Peace Group marks anniversary of nuclear disaster

Hanako’s picture which includes a portrait by Geoff Read

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Members of Rochdale and Littleborough Peace Group paused during their regular monthly meeting on Wednesday evening (11 March 2015) to remember the ongoing suffering of the thousands of children and families affected by the Fukushima nuclear disaster.

On the fourth anniversary of the meltdown of three of the nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in Japan on 11 March 2011, they discussed the work of the ‘Strong Children Japan’ project founded by Littleborough-born artist Geoff Read and reiterated their call for a world free of nuclear weapons and nuclear power-plants.

On behalf of the group, Rae Street said: “The stories of individual children affected by the meltdown at Fukushima Daiichi bring home very vividly the dangers posed to us all, our children and our grandchildren by nuclear power plants.

“It is chilling to remember that Heysham is only 42 miles from Rochdale, especially when we know from viewing Geoff Read’s blogs that in Japanese cities like Koriyama, which is about the same distance west of Fukushima, levels of radiation were so high that most parents and schools could not allow their children to play outside at all, even though soil had been removed from many school grounds.

“In Koriyama, they wear long sleeves and face masks when outside, and avoid the rain.”

Naoya, aged eight years, who lives there and who drew one of the pictures we looked at, said very poignantly: "It’s sad for me that there are nuclear plants near Koriyama."

Six-year-old Hanako from Fukushima City drew a picture of the swing in the children’s playground which is surrounded by a barrier to stop the children using it because of the contamination.

Hanako’s mother wrote: “The earthquake on March 11 caused the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident and high levels of radiation have been leaking since then. We can still detect cesium in many areas around Fukushima. We all have no idea how Fukushima children’s health will be in the future.”