information about Fukushima published in English in Japanese media info publiée en anglais dans la presse japonaise
27 Décembre 2014
December 27, 2014
http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20141227p2a00m0na007000c.html
The government and Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) have proposed to Fukushima Prefecture's commerce and industry federation a plan to end nuclear disaster compensation for businesses in February 2016, it has been learned.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and TEPCO presented the plan to the Fukushima Federation of Societies of Commerce and Industry on Dec. 25. The ministry and the utility told the federation that they plan to end compensation payments to all businesses, except for those in the agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors, in February 2016. Ministry and utility officials explained that they would map out future policies after hearing claims from business owners.
The federation's secretary-general, Hideki Endo, however, criticized the proposal.
"Fukushima business owners face different situations depending on their evacuation statuses and their business categories," he said. "While we understand the need to draw the line somewhere, we cannot accept the end of compensation payments within a year and a few months from now when the nuclear disaster has still not been brought to a conclusion and there are no prospects that harmful rumors will end in the foreseeable future."
Self-employed residents affected by the nuclear disaster, as well as mid- and small-businesses in 11 municipalities located within evacuation zones are eligible to receive compensation.
It was earlier decided that businesses eligible for compensation payments would receive the payments until February 2015 regardless of their business conditions. The compensation payments for those outside of the evacuation zones whose businesses had suffered from harmful rumors were to continue without a particular deadline, according to the level of damage.
As the compensation policy from March 2015 onward for businesses not in the agricultural, forestry or fisheries industries remained unclear, the Fukushima Prefectural Government and other related parties had been urging the economy ministry and TEPCO to outline a policy direction at an early stage.
Compensation guidelines compiled by the Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry's Dispute Reconciliation Committee for Nuclear Damage Compensation in December 2013 said that it is reasonable to end compensation payments to business owners when they are able to operate their businesses in pre-disaster conditions.
According to TEPCO, from September 2011, when the nuclear disaster compensation program began accepting applications, to November 2014, a total of 1.694 trillion yen had been paid as business compensation and compensation for damage caused by harmful rumors, including to businesses in the agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries.
An executive of local inspection firm Tohoku Ekkususen, which is based in the town of Namie, whose residents remain evacuated, says the company will have to close down if its compensation payments are withdrawn. Before the disaster, the company employed some 100 workers. It set up a temporary office in the city of Fukushima after the 2011 disaster, but as a result of evacuation, less than 20 employees remained. Its profit has dropped to one-tenth of pre-disaster levels, as there are no more orders for nuclear plant-related jobs.
"We doubt that our business will be back in shape by February 2016. TEPCO and the economy ministry need to consider individual cases," the company executive said.
December 27, 2014(Mainichi Japan)
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