#Radioactive Japan: Government to Send Emperor and Empress to Fukushima to Observe Decontamination Work

It's clearly not enough for the power that be in Japan to have peaches grown in one of the more contaminated areas in Fukushima offered to the Imperial Family. Now the government will send the Emperor and the Empress to the areas in Fukushima to observe the decontamination work.

From Mainichi Shinbun (9/20/2012):

両陛下:除染活動を視察へ

Emperor and Empress to observe decontamination work

天皇、皇后両陛下が東京電力福島第１原発事故で汚染された土地の除染活動を視察するため、来月１３日に福島県を訪れる方向であることが宮内庁関係者への取材で分かった。両陛下が除染活動を視察するのは初めて。宮内庁はスケジュールを検討している。

Our paper found out from the source in the Imperial Household Agency that the Emperor and the Empress intend to visit Fukushima Prefecture on October 13 in order to observe the work to decontaminate the areas contaminated by the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident. It will be the first time for the Emperor and the Empress to observe the decontamination work. The Imperial Household Agency is currently scheduling the visit.

　関係者によると、両陛下の訪問は日帰りになる見通し。両陛下は昨年４〜５月、東日本大震災で甚大な被害を受けた宮城、岩手、福島県を相次いで訪問するなど被災者に心を寄せてきた。

According to the source, the visit will be a day trip. The Emperor and the Empress visited Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima in April and May last year, and expressed deep sympathy to the victims.

　今年３月の１周年追悼式では、天皇陛下がお言葉で「危険な区域に住む人々は住み慣れた、そして生活の場としていた地域から離れざるを得なくなりました。再びそこに安全に住むためには放射能の問題を克服しなければならないという困難な問題が起こっています」と原発事故に言及していた。

In the one-year anniversary ceremony this March, the Emperor referred to the nuclear accident by saying "People had to evacuate from areas made dangerous by the nuclear accident, where they had lived and worked for many years. In order for them to go back and live safely there, we have a difficult problem of radiation contamination to overcome."

The emperor was the only person among those who spoke in the ceremony who mentioned radiation, who talked to the deceased, and expressed genuine concern for the people who had to leave their homes because of the nuclear accident.

One response from a person supposedly living in Fukushima, on the Emperor's visit to the decon site:

"What's wrong with that?"

I briefly thought of replying, but I quickly dropped the thought.

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#Radioactive Japan: Shameless Mayor of Shimada City in Shizuoka Wants Tea in His City to Be Designated as "Gift to the Imperial Family"

How much lower can you get? With this dictatorial mayor of Shimada City whose son is the president of the waste management company in the city, probably a lot lower.

From Shizuoka Shinbun (part; 5/11/2012):

桜井市長はがれき受け入れ表明に至った動機について「島田はお茶を東北の皆さんに買ってもらい、相当な恩恵を受けている。恩返しでやろうと思った」と振り返った。島田産の茶の「安全を証明するため」として、最終処分場のある同市初倉地区の茶が皇室献上茶になるよう環境省に働き掛けていることも明らかにした。

Mayor Sakurai [of Shimada City, Shizuoka] described his motive to accept the disaster debris as follows: "People in Tohoku buy Shimada's tea, benefiting us. So I wanted to return the favor." To "prove the safety" of tea made in Shimada City, he is asking the Ministry of the Environment so that the tea grown in Hatsukura District of Shimada City can be designated as "Gift to the Imperial Family" and given to the Imperial Family. Hatsukura District is where the final disposal site is located [where the radioactive slug and ashes are buried].

Where are the nationalistic ultra-right when we need them? They have been busy disrupting the anti-nuclear rallies and gatherings.

For the video of the final disposal landfill in Hatsukura District, go to my post here.

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16 Becquerels/kg of Radioactive Cesium from Milk for Japan's Imperial Family

That's the headline of the latest issue of Shukan Shincho, a Japanese weekly magazine.

The imperial family has the 252-hectare Imperial Stock Farm managed by the Imperial Household Agency. It is located in Takanezawa-machi in Tochigi Prefecture, and it produces organic vegetables, eggs, meat, and milk for use in the imperial household.

Part of northan Kanto - Ibaraki, Tochigi, and Gunma - has had elevated levels of radiation since the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant accident last year. Vegetables, mushrooms, teas, and beef from the area have been found with levels of radioactive cesium exceeding the old provisional safety limit of 500 becquerels/kg. But the Imperial Household Agency has kept sending the produce from the Farm to the Imperial Household with young children as if nothing has happened.

The photo below is an ad banner of the magazine you see inside the trains in Japan. The first headline (the right most one) says Prince Hisahito is very fond of the milk from the Imperial Stock Farm, and that milk has been found with 16 becquerels/kg of cesium, even when the commercial milk has no cesium.

Prince Hisahito is 5 years old. Crown Prince and Princess have the young daughter, Princess Aiko (age 11). The emperor himself is still recovering from his heart surgery.

Many on Twitter are saying "They finally talk about it, now? After more than 1 year?"

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#Radiation Outside Japan: (Rumor) Ministry of Foreign Affairs Planning to Use Fukushima Produce on Emperor's Birthday Banquets

From a tweet by an independent journalist who seems to be residing outside Japan:

日本の外務省が各国の大使館等で１２月行われる天皇誕生日レセプションに、福島の食材でもてなすという企画をしているらしい。IAEAのトップが外務省のOBならそれも頷ける。外国では一般人レベルで既に日本レストランから足が遠ざかっているのに。

It seems Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is planning to use produce from Fukushima in the receptions to be held in Japan's embassies around the world for the emperor's birthday in December. That's understandable, considering the IAEA chief is a former bureaucrat of the Ministry. But foreigners are avoiding Japanese restaurants. What are they thinking?

