40 Years on Death Row Mr Masaru Okunishi 7th Appeal Rejected by Nagoya Japan Court

Saturday, May 26, 2012

All for naught: Supporters of an 86-year-old man who has been on death row 40 years are stunned after the Nagoya High Court rejected his retrial appeal Friday over his conviction of fatally poisoning five women in 1961 in Nabari, Mie Prefecture. KYODO

At first cleared, 40-year death-row inmate loses anew

Confession retracted but stands for killer, 86

Kyodo

NAGOYA — The Nagoya High Court rejected a retrial appeal Friday of an 86-year-old man who has been on death row for four decades for the fatal poisoning of five women in 1961 in Nabari, Mie Prefecture, ruling his retracted confession made under initial grillings remains "basically trustworthy."

Masaru Okunishi

Even though Masaru Okunishi was initially acquitted and the high court in 2005 opted to reopen the case, presiding Judge Yasuo Shimoyama said Friday, "It is unquestionable that only Okunishi could have mixed pesticide into the wine" that poisoned the victims.

Okunishi's confession, made when he was under interrogation, "is basically trustworthy," Shimoyama added.

The defense counsel will file a special interlocutory appeal with the Supreme Court.

The high-profile case involves the poisoning of 17 women on March 28, 1961, at a community meeting in Nabari. Five of the women, including Okunishi's wife, died, and 12 fell sick.

Okunishi confessed to investigators that he had laced the wine with an agricultural chemical to resolve a love triangle involving himself, his wife and his girlfriend, but retracted his confession before being indicted.

Protesting his innocence, Okunishi was initially acquitted by the Tsu District Court in 1964 on grounds of insufficient evidence, but the Nagoya High Court overturned that ruling and sentenced him to hang in 1969. The Supreme Court finalized the verdict in 1972.

Okunishi subsequently filed seven petitions for a retrial, finally leading the high court to reopen the case in 2005. But another presiding judge at that court nullified the decision in response to an objection filed by prosecutors.

After the appeal by Okunishi's counsel, the Supreme Court turned the case back to the high court in 2010, arguing it should examine the toxic substance used in the crime more scientifically.

In the latest deliberation, the defense submitted new evidence to the high court, claiming the type of pesticide used in the crime was different from the one Okunishi had confessed to using. It argued that a characteristic component of the substance was not detected in the wine.

Shimoyama rejected the argument, however, saying that the defense failed to prove the pesticide Okunishi had claimed to have used was different from the one actually used.

Okunishi told one of his lawyers at the Nagoya Detention House on Friday that he regretted the high court decision but said he is confident of winning at the final stage and called for continued support.

Osamu Watanabe, a law school professor at Konan University, said Friday the high court should have reopened the case as it has not been scientifically disproven that a different type of pesticide was mixed in the wine.

As long as there remains a possibility that Okunishi was the victim of a miscarriage of justice, the case should be reopened in line with the principle of innocent until proven guilty, he said.

But Takeshi Tsuchimoto, a former prosecutor at the Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office and now a professor emeritus at Tsukuba University, called Friday's decision is reasonable.

"The high court determined in a firm voice after examining all the evidence — old and new — that Okunishi is (definitely) the real culprit," he said.

4.1% Police Officers PTSD: East Japan Earthquake

"The 408 officers account for 4.1 percent of the 9,847 officers involved in post-disaster police operations."

Police facing post-quake blues / Over 400 officers believed to have disaster-related stress conditions

The Yomiuri Shimbun

More than 400 police officers in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectures appear to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to their duties in areas hit hard by last year's Great East Japan Earthquake, according to a National Police Agency survey.

The 408 officers account for 4.1 percent of the 9,847 officers involved in post-disaster police operations.

People who work in difficult situations such as major disasters or accidents are prone to developing an array of physical and mental disorders.

The NPA conducted the survey, released Thursday, on all police officers and staff in the three prefectural police forces in January and February.

