Law enacted to set up fund for atomic bomb sufferers

+

TOKYO, Dec. 1 Kyodo -
The Diet on Tuesday enacted a law aimed at extending blanket relief for people
who have lost lawsuits against the government for their certification as
sufferers of radiation-linked illnesses due to the 1945 atomic bombings of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The House of Representatives, or the lower house, unanimously passed the bill
in the day's plenary session with votes by members of all political parties,
except the main opposition Liberal Democratic Party which has boycotted the
session. The House of Councillors, or the upper house, has already passed it.
The law will come into force on April 1 next year.
Under the law, the government will establish a 300 million yen fund to extend
financial assistance to those who have lost legal battles in court and cannot
receive monthly medical allowances of about 140,000 yen (about $1,600).
Currently, around 30 people are eligible to receive such relief.
Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Akira Nagatsuma told a news conference
Tuesday that he plans to attend regular meetings between government officials
and former plaintiffs to discuss sweeping reforms to the government's current
scheme to recognize applicants as sufferers of radiation-linked illnesses.
Nagatsuma said he would listen to participants over a range of issues.
Terumi Tanaka, 77, secretary general of the Japan Confederation of A- and
H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations, known simply as Nihon Hidankyo, told reporters
that it was a long journey for atomic bomb sufferers, known as hibakusha, who
have reached advanced ages and have suffered from various diseases.
In Hiroshima, Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba told a news conference Tuesday that he
welcomes the enactment of the law which he said would extend a helping hand to
those who have long been ignored.
The enactment came more than six years after the first suit was filed in 2003.
The government had lost 19 straight lawsuits by August.
On the 64th anniversary on Aug. 6 this year of Hiroshima's atomic bombing, then
Prime Minister Taro Aso and plaintiffs signed an agreement that calls for
providing a blanket resolution to all 306 plaintiffs who have sought
recognition as suffering from radiation-linked illnesses.
The agreement calls for certifying plaintiffs who have won district court-level
lawsuits over the issue as suffering from radiation-related illnesses, even
though high courts have yet to rule on their cases.
For those who have lost at district courts, the accord says the government will
create a fund through lawmaker-sponsored legislation to compensate them.
Since the start of the current Diet session, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has
pledged to enact a law to expand the scope of government relief for sufferers
of radiation-related diseases linked to the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima
and Nagasaki.
The government moved to secure allocations for the next fiscal year from April
2010 for relief for the sufferers, and will coordinate with plaintiffs on how
to establish an agency to oversee the fund.
==Kyodo
2009-12-01 23:34:09