As to the question of how the Ministry plans to bring in Fukushima produce to countries that ban the agricultural import from Japan (i.e. EU), he answers:

噂では、外交特権を使って輸入するらしい。

The rumor says they will import [food from Fukushima] using the diplomatic immunity.

In later tweets, he says he personally knows the embassy people in charge, who are ashamed of the Ministry's plan. He is most likely to attend the reception, as he has attended every year, he says, and will report.

Well, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is going to squander 1.1 billion yen inviting foreigners to Fukushima, Miyagi and Iwate so that they can tweet "favorably". Serving Fukushima vegetables and meat to dignitaries at Japan's embassies around the world so that foreigners think "favorably" of Japan and Fukushima in particular is just as demented, therefore totally in line with their (lack of) thinking.

The Japanese government has dispatched the imperial family to disaster areas including high-radiation Fukushima City in April and May. They had the crown prince's family spend summer in high-radiation Nasu, Tochigi Prefecture. Now, they may use the emperor's birthday to force foreigners to eat Fukushima food.

Are there any readers here who are regularly invited to the Japanese embassy events? The emperor's birthday is December 23.

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Japan's Crown Prince and Princess Taking Their 9-Year-Old Daughter to High-Radiation Summer Retreat

in order to show to the commoners that they, too, suffer in the area served by TEPCO, speculates a journalist following Japan's imperial families.

The Crown Prince and Princess are taking their small daughter to the imperial retreat in Nasu in Tochigi Prefecture. Radioactive rice hay containing 106,000 becquerels/kg of cesium was found in nearby Nasu Shiobara.

In Professor Hayakawa's map, you can see why. The area's radiation contour is at least above 0.5 microsievert/hour. (Look for the area just outside 100 kilometer radius, southwest from Fukushima I Nuke Plant.) You can view one of his photographs and see why (picture taken on July 12 at the rice field in Nasu Shiobara, air radiation level of 1.358 microsievert/hour).

From Gendai Media magazine (7/30/2011):

夏休みシーズンを迎え、今年も皇室ご一家は各地へ静養に出かけるが、原発事故の影響により、その行き先が一部で注目されていた。

Now it's a summer vacation season, and Japan's imperial families will spend the summer in imperial retreats. After the nuclear plant accident, some people have been wondering where they choose to go.

「天皇・皇后ご夫妻は須崎御用邸と軽井沢、皇太子ご一家は須崎と栃木の那須御用邸へ行かれるのが、ここ数年の通例ですが、今年は原発事故により、那須で非常に高い線量の放射線が検出されている。本当に那須で静養されるのかが、焦点になっていたのです。

According to one journalist who follows the Japanese imperial families, "The Emperor and Empress go to the retreat in Suzaki [in Shizuoka Prefecture] and Karuizawa [in Nagano Prefecture], and the Crown Prince's family goes to the retreat in Suzaki and Nasu, in Tochigi Prefecture. It has been like that for several years now. But this year, a very high level of radiation has been detected in Nasu. So we've been wondering if they go to Nasu this year.

　これまでは、とくに雅子妃が那須をお気に入りということで、例年10日以上にわたって長期滞在されていたが、まだ9歳の愛子内親王のことを考えると、高線量の那須に長期滞在するのはどうか、という声が宮内庁内にあった」(皇室ジャーナリスト)

The Crown Princess particularly likes the Nasu retreat, and the family usually spends more than 10 days there. But there are some who voiced concern over staying in the high-radiation Nasu for an extended time, considering their daughter, Princess Aiko is only 9 years old."

　軽井沢のほうが線量は比較的低いため、宮内庁内部では皇太子一家の軽井沢行きを勧める声もあったというが、結局例年通り那須と決定した。

The radiation level in Karuizawa is lower compared to Nasu. There were those in the Imperial Household Agency who recommended the Crown Prince's family to go to Karuizawa for the summer, but it was decided that the family would go to Nasu, just like last year.

「宮内庁幹部は、『(静養先は)例年通り。東電管内でないとまずいだろう』と話していました。

"Officials at the Imperial Household Agency were saying, "The summer retreat will be the same as last year. It cannot be outside the area served by TEPCO."

　実は軽井沢は、中部電力管内なんです。国民が真夏に『節電』で暑さに耐えているときに、皇太子一家だけが東電の管内から逃れるというのは、国民の 理解を得にくいだろうという判断があったようです。那須は職員用の風呂を開放して被災者から好評を博したこともありますし」(前出・皇室ジャーナリスト)

Karuizawa is the area served by Chubu Electric. When the Japanese citizens are suffering the heat of the summer in order to "conserve electricity", they may not look kindly at the Crown Prince family escaping the TEPCO area. The imperial retreat in Nasu let the earthquake/tsunami evacuees use the bath for the employees and it was very popular with the evacuees", added the same journalist.

　放射能の影響が心配でないはずがないが、国民とともに歩む皇室像を貫いた、ということのようだ。

There's no way that the Crown Prince and Princess are not worried about the effect of radiation, but they [or the Imperial Household Agency] decided to portray themselves as one with the citizens of Japan.

At least some citizens of Japan would understand if they escape TEPCO, and rather have them take their young daughter to a lower radiation location and state the reason clearly - to avoid radiation.

It's not that the imperial families have much say in the matter. After all, the Kan administration sent the Emperor and Empress to Fukushima, had them eat Fukushima food and bring some as souvenirs.

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