The survey was the second of its kind, following one conducted in April and May last year, in which 7.6 percent were believed to have PTSD.

A number of medical workers and volunteers reported suffering from PTSD in the aftermath of last year's disaster. In many cases, the victims said they felt unable to fulfill their responsibilities because of their conditions.

Some police officers described experiencing strong feelings of anxiety, insomnia and flashbacks of horrible situations from the disaster.

In response to the survey, the three prefectures' police forces said they will provide professional counseling to officers who need it.

An expert organization analyzed the responses to the survey's 32 questions. Many officers reported "dreaming about disaster-stricken areas," "feeling irritated by trivial matters," and "being uninterested in things."

Although it was believed after the first survey that many of the officers' conditions were temporary, the latest survey indicated symptoms in some had persisted.

The experts who analyzed the data said the latest survey's results may include cases of delayed-onset PTSD, the symptoms of which develop six months or more after its cause.

Many of the survey's respondents said they had trouble sleeping and often woke up; felt grief over whether they could perform their duties; and experienced anxiety constantly.

The results also showed that the rate of PTSD was higher among people who suffered directly from the disaster, those whose family members were affected, and those who felt their work burdens became heavier after the disaster.

By prefecture, 199 officers, or 5 percent of Miyagi prefecture's police, reported symptoms consistent with PTSD. Another 145, or 4 percent of Fukushima prefecture's police, are suspected of having the condition; and 64, or 2.9 percent of Iwate prefecture's police.

For Fukushima prefectural police personnel, data was compiled by region. Results showed 7.1 percent of officers in the Hamadori region, home of the crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, were believed to have PTSD. Another 3.7 percent and 3.3 percent in the Aizu and Nakadori regions, respectively, are believed to have the condition.

===

Hopelessness and nausea

About 3,800 police officers of the Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima prefectural police forces are still conducting search operations for missing people in the disaster-hit areas.

In Miyagi Prefecture, 1,581 people are still reported as missing. The prefectural police had 850 police officers conduct the search, but nobody has been found since April 2.

Haruhiko Aso, 51, chief of the prefectural police's post-disaster measures office, said: "Police officers working at these sites tend to feel a sense of hopelessness. I'm worried about the effects of the accumulated stress that may go unnoticed."

Just after the disaster, only a few officers complained about stress or anxiety. But recently, more officers report feeling nauseous when they see images of the disaster on television.

Many members of the Fukushima prefectural police had their families evacuated to other prefectures after the outbreak of the crisis at the Fukushima plant.

"I tend to get depressed because I am living separately from my family," one police officer said.

Katsunori Tsuda, 54, vice chief of Ofunato Police Station in Iwate Prefecture, said, "I'm worried that officers in my police station with a strong sense of responsibility may have taken on a great deal of stress."

Hirotada Hirose, an expert in disaster-related psychology and professor emeritus at Japan Women's University, said: "Police officers, who follow a strict ethical code, tend to fulfill their duties even in extremely tough situations because of their sense of a mission.

"Measures need to be taken for them, such as having them regularly talk to one another about their worries."

(May. 25, 2012)

 

Nuclear Crisis Caused by Tsunami Prone Japan

Sunday, Feb. 19, 2012

Nuke crisis caused by Japan, not quake: Kan

AP

Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan has admitted that Japan was woefully unprepared for last year's nuclear disaster and suggested that the crippled Fukushima No. 1 plant should not have been built so close to a tsunami-prone coastline.

Straight shooter: Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan is interviewed at his office in Tokyo on Friday. AP

In an exclusive interview, Kan acknowledged flaws in the authorities' handling of the crisis, including poor communication and coordination among nuclear regulators, Tokyo Electric Power Co.'s management and the government Kan was heading at the time.

But he said the disaster — the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl in 1986 — laid bare a host of even bigger vulnerabilities in the nuclear power industry and its regulations, ranging from inadequate safety guidelines to crisis management, all of which he said need to be overhauled.

