Poison Fire, Sacred Earth,
TESTIMONIES, LECTURES, CONCLUSIONS,
THE WORLD URANIUM HEARING, SALZBURG 1992
pages 199-202
. . . I'd like to read the message from a
Hibakusha. She is one of our patients, she was going to
come here with me, but she could not because of
her health problems. . . .
. . . I was 23 years old at the time of the bombing
in August 9, 1945. With the explosion of the plutonium
atomic bomb our peaceful home collapsed on the
spot. I myself was bombed about two kilometers from
the hyper-centre. . . .
About ten years ago, I visited the
reservation of the Navajo tribe, stayed for a night at
their home and exchanged with the victims of
uranium mining. I learned for the first time that there
are also radiation victims in the country that
bombed A-bombs on us. They had already become
the victims before us. They are also suffering from
radiation injuries and losing their family. Moreover,
the situation was much more severe than ours
because of the political pressure, poverty and the
discrimination to the indigenous people. . . .
Today, I'd like to speak about two things. One is a
real situation of the injuries of the Hibakusha. The
other is a problem of the solidarity between
the indigenous people and our anti-nuclear
power plants movement. Those who have
pushed for the construction of nuclear power
plants and those who wanted the production and
the development of nuclear weapons never
acknowledged the dire situation of the radiation
victims. One of the origins of their information is
that of the Hibakushas' injuries. Just after the
bombing, the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission
(ABCC) studied Hibakusha. They do so only to
develop nuclear weapons and nuclear power
plants in their countries. They treated Hibakusha
like animals for their own experiment and never
took medical care of them. The Radiation Effects
Research Foundation (RERF) was established in
1975 as a joint Japan-U.S.-foundation to take over
the research programs of the ABCC. They have
been underestimating the injuries but it has been
authorized internationally even now.
So I'd like to show the real injuries
according to our own investigation of Hibakusha
and share our knowledge among us to strengthen
the movement demanding the relief and
compensation for the radiation victims in each
country, and also demanding the nuclear free
world. . . .
I'd like to tell the other important health
problems of Hibakusha. Many Hibakusha have
frequently complained of such symptoms as
tiredness, vertigo, palpitations, lumbago
backpain, stiff shoulders and neck pains, although
a clear name of such diseases could not been
given to the patients. All of these complaints are
collectively called in Japanese "gembaku
buraburabio". "Gembaku" means "atomic bomb"
and "burabura" means, maybe in English "ring-a-ring"
or "I do". We believe this is an important
symptom that should have been regarded as a
result of radiation exposure. Some findings in our
investigation suggest a correlation between the
symptoms and radiation exposure. Moreover, we
can find similar situations, similar health
disorders among other radiation victims in the
world, for example Chernobyl children, Hanford
downwinders, nuclear power plant workers in
Japan and so on. But ABCC and RERF never
considered this. They treated it as if it is caused
by stress or some psychological problems. I think
even the people who are acting in the anti-nuclear
movement do not know about this syndrome.
. . . So, we can recognize
the similar health coordination, difficulties of life,
reduced ability for work and discrimination
among every kind of radiation victims in the
world today. We must make the responsibility
clear to the people who made the radiation victim
and demand of them not only the medical
compensation but also the compensation for rural
life injuries by radiation.
Dr. Katsumi Furitsu
Dr. Katsumi Furitsu, Japan. Medical doctor at
the Hospital for Radiation Victims, Osaka (mostly
Hibakusha), Delegate of the Investigation of
Hibakusha (survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki).
Good morning everybody! My name is Katsumi
Furitsu. I'm a medical doctor and take
medical care on the radiation victims in Osaka in
Japan. Radiation victims, most of them are
Hibakusha, the survivors of the victims of atomic
bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, as you now. There
are about 370,000 survivors in Japan. And
10,000 of them are now living in Osaka. I came
here as a delegation of the Investigation Committee
of Hibakusha, of Hanan Chuo Hospital. If
possible, I'd like to read the message from a
Hibakusha. She is one of our patients, she was going to
come here with me, but she could not because of
her health problems. Her name is Kazuko
Yamashima. The message:
"I'd like to send greetings with all my heart
to everybody attending The World Uranium
Hearing. I'm a survivor of the atomic bomb victims
of Nagasaki. At first, I'd like to tell about my story
briefly. I was 23 years old at the time of the bombing
in August 9, 1945. With the explosion of the plutonium
atomic bomb our peaceful home collapsed on the
spot. I myself was bombed about two kilometers from
the hyper-centre. I walked through the fields of
rubble and bodies of the dead and burnt people,
trying to find my house. It was 400 meters from the
hyper centre. The only thing that I saw there was the
burnt bodies of my parents. With no where to go I
slept on the ground beside my parents' bodies and
slept nine days alone in the city of death. As the days
passed, my limbs turned purple and my face turned
to the colour of dust. My gums bled, I began to
tremble with fever. On August 17th, I left Nagasaki
for my mother's native town and there I trust I [was]
hospitalised. In 1947, two years after the bombings,
I began to have skin eruptions and they left many
scars on my face. In August 1963, 18 years after the
bombing, my skin turned black, and a fever, pain
and itching made it impossible even to sleep. My
body became stiffer and stiffer until I was not able to
turn over in bed. I was just like the corpses that had
laid in the ruins of Nagasaki.
