certificate, only 2,280, or 0.8 percent, were recognized as sufferers of atomic-bomb diseases, according to health ministry officials.

Around 180 people have filed lawsuits with 15 district courts in Japan, including the one in Hiroshima, seeking official certification of their illness and 3 million yen each in compensation.

In May, the Osaka District Court acknowledged that all nine plaintiffs in a jointly filed lawsuit should be recognized as suffering from radiation illness but rejected their claims for compensation. Both the plaintiffs and the state have appealed the decision.

2006-08-04 22:26:12JST