"Before 3/11, we were totally unprepared," he said. "Not only in terms of the hardware, but our system and the organization were not prepared. That was the biggest problem."

Kan said the disaster made him realize that Japan needs to dramatically reduce its dependence on nuclear power, which accounted for 30 percent of the country's electricity supply before the crisis, and has turned him into a believer in renewable energy.

He also acknowledged that information was sometimes slowly disclosed and at other times erroneous, particularly in the days immediately after the crisis started. He blamed a lack of reliable data at the time and denied the government ever hid any information from the public.

Kan said the very location of the Fukushima plant was problematic.

"If they had thought about it, they wouldn't have intentionally built it at such a low location," Kan said. "The plant was built on the assumption that there was no need to anticipate a major tsunami, and that was the actual start of the problem.

"We should have taken more adequate safety steps, and we failed to do so," he added. "It was a big mistake and I must admit that (the accident) was due to human error."

Early on in the crisis, Kan said he had considered the possibility of a worst-case scenario in which all six of the plant's reactors and rods in their spent-fuel pools would have melted down completely out of control. That probably would have resulted in radioactive fallout spreading over a wider area, requiring the evacuation of millions of people, including possibly the population of Tokyo.

But Kan said he never instructed officials to produce a blueprint for evacuating the 30 million people living in the greater Tokyo area, although an internal report submitted March 25 by the head of the Japan Atomic Energy Commission warned of such a possibility if the disaster deteriorated. Fearing panic, the report was buried and kept a secret.

"My mission was to stop (such an evacuation) from happening and to think how to do it," Kan said. "We were lucky to manage to get the crisis under control before things worsened."

He said the crisis was at its most dire stage around the time a third hydrogen explosion was detected at the Fukushima plant in mid-March. "Up until around March 15, we were losing ground to the invisible enemy," he said.

Ex-METI Minister Kaieda... distrusted Tepco at start of nuclear crisis

Friday, May 18, 2012

Ex-METI Minister Kaieda admits he distrusted Tepco at start of nuclear crisis

Kyodo

Former industry minister Banri Kaieda admitted Thursday there were moments during the early days in March 2011 of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant disaster when he suspected Tokyo Electric Power Co. was trying to downplay the triple-meltdown crisis.

 

Testifying before a Diet-appointed panel investigating the nuclear disaster, Kaieda said he thought Tepco may be trying to make the crisis appear "less serious" than it actually was when an emergency venting operation to prevent damage to one of the reactor containment vessels was delayed.

"I felt Tokyo Electric was somewhat hesitant, although actually that was not true," said the former economy, trade and industry minister, who was the first politician to attend the panel's hearings, which are open to the public.

Kaieda also expressed regret that information-sharing between officials at the prime minister's office, the utility's head office in Tokyo and the crippled plant was "thoroughly lacking."

"It was like we were playing a game of whispers," he recalled, suggesting his frustration at the time.

Kaieda, a Lower House member of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, served as industry minister until last September. The nuclear regulatory body falls under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

Another panel, which has been tasked by the government to investigate the disaster, has already questioned Kaieda, but the hearing was closed to the public.

The Diet-appointed panel plans to conduct a hearing on May 27 with current METI Minister Yukio Edano, who was chief Cabinet secretary when the nuclear crisis was triggered by the March 11, 2011, megaquake and tsunami.

Three of the six reactors at the plant suffered meltdowns, making it the world's worst nuclear accident since the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

 

 

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20120518a5.html

 

Mental Health in Japan

What You Should Know About Mental Health in Japan and How to Find Help [Podcast Interview]

 

As expats, sometimes life can get stressful. Really stressful. Perhaps to the point of needing help in the form of counseling. But how do you get that kind of help in a foreign country, especially if the country's native language isn't English, or your native language?

