KAGOSHIMA--An estimated 6,000 anti-nuclear activists rallied on March 16 here to protest the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s decision to short-list reactors at the Sendai nuclear power plant for safety screenings--a prelude to their restart.
KAGOSHIMA--An estimated 6,000 anti-nuclear activists rallied on March 16 here to protest the Nuclear Regulation Authority’s decision to short-list reactors at the Sendai nuclear power plant for safety screenings--a prelude to their restart. A Fukushima evacuee who was forced to flee her home after the meltdowns at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant that were triggered by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami denounced the NRA’s decision to grant priority to the facility for the screenings. “Although three years have passed (since the disaster started to unfurl), the situation facing Fukushima has not changed,” said Masumi Kowata, 58. “Please don’t restart the reactors.” Marching in the central part of Kagoshima city, the demonstrators shouted, “Their restarts will never be forgiven” and “We want to live on an Earth that has no nuclear plants.” The No. 1 and No. 2 reactors at the Sendai plant in Satsuma-Sendai, Kagoshima Prefecture, operated by Kyushu Electric Power Co., have remained shuttered as a consequence of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. They may resume operations as early as this summer barring any unforeseen problems during the screening process. “Han-Genpatsu Kagoshima Net” (Anti-Nuclear Kagoshima Network) and other citizen groups who organized the event estimated the size of the demonstration. If the number is accurate, that would make it the largest-ever anti-nuclear gathering in the prefecture.