It was at that time that I started to join the
movement for the relief of atomic bomb victims. I
was so afraid of the genetic affect to our babies,
so I waited to marry until I was too old to have a
baby. Now, at a glance I might not look so different from
other people but I always tire very easily and lose
energy very easily and purple spots appear on my
skin so often. My right eye has already lost
sight. Burnt by the radiation of the atomic bomb
I determine that I should stand against nuclear
weapons and nuclear energy, and pray for the
peace of the world.
About ten years ago, I visited the
reservation of the Navajo tribe, stayed for a night at
their home and exchanged with the victims of
uranium mining. I learned for the first time that there
are also radiation victims in the country that
bombed A-bombs on us. They had already become
the victims before us. They are also suffering from
radiation injuries and losing their family. Moreover,
the situation was much more severe than ours
because of the political pressure, poverty and the
discrimination to the indigenous people.
I have been living through, suffering and
struggling against the radiation injuries, loneliness,
losing my dearest family, poverty and discrimination. I
think nobody can understand deeply radiation
injuries including those of health and life
other than the victims themselves, like you and me. I
really wish to attend this Hearing with you all and
discuss with each other about our painful
experiences and how to stop such a disaster. But
47 years have already passed from the bombing and
it is too long a time for me. Now I'm an old woman of
70 years old and I cannot make such long journey. In
Japan, our government has not established yet the
National Compensation Law for Hibakusha, though
we have been demanding it for a long time. We
Hibakusha are telling our experiences to the
people, especially to the young people, the younger
generations, to appear never again the disasters of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Let's work for the peace
and the nuclear free world. I really hope for the
success of The World Uranium Hearing. Thank
you."
And then I'd like to start my own speech.
Today, I'd like to speak about two things. One is a
real situation of the injuries of the Hibakusha. The
other is a problem of the solidarity between
the indigenous people and our anti-nuclear
power plants movement. Those who have
pushed for the construction of nuclear power
plants and those who wanted the production and
the development of nuclear weapons never
acknowledged the dire situation of the radiation
victims. One of the origins of their information is
that of the Hibakushas' injuries. Just after the
bombing, the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission
(ABCC) studied Hibakusha. They do so only to
develop nuclear weapons and nuclear power
plants in their countries. They treated Hibakusha
like animals for their own experiment and never
took medical care of them. The Radiation Effects
Research Foundation (RERF) was established in
1975 as a joint Japan-U.S.-foundation to take over
the research programs of the ABCC. They have
been underestimating the injuries but it has been
authorized internationally even now.
So I'd like to show the real injuries
according to our own investigation of Hibakusha
and share our knowledge among us to strengthen
the movement demanding the relief and
compensation for the radiation victims in each
country, and also demanding the nuclear free
world. We, the Investigation Committee of
Hibakusha of Hanan Chuo Hospital started our
investigations in 1985, after 40 years from the
bombing. We questioned 1,233 Hibakusha about
their health and life. Most of them we directly
asked. Using the result of the investigation we aim
to progress the movement demanding the Japanese
government to take the responsibility for the
progressive war and to establish the National
Compensation Law for Hibakusha as soon as
possible. Hibakusha are even
now suffering from radiation health injuries by
A-bombings. More than 90 percent of them have
some diseases now. The Hibakusha and the
people who supported them organized the
movement to demand a relief from the
government and got some medical benefits more
than ten years after the bombing. So they can get
some medical service now. But the rate of 90
percent is 2.5 times higher than the general
Japanese people in the same age group. Lumbago,
hypertension, neuralgia, miralgia,
anaemia, ducopania, gastritis, gastroduodenal
ulcer, escamic heart diseases, liver diseases,
diabetes and others are relatively high among
Hibakusha. Compared to the general Japanese
people, anaemia, ducopania is 13.4 times higher
and liver diseases 6.4 times higher. You can find
much more in detail in these papers. I haven't
many copies of them, so if you want, please
contact me later.