I wondered about this myself when I was dealing with a bout of labrynthitis a couple years ago and the doctors kept telling me the reason I felt so bad was due to a mental issue. They were wrong, although I suppose it was technically, "all in my head." However, it got me thinking, what if I ever needed counseling here in Japan? Would I be able to find help? Someone that would understand me and not form opinions based on one culture?

So I sought out answers from an expert: psychotherapist and clinical psychologist Andrew Grimes ofTokyo Counseling Services. We discussed a few different things, including:

 

• The most common psychological issues expats in Japan experience
• How the work culture in Japan affects emotional well-being
• How counseling and psychotherapy are addressed in Japan versus western countries
• How to find an English-speaking counselor if you don't live in Tokyo or another major city
• What you should be aware of when preparing a move to Japan and ways you should prepare, especially if you have a family
• Culture shock, when it happens, what it might look like and how to deal with it
• Why getting out of the "expat bubble" sometimes can be good for your mental/emotional health
• What mental health professionals in Japan have been doing to help the recovery process in Tohoku

 

Today we're doing something a little different with this interview - you'll find it below in audio form rather than text (although hopefully I can get it transcribed eventually). It's my first audio interview, so you'll have to excuse the fact I'm not quite as talented as the Japan podcasters out there, but I think the content in this interview if insightful and worth a listen.

Click here to listen to the interview:

Surviving in Japan: What You Should Know About Mental Health in Japan and How to Find Help (Podcast Interview with Andrew Grimes, Director of Tokyo Counseling Services).

http://www.survivingnjapan.com/2012/05/what-you-should-know-about-mental.html

*******

Please check out Tokyo Counseling Services:

Tokyo Counseling Services
Address: KS Residence, Daizawa 2-30-21, Setagaya Ward, Tokyo, Japan. 155-0032
Phone: 03-5431-3096
Fax: 03-5431-3097
Email: tokyocounselingservices@gmail.com

Fukushima sake maker relaunches business after quake disaster

Chieko Sasaki holds a bottle of the doburoku sake that she has begun producing again for the first time since the Great East Japan Earthquake. (Mainichi)

拡大写真

FUKUSHIMA -- A sake manufacturer from the Fukushima Prefecture village of Iitate, who had given up production last year due to the nuclear disaster, has begun making sake again, albeit this time in the prefecture's capital city of Fukushima where she is still in evacuation.

Back in production and on sale again is 66-year-old Chieko Sasaki's doburoku sake, also known as nigorizake, a type of rice wine that is not filtered after fermentation and therefore remains cloudy. Sasaki had given up on production last year when the entire village was forced to evacuate, but in April received authorization -- required under the Liquor Tax Law -- to produce doburoku in the prefecture's capital where she is currently staying, and began selling her products "Dobuche" and "Hakuro" in May.

Iitate was designated a "special doburoku zone" in 2005, the first municipality in Fukushima to receive such designation. The following year, Sasaki, who farmed and ran a local eatery, obtained a license to produce and sell doburoku. In hopes of making the beverage a local specialty, at the age of 60, she went into debt and the world of doburoku making. Her products went on to become popular as gifts on celebratory occasions, and it was when she was nearly finished paying off her loans that the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami hit, triggering a nuclear disaster at a power plant less than 40 kilometers away.

Sasaki left Iitate, which was given government designation as an evacuation preparatory zone, and moved into a rental apartment for disaster victims in Fukushima city. Her former life that had been filled with farm chores, cooking at her eatery, and making sake was now gone, and Sasaki had nothing to do. News that she would be compensated for the sake-making equipment and the brewery that was left idle in Iitate failed to uplift her. When she finally decided last December that she wanted to make sake again, she felt a heaviness leave her body.

The Liquor Tax Law, however, prohibits the home production of doburoku outside of special doburoku zones. Sasaki consulted with officials from the Iitate and Fukushima municipal governments and the national government about her situation, successfully obtaining a special doburoku zone license in Fukushima city on the condition that she would rent a brewing facility close to her apartment.

