Japanese UTers offer ground view
Images of the havoc and human tragedy in Japan traveled all over the world after a 9.0 magnitude earthquake, a tsunami and nuclear disaster affected thousands of residents on 11 March. Takayuki Obara, a visiting researcher at Mesoscale Chemical Systems, and Kodo Yokozawa, a PhD candidate at NIKOS, tell about one of the blackest pages in their country’s recent history.
Marloes van Amerom
The day of the interview, held at the Vrijhof’s Theatre Café, is a sunny one. ‘Just like home,’ notices Tokyo-born Kodo, as he smiles briefly. ‘In a week or so, Japan will be full of cherry blossoms. But the joy accompanying the arrival of spring is missing.’ He vividly remembers the day of the earthquake. ‘My dad went missing for hours after the earthquake, trapped in a halted bullet train between Kyoto and Tokyo. Fortunately, he was fine.’
Besides friends and family, Takayuki has been frequently in touch with his company colleagues back home. ‘They have been very busy clearing up the rubble, made more difficult by continued aftershocks. Hopefully, manufacturing can now start and the factory can be re-opened.’
Noriko Hanzawa, a friend of Kodo, lives in Matsushima Miyagi, a small town by the coast located in Japan’s North-East which was severely damaged by both the earthquake and tsunami. Noriko, a music school teacher, informs of her current conditions through an email. She writes, ‘First of all, I would like to thank the world for all the support that we received. It is difficult to accept what has happened to us. Many of my pupils lost their family houses and have to move from one evacuation shelter to another. Many of them have nightmares. My colleague still cannot recover from the loss of her pupils. As for myself, I cannot see the future after my house, work, and normal life were taken away by the tsunami. Sadly, the government is not yet providing sufficient mental care for us.’
‘Many Japanese feel their government is reacting slowly to this matter,’ Takayuki then says with a concerned look. ‘Officials have a tendency to prioritize cities’ needs first and only take actions after conducting a lengthy analysis which is problematic. Fortunately, unlike during the Kobe earthquake of 1995, they accepted foreign aid this time.’ Kodo then mentions Holland’s contribution: ‘Ah, yes, Dutch rescue teams and their dogs were on the ground, helping during the disaster. They are a big hit on Japanese television, apparently!’ Japanese also greatly appreciate the massive chain reaction of empathy throughout the world, Kodo recalls. ‘The unfolded banners in football stadiums, remembering Japanese victims, were all over the media. I had never realized the impact of such messages before,’ says Takayuki. ‘But it works.’
‘This is such a major disaster,’ he then sighs. ‘Still, I am optimistic about recovery. Disaster has hit Japan before; take Tokyo’s revival after the 1923 quake. We are at least experts in rebuilding.’ But he still thinks things need changing. ‘Clearly, we as Japanese have a lot of room to improve on risk management. I heard about a guy who worked at Fukushima suggesting to donate free bicycles to people living nearby, so if calamity should come then they could quickly get away. Higher executives ridiculed his proposal, claiming the nuclear facility was one hundred percent safe.’ Kodo finds, ‘Some aspects of the nuclear disaster can definitely be traced to the overly ‘cozy’ relationships among the power company, government and the safety agency.’
What future is there for nuclear power plants in Japan? ‘Not sure,’ says Takayuki thoughtfully. ‘Hopefully, we can have a balanced debate, informed by rationality, and not just heated emotions.’ Kodo nods in agreement. ‘We should take this as a unique case. Procedures for risk prevention clearly need revision, but I don’t think moving away from nuclear energy is the answer. There is simply no alternative.’
Takayuki Obara (left) and Kodo Yokozawa: ‘One reason to do this interview is to thank the UT community. Please know your inquiries and interests have supported us tremendously.’ Photo: (Gijs van Ouwerkerk)
