Vision

To help transition Japan to a peace promoting post-carbon country while enjoying every step of the process.
僕のビジョンは、祖国日本で、平和文化を育みポストカーボン(Post-Carbon) 社会を促進してゆく事です。
化石燃料や原子力に頼らず、他国の資源を取らない、
自給自足な国へのトランジションを実現させてゆきたいです。

Thursday, November 10, 2011

AVAAZ: Save Fukushima's Children

My favorite clicktivist organisation AVAAZ calls for saving Fukushima's children.

Check their website out if you haven't heard of them.
They address many extremely important global issues,
and all you have to do is click the "sign petition" button and done!
They do the rest of the work of strategically presenting the petition.
So easy.

I read a persuasive criticism on clicktivism in Adbusters but I think AVAAZ and other similar organisations have been doing important work and have been effective in many ways. I do think that if activism is reduced to a mere clicking of the mouse, we will ultimately lose the ability to make important changes in our problem-abundant world. But, its a low-energy way to spread the message globally, get people involved, and pressure those in power to listen to the concerned citizens of the world a little more.

Here is the call for support:

Right now, thousands of local residents are still trapped in the highly contaminated areas in and around Fukushima City. With black rain falling from the sky and local crops poisoned, children in families left destitute by the tsunami can’t afford to get out-- and the government is failing to help them.

But a group of brave mothers have taken to the streets to ensure their children are helped out of the disaster zone. Hundreds of supporters from around the country have gathered for a sit-in outside the Ministry of Economy in Tokyo demanding that Prime Minister Noda grant their children the opportunity to evacuate. We can stand with them.

This is, literally, the fight of their lives. Children, sitting in the midst of radioactive contamination, don’t have a day to lose. In just 24 hours, the government will decide whether to act at an emergency meeting -- let's build a giant outcry for a healthy future for Fukushima children. Sign the urgent petition below and forward this email widely -- it will be delivered directly to the Prime Minister's office before the meeting.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_fukushima_children_1/?vl

Right now our country has a clear choice. We can embrace family values, and rebuild our nation to give all our children a future, or we can continue to ignore those who are facing hardship and neglect. Fukushima's families don’t have a moment to lose -- every day exposed to radiation massively increases the chances of serious health problems.

We know that the grueling effects of long-term radiation-exposure passes through generations, impacting the health of not only today’s children, but their children’s children. In the aftermath of Chernobyl, the Soviet Union evacuated people from land which had considerably less radiation than some of the areas in question in Japan. The children of Fukushima City, trapped in a radioactive environment, will not be able to extricate themselves from this severe threat to their health without government support for voluntary evacuation. Yet the government won’t trigger evacuation until contamination in an area reaches a level that is four times greater than the threshold the Soviets set for mandatory evacuation after Chernobyl, 25 years ago.

If tens of thousands of Japanese citizens raise the alarm now, we could tip the balanceand bring hope to hundreds of families. Together let’s build a giant public outcry to show Prime Minister Noda that our country's honour is at stake and urge him to stand up and save lives. The government meeting is in 2 days – sign now then forward this email to everyone.

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_fukushima_children_1/?vl

Japan was rocked on March 11th and we’re still coming to terms with the scale of the destruction. But out of the devastation comes a chance to rebuild -- our country is united more than ever, people are ready to act to make things better for all Japanese citizens. Right now, we can begin to lay the foundation for a healthy future for Japan's children and children's children.

With hope,

Luis, Dalia, Iain, Kya and the rest of Avaaz team.

More information:

Fukushima women demand better protection for children exposed to radiation (Time.com)
http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/11/03/fukushima-women-demand-better-protection-for-children-exposed-to-radiation/

Fukushima disaster: it's not over yet (The Guardian) http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/sep/09/fukushima-japan-nuclear-disaster-aftermath

Women stage sit-in protest against nuclear policy, meet with Nuclear Safety Commission (28/10)
http://www.majiroxnews.com/2011/10/28/women-stage-sit-in-protest-against-nuclear-policy-meet-with-nuclear-safety-commission/

Women’s Anti-Nuke Demonstration (Nippon News)
http://www.nipponnews.net/news/womens-anti-nuke-demonstration//

Seven months on, Japan yet to set evacuation plans (Reuters) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/21/us-japan-evacuation-plans-idUSTRE79K41620111021

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