By: Edison Park

In response to the Japanese nuclear disaster of this year, 2011, the Japanese Reconstruction Agency has convened to discuss plans to regain national stability. The agency, despite debates on what the priorities should be, has made clear topics that they desire to focus on during their first session.

The agency has focused on the immediate actions that need to be taken, the first seeming to be the evacuation of the citizens. With a current 2-kilometer radius evacuation and the people being left in the dark on all the information of the situation, the agency aspires to expand this radius, while also informing the citizens on the situation to ensure trust and transparency. This has shown to be a major priority for most delegates; Representative of the Liberal Democratic Party, Masayoshi Yoshino, has expressed concerns as a Fukushima native, and presses for a minimum 3-kilometer radius evacuation rather than the current mandated 2-kilometer radius. This radius evacuation has been debated, but the clear consensus of the agency is that limiting nuclear exposure to the citizens is a necessity.

They have also briefly discussed the topic of the environment, stating that handling the environmental repercussions of the disaster should be a priority. Head of the Social Democratic Party of Japan, Mizuho Fukushima, regarded that even before the relocation of the people, it is essential to focus on the environmental consequences. 

The committee spoke mostly during the second hour about the importance of giving aid to the people, and that getting supplies into the affected areas appears to be difficult. As the current plan stands, the committee looks to focus on relocation efforts and then providing aid to these given areas. The agency has discussed how the aid would be transported and the delegates spoke on utilizing the military, coastal guard, and even airdropping supplies similar to the use of airdropping in Berlin by nations such as the United States. As for what the aid would look like, the committee briefly mentioned stimulus packages for the unemployed, but specifics have yet to be considered.

In receiving disaster aid, the agency seems to be concerned with the role of foreign nations. Foreign aid has been a pressing concern due to concerns of exploitation. A representative of the Democratic Party, Hiroshi Nakai, pressed the importance of using NGOs during the first moderated caucus, but reminded the committee that this is a time of weakness of the nation, and insinuated that overreliance on foreign aid may result in devastating consequences to the nation’s sovereignty. However, other delegates have insisted that it is important to not be stubborn in receiving aid, and the Mayor of Kesennuma, Shigeru Sugawara, has clarified by stating that reliance on foreign aid is an inevitable necessity.

Near the end of the first session, a CNN report emphasizing the urgency of the situation, as well as introducing a new topic: the mental health of the Japanese people. Before the end of the session, the committee began an unmoderated caucus to discuss this new topic and its position on the agenda in comparison to the other concerns.

In essence, the agency currently debates about the order of priority, as well as how these actions should look like. The session ended with the delegates emphasizing all of their concerns with the situation and initial ideas regarding plans of action. The agency is expected to begin a second session to discuss more specific plans and begin to take action further at 11:30 AM.