NISA's Young Career Bureaucrat Admits Fukushima I Nuke Accident Is NOT Over

Oops.

Independent journalist Ryusaku Tanaka reports on the meeting between a citizens' group and the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency. The citizens' group made a formal appointment with the agency for the meeting, but on the day of the meeting they were shoved into a dark corridor to wait for someone to show up, and the "meeting" was done in the lobby, standing, between the group and a lone 30-year-old NISA bureaucrat.

From Tanaka's blog (1/31/2012):

保安院・若手官僚うっかり　「現場は収束に向けて動いている」

A young bureaucrat at NISA inadvertently says, "Workers at the [Fukushima I Nuke] plant are working toward winding down the accident"

市民団体が「全ての原発の停止と廃炉」などを求めて経産省原子力安全・保安院に請願に行ったところ、若手官僚から仰天発言が飛び出した。原発事故は収束していない、と口を滑らせたのである。

When a citizens' group went to petition the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry demanding "halting and decommissioning all nuclear power plants", a young bureaucrat had an amazing slip of the tongue. He said the nuclear accident was not over.

「すべての原発いますぐなくそう！全国会議」を中心とする一行12人は31日、経産省別館の原子力安全・保安院を訪れた。同会議事務局長の織田陽介さんが保安院広報課に苦労してアポを取っての訪問である。

On January 31, a group of 12 people from "Let's stop all nuclear power plant! national conference" visited the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency in the annex building of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Yosuke Oda, secretary of the conference, had managed to make an appointment with the PR department of the NISA.

約束通り同日午後2時、保安院の受付で面会の手続きを取ろうとしたところ、広報課に内線電話を入れた受付嬢は「担当者が変わったそうです」。オイオイ、5日前にアポ取ってんだぞ。傍らでやりとりを聞いていた筆者は保安院の非常識さに吹き出しそうになった。

They arrived at 2PM, as per the appointment, and went to the reception at NISA for necessary procedure before the meeting. After calling the PR department, the receptionist told them, "There has been a change of person in charge". Oh boy, they had set up the meeting 5 days prior... I almost burst into laughter at the lack of common sense at NISA as I was observing the exchange.

『このまま門前払いされてなるか』。一行は受付嬢を通して広報課に猛然と抗議した。10分ほど押し問答が続いたところで警備担当の職員がおもむろにやってきた。

"We're not going to be turned away like this." The group protested vehemently to the PR department through the receptionist. After 10 minutes of exchange, a security guard came.

「あちらでお待ち頂けますか」。警備担当者は受付裏のソファーが並ぶスペースに一行を押し込んだ。電燈が一器も点いておらず真っ暗だ（写真）。別の警備担当職員に聞くと節電の一環らしい。

"Could you wait over there?" The security guard put them in the space at the back of the reception area. There was no light, and it was dark (see photo). When we asked another security guard, it was part of energy saving effort.

　暗がりの中で20分間ほど待つと、先ほどの警備担当職員と共に広報課の役人が現れた。「原子力安全広報課・下鶴俊輔係長」だ。30歳になるかならないかのうら若き青年である。十中八九キャリアだ。

We waited in the dark for about 20 minutes. A bureaucrat from the PR department showed up with the security guard. It was Shunsuke Shimozuru (or Shimotsuru), section manager at NISA PR department. He was a youthful-looking young man, hardly 30 years of age. A career bureaucrat, in all likelihood.

下鶴青年、もとい、下鶴係長は一行を同じフロアーのロビーに案内した。立ったまま請願を受け付けようというのである。

Young Shimozuru, correction, Manager Shimozuru took us to a lobby on the same floor. He was going to receive the petition standing.

「どうして会議室じゃないの？」
「請願はロビーで受けるようにしている」

"Why not in a conference room?"
"It is our policy to receive a petition in the lobby."

「（昨年）10月27日に『福島の女たち』が申し入れた時には会議室を取ってくれたわよ」、「請願権の制限になるよ」……一行は畳み掛けた。

"When "Group of Fukushima women" went to petition on October 27 last year, they were shown to a conference room." "Are you limiting our right to petition?" People pressed him for an answer.

下鶴係長は追い詰められた格好になった。「庁舎の警備上の都合もあり…」

Manager Shimozuru was cornered. "Well, it is also a matter of security..."

「我々は別に危ないことしないよ。会議室に入れたからといって警備上何が問題なの？」

"We are not doing anything dangerous. What's the security problem of letting us in a conference room?"

いよいよ困った下鶴係長は、つい本音をもらしてしまった。「（原発事故の）収束宣言は出しましたが、現場は収束に向かって動いてますんで…」。

Not knowing what else to say, Manager Shimozuru blurted out the truth despite himself. "The declaration was made that the nuclear plant accident was over, but the workers at the plant are working toward ending the accident..."

「（事故を起こした）原発から白い煙が出てて、どうして収束と言えるんですか？」。福島の人々がよく口にする言葉だ。

"How can you say that the accident is over when you see a white smoke coming out of the broken plant?" That's what people in Fukushima often say.

原子力安全・保安院の若手官僚が、うっかりとはいえ原発事故が事実上収束していないことを認めたのである。「やはり、そうだったのか」と思わざるを得ない。野田首相に「当の保安院が収束していないって言ってますよ～」と言ってやりたい。

A young bureaucrat of NISA inadvertently admitted that the nuclear plant accident, for all intent and purposes, was not over. "Just as I expected", as I thought to myself. I wish I could tell Prime Minster Noda, "NISA itself is saying the accident is not over. Do you know that?"

Mr. Shimozuru is a man in the center, with his back on the camera.

It must be a rude learning experience for ordinary citizens of Japan. All their lives, they thought the bureaucrats and politicians who graduated from top schools in the nation were working for them. When they made an appointment to see them, they were shoved into a dark corner, and met with a young man no more than 30 years of age, in the lobby, standing.

Just for your information in case you are not familiar, not all bureaucrats are "career" bureaucrats in Japan. Career bureaucrats are those elites in the national government who have passed the rigorous examination and in exchange are guaranteed fast-track promotions within the ministries. They dominate the top hierarchy of the ministries. They are usually the graduates from elite universities in Japan. As part of on-the-job training of some sort, many are dispatched to municipalities throughout Japan during their career to become vice mayors of the cities before they come back to the ministries. Some go to international agencies and come back.

Some of them decide to run for office after vice mayoral experience, and become politicians but with ties to the ministries. The pro-nuke governor of Hokkaido is one example; she was a career bureaucrat at the Ministry of Economy before she became the governor. There are many others. Then, on retirement, they "descend from heaven" to the NGOs, NPOs, research institutes, big corporations, with fat checks with little work.

Tweet