Survey shows disappointment, anger among Fukushima evacuees
June 25 (Asahi Shimbun) – Disappointment toward Tokyo Electric Power Co. for its failure to guard the safety of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant and anger at the central government’s inept handling of the accident.
Those are the two major themes that emerge from the results of an interview survey of 407 evacuees from the Fukushima nuclear accident. About 90,000 Fukushima residents have evacuated because of the nuclear accident, with about a third of that number moving outside of the prefecture entirely. The interviews were conducted with evacuees now scattered around the nation.
While TEPCO may have provided many Fukushima residents with jobs, the nuclear accident has turned many evacuees against nuclear energy. The survey was performed jointly by The Asahi Shimbun and a research team led by Akira Imai, a professor at Fukushima University specializing in local government policy. When asked their opinion on the use of nuclear energy, 70 percent of respondents said they were opposed while 26 percent said they were in favor of nuclear energy. […] A total of 79 percent said they either wanted to return or wanted to return if at all possible. Only 12 percent said they either did not want to return or only wanted to return somewhat. Having young children was an obvious reason for not wanting to return to Fukushima. […]
A 26-year-old woman evacuated to Yamagata city with her five-year-old son. Although she was told by her company in Minami-Soma that she would be let go if she failed to return by the end of July, she has no intention of returning and is looking for work in Yamagata. “No matter how much they say it is safe, there is no way we can believe them ever again,” the woman said. Even those respondents who said they wanted to return to their communities also had doubts when pressed further in the interviews. One respondent admitted that fears of radiation would make a return home impossible. Another said the family farm was probably useless due to the radiation. A 53-year-old man who worked for a subcontractor to TEPCO said, “Because I used to work at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant, I understand the dangers of radiation. I cannot return to my home.” […] Feeling betrayed, respondents were quick to lash out at TEPCO and the central government. When asked if the nuclear accident at the Fukushima plant could have been prevented, 46 percent said “yes,” while only 28 percent said “no.”
An even higher percentage–52 percent–of respondents who had at one time worked in nuclear-plant-related jobs said the accident could have been prevented. […] Anger at the central government was due in major part to the confusion over evacuation instructions in the immediate aftermath of the accident. A number of evacuees said they were given conflicting or incomplete instructions that made it difficult to understand where they should flee to. Respondents also felt distrust toward the central government for calling on residents to respond in a calm manner while refusing to release forecasts of how radioactive materials might disperse. […]