Rice harvested in 2010 and stocked by Sasaki for making doburoku had been spared radioactive contamination because she had stored it in a refrigerator made of thick concrete. She took samples of her doburoku to two different testing centers, where their safety was confirmed. Starting next year, however, Sasaki will have to use rice made elsewhere for her sake because high levels of radiation in Iitate have prevented rice farmers from planting rice.

Sasaki is now back to her daily routine of checking up on the brewery morning, day, and night, and taking note of changes in temperature.

"Doburoku is a living creature," Sasaki says. "Its flavor changes when the brewery changes. What I've liked about it from the very beginning is the fact that not even its alcohol percentage is consistent from batch to batch." Ironically, she herself can't hold her liquor, and her face turns red just from spending time inside the brewery.

Sasaki adds that she has a dream, saying, "I want to go back to my hometown after it's been decontaminated, and make doburoku there again."

May 12, 2012(Mainichi Japan)

Click here for the original Japanese story

 

 

Fukushima sake maker relaunches business after quake disaster

Chieko Sasaki holds a bottle of the doburoku sake that she has begun producing again for the first time since the Great East Japan Earthquake. (Mainichi)

拡大写真

FUKUSHIMA -- A sake manufacturer from the Fukushima Prefecture village of Iitate, who had given up production last year due to the nuclear disaster, has begun making sake again, albeit this time in the prefecture's capital city of Fukushima where she is still in evacuation.

Back in production and on sale again is 66-year-old Chieko Sasaki's doburoku sake, also known as nigorizake, a type of rice wine that is not filtered after fermentation and therefore remains cloudy. Sasaki had given up on production last year when the entire village was forced to evacuate, but in April received authorization -- required under the Liquor Tax Law -- to produce doburoku in the prefecture's capital where she is currently staying, and began selling her products "Dobuche" and "Hakuro" in May.

Iitate was designated a "special doburoku zone" in 2005, the first municipality in Fukushima to receive such designation. The following year, Sasaki, who farmed and ran a local eatery, obtained a license to produce and sell doburoku. In hopes of making the beverage a local specialty, at the age of 60, she went into debt and the world of doburoku making. Her products went on to become popular as gifts on celebratory occasions, and it was when she was nearly finished paying off her loans that the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami hit, triggering a nuclear disaster at a power plant less than 40 kilometers away.

Sasaki left Iitate, which was given government designation as an evacuation preparatory zone, and moved into a rental apartment for disaster victims in Fukushima city. Her former life that had been filled with farm chores, cooking at her eatery, and making sake was now gone, and Sasaki had nothing to do. News that she would be compensated for the sake-making equipment and the brewery that was left idle in Iitate failed to uplift her. When she finally decided last December that she wanted to make sake again, she felt a heaviness leave her body.

The Liquor Tax Law, however, prohibits the home production of doburoku outside of special doburoku zones. Sasaki consulted with officials from the Iitate and Fukushima municipal governments and the national government about her situation, successfully obtaining a special doburoku zone license in Fukushima city on the condition that she would rent a brewing facility close to her apartment.

Rice harvested in 2010 and stocked by Sasaki for making doburoku had been spared radioactive contamination because she had stored it in a refrigerator made of thick concrete. She took samples of her doburoku to two different testing centers, where their safety was confirmed. Starting next year, however, Sasaki will have to use rice made elsewhere for her sake because high levels of radiation in Iitate have prevented rice farmers from planting rice.

Sasaki is now back to her daily routine of checking up on the brewery morning, day, and night, and taking note of changes in temperature.

"Doburoku is a living creature," Sasaki says. "Its flavor changes when the brewery changes. What I've liked about it from the very beginning is the fact that not even its alcohol percentage is consistent from batch to batch." Ironically, she herself can't hold her liquor, and her face turns red just from spending time inside the brewery.

Sasaki adds that she has a dream, saying, "I want to go back to my hometown after it's been decontaminated, and make doburoku there again."

May 12, 2012(Mainichi Japan)

Click here for the original Japanese story