Japan Press Weekly

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2008 July 30 - August 19 [US FORCES]

JCP in Okinawa makes representations to Foreign Ministry against radioactivity leak

The Okinawa Prefectural Committee of the Japanese Communist Party on August 4 made representations to the Foreign Ministry in protest over the radioactivity leak cases on the U.S. nuclear-powered submarine Houston during its port call at Sasebo Port in Nagasaki Prefecture and at White Beach in Okinawa.

A Foreign Ministry official in charge of the implementation of the Japan-U.S. treaties and agreements told the visiting JCP officials that they regret the delay in explaining the accident to other government agencies and local governments. “We will be more prompt in providing information in such cases,” he added.

However, the official also made it clear that the Japanese government has no intention of rejecting entries of nuclear-powered ships into Japanese ports even though their safety is not confirmed. He said that there have been 1,300 port calls by U.S. nuclear-powered ships without accidents that affect public health and the environment.

Akamine Seiken, JCP member of the House of Representatives, said, “The Japanese people are appalled by ‘safety myths’ about nuclear-powered ships. The Foreign Ministry has a duty to give convincing explanations to the people.”
- Akahata, August 5, 2008