Hello, people in Hamburg.
My name is Azusa Fukushima, city council member of Iwaki, Fukushima.
I’m now writing this text in Iwaki where I live in. I see clear skies, young leaves, and beautiful flowers. Apparently, it’s a normal refreshing day.
But Iwaki is located in Fukushima prefecture, 40 km away from the Fukushima first nuclear power plant. Iwaki is one of the cities stricken by the Great East Japan Earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 on March 11. About 300 lives, an awful lot of valuables, and objects of memories were lost. Now, Iwaki is suffered from many disasters. Earthquake, massive tsunami, nuclear accident, aftershocks, and harmful rumors associated with nuclear accident.
After the earthquake, lifelines were almost completely damaged for about one month, and gasoline and supplies were in severe shortage. Many people had once evacuated from Iwaki with a population of 340,000. The city was wrapped in the silence. But about 10,000 people who lost family members, houses, or cars had lived in evacuation centers at that time.
We all hope for reconstruction of the city, and now Iwaki starts to move forward by little and little. But I have seen citizens saying “If it were not for the nuclear accident…” time and time again. Radioactive materials are dispersed in clear blue skies, greenery environment, and turquoise ocean. Accordingly, air, earth, animals, plants, and fishes are contaminated, so farming industry, fishing industry, and livestock industry are enormously damaged. The nuclear accident is an ongoing issue, and we still have a lot of anxiety. Though it has been more than two months since the earthquake, stress on the invisible radioactive materials is still unresolved.
Currently, about 80,000 people around the Fukushima first nuclear power plant leave their dear old home. Nobody knows when they will be able to return to their homes. Maybe someday, I should also leave my home. I hope the nuclear issue will be resolved as early as possible.
I have 1 and 3-year old children and feel very anxious about effects of radioactive materials to children. In nurseries, and elementary and junior high schools, children are prevented from playing outside in some ways. We even fear to ventilate a room. Japanese Government decided the level of 20 milisievert per year as a Radiation Safety Standard for schools in Fukushima, but opinions vary from expert to expert. Many parents are confused because we don’t know which information is correct.
I want to let children run around in a completely safe place without restrain.
I want to let them eat local foods of Fukushima without fear of radioactive materials.
I hope they won’t feel bad about being born in Fukushima.
We have a sea of worries about children.
Although there are a lot of unresolved problems about the earthquake and the nuclear accident, we, including sufferers and evacuees, all face the reality and make efforts toward reconstruction as best we can.
First and foremost, we consider the safety of our children who create the future. And we are moving forward to rebuild a vibrant city of Iwaki, Fukushima.
It is the environment which is contaminated, not us. I promise we’ll reconstruct the city. We need your encouragement for Iwaki and children who live there. Please keep up your support for us to resolve the nuclear issue and save the children’s future.
I am grateful to you for giving me this opportunity and pray with all my heart for the success of the film festival.
May 20, 2011
City council member of Iwaki, Fukushima
Azusa Fukushima
