What went on in my mind as Prime Minister as I faced the TEPCO Nuclear Accident
| Author | Naoto Kan |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Gentosha Inc. |
| ISBN | 978 - 4344982840 |
| Category | Nonfiction |
| Publication | October, 2012 |
| Estimated length | 205P |
| Size | 174 × 114 mm |
| Sold to | German |
March 11, 2011, 14:46
When the earthquake struck, I headed directly for the crisis center in the basement of the prime minister's office. While the mobilization for relief operations was underway, news arrived that the reactor cooling systems of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant had been disabled. Thereafter, the situation only kept getting dire. At the rate it was going, the nation was going to collapse in no time. Before I knew it, I was running a simulation in my mind of the worst-case scenario, where every nuclear reactor in Japan had a meltdown, necessitating the mass evacuation of tens of millions of people in East Japan, including the residents of Tokyo, the nation’s capital.
As the powerlessness of the Japanese legal system in the face of a nuclear-related crisis came to light, along with the nation's various structural flaws, what key decisions did the former Prime Minister make? And how did he arrive at those decisions? In this historic testimony, the highest executive authority of the time recounts his trials, and his resolve to bring relief to a devastated nation.
Table of Contents
Introduction--Readiness (The Chernobyl disaster and the Tokaimura nuclear accident)/Fukushima nuclear plant accident, and more)
Chapter 1--In retrospect--Days when I glimpsed the abyss (Before the major earthquake struck/Swaying chandeliers, and more)
Chapter 2--Denuclearization and resignation (Safe shelters/Bringing about a shift in the denuclearization debate, and more)
Chapter 3--Politics and citizens in the denuclearization debate (A major assignment/An appraisal of natural energy, and more)
When the earthquake struck, I headed directly for the crisis center in the basement of the prime minister's office. While the mobilization for relief operations was underway, news arrived that the reactor cooling systems of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant had been disabled. Thereafter, the situation only kept getting dire. At the rate it was going, the nation was going to collapse in no time. Before I knew it, I was running a simulation in my mind of the worst-case scenario, where every nuclear reactor in Japan had a meltdown, necessitating the mass evacuation of tens of millions of people in East Japan, including the residents of Tokyo, the nation’s capital.
As the powerlessness of the Japanese legal system in the face of a nuclear-related crisis came to light, along with the nation's various structural flaws, what key decisions did the former Prime Minister make? And how did he arrive at those decisions? In this historic testimony, the highest executive authority of the time recounts his trials, and his resolve to bring relief to a devastated nation.
Table of Contents
Introduction--Readiness (The Chernobyl disaster and the Tokaimura nuclear accident)/Fukushima nuclear plant accident, and more)
Chapter 1--In retrospect--Days when I glimpsed the abyss (Before the major earthquake struck/Swaying chandeliers, and more)
Chapter 2--Denuclearization and resignation (Safe shelters/Bringing about a shift in the denuclearization debate, and more)
Chapter 3--Politics and citizens in the denuclearization debate (A major assignment/An appraisal of natural energy, and more)
About the Author
Mr. Naoto Kan was born in 1946 in Ube city, Yamaguchi Prefecture. He was the 94th Prime Minister of Japan, holding the office for 452 days. A member of the House of Representatives (for ten terms), Mr. Kan is also a patent attorney. After serving as the Vice Representative of the Socialist Democratic Federation and the Policy Chief of the New Party Sakigake, he served, from January 1996 through November 1996, as the Health and Welfare Minister of the First Hashimoto Cabinet. In the same year, after forming the Democratic Party of Japan, he became a joint representative. In 1998, when the party was newly formed again, he went on to successively hold three positions: Representative, Policy Chief, and Chief Secretary. At present, he serves as the Senior Advisor to the Democratic Party of Japan.
FOREIGN EDITIONS
| Publisher | 株式会社幻冬舎 |
|---|---|
| Publication | October, 2012 |
