Thousands of anti-nuclear demonstrators rallied in Tokyo on Sept. 14, a day before Kansai Electric Power Co. was scheduled to shut down operations at the only nuclear power plant now online.
Thousands of anti-nuclear demonstrators rallied in Tokyo on Sept. 14, a day before Kansai Electric Power Co. was scheduled to shut down operations at the only nuclear power plant now online.
An estimated 9,000 protesters called for an extension of conditions under which Japan is not dependent in the least on nuclear energy.
The No. 4 reactor of the Oi nuclear power plant is scheduled to go offline late on Sept. 15 for a regular inspection. That would mean that all 50 reactors in Japan are idle.
The demonstrators gathered at the Kameido Chuo Park on Sept. 14 and later marched close to JR Kinshicho Station as well as in the vicinity of Tokyo Skytree, the landmark broadcasting tower that draws hordes of tourists.
One of the speakers at the gathering was Katsumi Hasegawa, who evacuated from Koriyama, Fukushima Prefecture, to Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, with his wife and child.
"I became aware of the fact that humans will never be able to exist beside radiation after having seen it pollute my child's future," Hasegawa said.
Other participants at the gathering included Nobel Prize-winning author Kenzaburo Oe and noted author Keiko Ochiai.