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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 May 2025
While Onitsuka explains the political elements that created Japan's “abandoned people,” Norimatsu formally introduces the term and links two separate groups of people, each of whom was abandoned in order to pursue a specific government priority. She compares the Fukushima disaster to the ongoing U.S. military occupation of the island of Okinawa. Both of these topics demonstrate tensions in Japan's center-periphery relations, and in both instances, Norimatsu argues that the Japanese government is discriminating against citizens who live in distant regions in order to make life better for those living in the large cities. Specifically, Japan allows the U.S. to maintain military bases on nearly 20 percent of the main island of Okinawa, which many locals resent. The Americans are not always good neighbors. To give three examples: stray bullets have wounded people and damaged property; in 2004 a helicopter crashed into a building at Okinawa International University (luckily no one was injured); and in 1995, three US personnel raped a 12-year- old girl. In the same way, Norimatsu argues, the risk from living near nuclear power plants is unfairly assigned to people living in Japan's rural periphery, only temporarily alleviated by enormous subsidies granted while the plants are under construction.
1 Oe Kenzaburo, “History Repeats,” The New Yorker, March 28, 2011.
2 John Hersey, Hiroshima, Vintage, 1989
3 Yuki Tanaka and Peter Kuznick, “Japan, the Atomic Bomb, and the “Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Power,” The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, Vol. 9, Issue 18 No. 1, May 2, 2011
4 Gavan McCormack, Hubris Punished: Japan As a Nuclear State, The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus Vol. 9, Issue 16 No 3, April 18, 2011.
5 “Fukushima accident released far more cesium than Hiroshima bombing,” Asahi shimbun, 28 August 2011. Fukushima nuclear accident emitted 15,000 terabecquerels, while the Hiroshima atomic bomb released 89 terabecquerels.
6 “Some Fukushima soil same as Chernobyl ‘dead zone,’” The Japan Times, 1 June 2011.
7 “Radioactive cesium from Fukushima on tour of Pacific Ocean,” The Daily Telegraph, 15 Sep 2011.
8 “TEPCO failed to act on 10% probability assessment for worst-case tsunami,” Mainichi shimbun, 10 Oct 2011.
9 Say-Peace Project and Satoko Norimatsu, “Protecting Children Against Radiation: Japanese Citizens Take Radiation Protection into Their Own Hands,” The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, Volume 9, Issue 25, No.1, June 20, 2011.
10 Sato Eisaku, “Nihon wa ima kanshi kokka,” Ryukyu shimpo, 25 Sep 2011.
11 Tonaki Morita, “3/11 igo ni kansuru kosatsu,” Ishihara Masaie Ed., Peace Now Okinawasen musen no tameno saiteii, Horitsu Bunkasha, 2011., pp. 132-133.
12 Roxana Tiron, “U.S. Defense Department Will Spend as Much as 80 Million on Aid to Japan,” Bloomberg, 29 Mar 2011. “So-called ‘Sympathy Budget’ is only 28% of the total expenses Japan is paying for US bases,” Peace Philosophy Centre, 2 Oct 2010, link.
13 “Criteria for ‘cold shutdown’ of Fukushima nuclear plant remain vague and ambiguous,” Mainichi shimbun, 18 Oct 2011.
14 For example, “Saitama ken kawaguchi shi 10 sai no onnna no ko no nyo kara seshiumu kenshutu,” Kodomo o mamoro Save Child, link.
15 “Kojosen no kino 10 nin ga henka fukushima no kodomo shinshu dai byoin chosa,” Sankei shimbun, 4 October 2011, link.
16 “Taiki chu to kaisui no hoshasen ni tsuiteno futatsu no gimon,” Peace Philosophy Centre, April 4, 2011, link.
17 Nishioka Nobuyuki, “genshiryoku ‘kaku’ no nai musen shakai o,” Ishihara Masaie Ed., Peace Now Okinawasen musen no tameno saiteii, Horitsu Bunkasha, 2011, p. 179.
18 Sato, ibid.
19 Inamine Susumu and Miyagi Yasuhiro, “‘Unacceptable and Unendurable,” Local Okinawa Mayor Says NO to US Marine Base Plan,” The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, Vol 9. Issue 42 No 2, October 17, 2011.
20 “Saihen kofukin keijou sezu 11nendo yosan nago shi ga hoshin,” Ryukyu shimpo, 12 Decemer 2010, link.
21 Sakurai Nobukatsu interviewed in NHK News 7, 19 October 2011.
22 “Zen genpatsu ‘hairo’ no seigan saitaku fukushima ken gikai, ricchi do ken de hatsu,” Tokyo shimbun, 20 Oct 2011.
23 “Genpatsu yushutsu o keizoku,” Ryukyu shimpo, 19 Oct 2011.
24 “Majority of Japanese want to scrap nuclear plants: poll,” The China Post (AFP), 19 Jun 2011, link.
25 “Genpatsu shin zosetsu hantai 66%,” Ryukyu shimpo, 11 Sep 2011.
26 “Yaeyama de hoshasei haikibutsu shobunjo mosaku nihon gennen komon ga chosa,” Ryukyu shimpo, 25 September 2011, link.
27 Say-Peace Project and Satoko Norimatsu, Protecting Children Against Radiation: Japanese Citizens Take Radiation Protection into Own Hands,” The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, 20 June 2011.
28 Hase Michiko, “We want genpatsu in Tokyo!” - The new sarcastic edge of Japan's antinuclear demos,” The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, 11 Oct 2011.
29 See Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus complete coverage and guide sources on the 3.11 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant meltdown, link.
30 “Somusho ni yoru ‘intanetto jo no ryugen higo’ o torishimaru yosei ni tsuite,” Peace Philosophy Centre, link.
31 “Seifu ni yoru burogu tsuittaa kanshi shiyo sho,” Peace Philosophy Centre, 15 July 2011, link.
32 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reportedly budgeted 400 million yen (approx. 5 million US dollars) to invite influential bloggers outside of Japan to visit Japan, starting in November 2011. “Kaigi broggaa shotai de 4 oku en gaimusho,” Okinawa Times, 11 Oct 2011, link.
33 Richard Falk, “Is This a Global Gandhian Moment?”, Citizen Pilgrimage (Richard Falk's blog), 10 Oct 2011.
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