March 22-23, 2011: In order to become fully aware of
the latest developments and to directly receive complete information,
Ambassador Dr. Sayed M. Amin Fatimie attended press conferences on
Tuesday and Wednesday in regards to the ongoing developments of the
Fukushima nuclear incident.
The Fukushima Daiichi (number one) Nuclear Power Plant suffered
damage due to the tsunami that resulted from March 11th’s massive
earthquake in northeastern Japan. Since the incident, radiation has been
released and the public has been concerned about the effects, both
short-term and long-term.
On Tuesday, Ambassador Fatimie attended a talk by Professor Shunichi
Yamashita of Nagasaki University’s Department of Molecular Medicine and
Department of International Health and Radiation Research, Atomic Bomb
Disease Institute on nuclear power and radiation exposure. Professor
Yamashita, who is serving as an advisor on the Fukushima situation,
expressed confidence in the safety of Japan at present, assuring people
that even those in a close proximity to the nuclear facility, citing 31
kilometers from the facility as an example, are as safe from the effects
of radiation as those outside of Japan.
On Wednesday, Ambassador Fatimie, accompanied by Mr. Jason Pratt,
Public Affairs Officer of the Embassy of Islamic Republic of
Afghanistan, attended visiting-nuclear expert Dr. Robert Peter Gale’s
press conference in Tokyo. Dr. Gale has worked on the Chernobyl incident
as well as others worldwide. Dr. Gale also reassured of the current
safety of Japan and those living in Japan. Comparing the situations of
Chernobyl and Fukushima, he noted that the reactor types and the
environments are very different. While Fukushima has been declared to be
the same level of threat as Three Mile Island in the United States, Dr.
Gale stated that there have been no noticeable health problems,
including no cancer problems, resulting from Three Mile Island, and has
said that the Japanese government is taking adequate steps to address
the situation and providing proper support and care to those that need
it.
Both conferences were positive indicators that currently, the
proper steps are being done to protect those in Japan and to improve the
situation.
The Ambassador and diplomats from the Embassy have also been meeting
with officials from the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on a daily
basis to keep updated on the developments and to hear of the Japanese
government’s official position.
(Photo: Professor Yamashita speaks on the realities of radiation.)