What I want to say is, cancer and
leukemia are well known to be caused by
radiation, but the high instance of these general
diseases other than cancer and leukemia strongly
suggest that such diseases are also related to the
radiation, contrary to the view of the ICRB and
the RERF. General diseases that can be seen
among other radiation victims in the world should
be also treated as radiation-related injuries, and
compensation should not be selected only on
leukemia and cancer and such diseases.
I'd like to tell the other important health
problems of Hibakusha. Many Hibakusha have
frequently complained of such symptoms as
tiredness, vertigo, palpitations, lumbago
backpain, stiff shoulders and neck pains, although
a clear name of such diseases could not been
given to the patients. All of these complaints are
collectively called in Japanese "gembaku
buraburabio". "Gembaku" means "atomic bomb"
and "burabura" means, maybe in English "ring-a-ring"
or "I do". We believe this is an important
symptom that should have been regarded as a
result of radiation exposure. Some findings in our
investigation suggest a correlation between the
symptoms and radiation exposure. Moreover, we
can find similar situations, similar health
disorders among other radiation victims in the
world, for example Chernobyl children, Hanford
downwinders, nuclear power plant workers in
Japan and so on. But ABCC and RERF never
considered this. They treated it as if it is caused
by stress or some psychological problems. I think
even the people who are acting in the anti-nuclear
movement do not know about this syndrome. But
it is very important because it is one of the
important factors affecting the ability to work of
the Hibakusha.
The effect of the atomic bomb should
not be restricted to health. Such radiation injured
health disorders have also caused difficulties of
life, reduced abilities for work and
discrimination. According to our investigation, the rate of
changing jobs are higher than that of the general
Japanese people. Their reason of changing jobs
are mainly their health problems. There isn't a
rise in income after changing jobs. And it is
well-known that some Hibakusha experienced late
rejection of a marriage engagement because they
were only Hibakusha. In other cases, they were
told that they could not have a baby because of
the Hibakusha and were divorced. Even now such
a discrimination continues. So, we can recognize
the similar health coordination, difficulties of life,
reduced ability for work and discrimination
among every kind of radiation victims in the
world today. We must make the responsibility
clear to the people who made the radiation victim
and demand of them not only the medical
compensation but also the compensation for rural
life injuries by radiation.
The next problem that I want to say is the
solidarity between the indigenous people and our
anti-nuclear power plants movement. Maybe I
don't have so much time. I must summarize. In
Japan, there are about 40 nuclear power plants,
and many relatively small accidents have
happened so often. If a severe accident like
Chernobyl may happen in our country, nobody can
run away from the exposures to radiation because
our country is so small. We are demanding to stop
running the nuclear power plants, and I think such
activities are basically important to make our
solidarity between the indigenous people because
our nuclear power plants are running, using the
uranium from the Mother Earth of the indigenous
people, as you know. And more directly, I think
it's very important to organize a movement to
protest against the import of the uranium from the
land of indigenous people. I visited the Southwest
[of the USA] a few years ago, and there I saw
uranium mines and also miners, and after that I
tried to organize such a movement, and about two
years ago we protested against the import of the
uranium from Mount Taylor where the people of
the Southwest as Anna
Rondon, Philip
Harrison and also Tom LaBlanc live. We had a meeting for
that and we also went to protest against the import
of the uranium and went to the electric power
company with them and also with Thomas
Banyacya Jr. and told the people from the
company everything that is happening in the
Southwest. But at that time the people from the
company said: "It's only a business and we are not
concerned about what is happening in the uranium
mine, we don't know such things." And I'm sorry to
say but they continue to import and run the
nuclear power plants in our country now.
But we must continue to protest. Our country
imports uranium not only from the States and
Canada but also from Namibia and Australia. I
think it's important and necessary to make an
international network to exchange information
and make our movement much more effective.
And at the end of my speech I'd like to
propose you to appear as a conclusion from this
World Uranium Hearing and to demand . . . yes, I
think it's very important to stop the original
sources of radiation to the world, so I'd like to
say, we must demand to realize the moratorium
on nuclear testing and go ahead to the comprehensive
test ban and to make international solidarity for
protesting against all the process of the nuclear
fuel cycle. Especially, I think, we must protest
against the Japanese transport of plutonium over
the sea. It will soon start and we would like to
protest against the ICRP and the IAEO
underestimating the radiation injuries. And I hope
to have the next World Uranium Hearing like this
again and, finally, let's work together for the relief
and compensation of the radiation victims in the
world and make our movement stronger to realize
a nuclear free world!
Thank you.