Perhaps one of the best examples of how Japan is ruled by a bureaucracy in collusion with politicians and some business interests to that the public are indifferent, the case of atomic energy.
Imagine, in 1945 two Japanese cities had been destroyed by atomic bombs paths, in 1954 a Japanese tuna boat was severely contaminated by the radioactive cloud caused by a nuclear test that had escaped from the hands of the Americans in the the Bikini Atoll. Other fish were also affected, although to a lesser extent. In July 1955 the Eisenhower Administration announced, displaying the same tact that Attila, who deploy missiles in its Japanese bases Honest Johns, who at first were conventional missiles, but could lead nuclear charges.
In September 1954 he released the movie 'Godzilla' on a lizard that mutated and became a monster by the effect of a test nuclear . What to us seems like a firecracker movie with special effects joke, the Japanese seemed like a movie that reflected their worst nightmares. And is that the film had managed to capture the mood of the population to nuclear energy after the incident of tuna. Interestingly, in spite of "Godzilla", I found only references to the Japanese public in the 50's when the country began nuclear program. My impression is that I have not found references because there are hardly any. It was a decision already made by politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen and anyone interested in what the public might think.
was established in 1951 TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company), owners of the now famous Fukushima nuclear power plant. In 1954, TEPCO established a research center for nuclear energy. Because at that time in Japan there was no legislative framework for nuclear energy, or those of TEPCO was a visionary, or someone had where they were blown by the Government's plans. For, indeed, a young nationalist politician, Yasuhiro Nakasone, was to advocate nuclear energy. I think it is no coincidence that he was a nationalist right-wing politician who would bring forward the nuclear energy. One of the great obsessions of the Japanese military during the 30 had been to secure supplies of oil and much of the Japanese strategy in World War II aimed to occupy the oil fields of Indonesia. Although Japan is so poor in uranium and oil, nuclear energy had the potential to diversify energy sources.
Meanwhile, in December 1953, U.S. President Eisenhower had launched the "atoms for peace" which the U.S. would help other countries develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. I do not know if the juicy contracts to General Electric and Westinghouse could achieve with this initiative had to do something with his idea. In May 1955 a U.S. delegation visited Japan to promote the initiative. Your host in Japan was the senator and newspaper magnate Matsutaro Shoriki. This would provide multiple entry Shoriki: is considered the founder of professional baseball in Japan, was a master of judo and spent time in jail after World War II on suspicion of having committed war crimes.
Parliament in 1955 allocated 230 million yen to nuclear research and approved the Basic Law of Nuclear Energy. The law stipulated that nuclear technology would be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and that its use and development would apply three principles: democratic methods (said by those who had stolen the public debate the topic), independent management (in a country where the interests of businesses, politicians and the bureaucracy are intermingled) and transparent (principle respect of which is shown by repeated concealment of nuclear accidents that have ever occurred).
In 1956 he established the Atomic Energy Commission. Its aim was to ensure that the use and development of nuclear energy to respect the principles established by the Basic Law. The Commission consists of five commissioners, appointed by the Prime Minister and approved by Parliament. I'm not sure that this way of electing members of the Commission to ensure the independent functioning of the same. Take for example the five members of the Commission at this time: there is a professor at the School of Engineering, University of Tokyo, an engineer who comes from the Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, an individual from a consumer society, a professor of engineering school at the University of Tokyo and an adviser to TEPCO. Although many officials are praising the transparency of the Commission, it does seem odd that its members be one who comes from the industry that it is lawful and that the same body functions will give the development and control. Is not that a recipe for conflict of interest? If we consider the history of the Commission, found that its first director was ... Matsutaro Shoriki!
The institutional structure of nuclear power in Japan was completed in the years following the creation of the Atomic Research Institute of Japan, Corporation Atomic Fuel, whose function was processing uranium, and the Atomic Power Company of Japan, which would manage the first nuclear power plant.
In 1960 construction began on the first nuclear power plant. It chose a British Calder Hall reactor cooled gas. Technology was then considered as very advanced and had the advantage that did not require heavy water and enriched uranium. Also could operate at higher temperatures and less heat loss.
U.S., seeing that if Japan started to use British technology was going to lose business, offered guarantee the supply of enriched uranium for use in light water reactors. Japan was then passed to American technology and commissioned its first General Electric boiling water reactor of the first Westinghouse pressurized water. Knowing how the Japanese Government, as technologies change I smell a tasty bite.
The period in which the first Japanese nuclear power plant went into operation coincided with the government of Prime Minister Eisaku Sato. In December 1967, Sato pledged that Japan would respect three principles: 1) The non-possession of nuclear weapons, 2) Non-nuclear weapons production; 3) The authorization no nuclear weapons on its soil. As a statement of principles is fine, but in the 44 years that have passed anyone has come up with legislative developments. In 1970 Japan signed the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, though curiously not ratify it until six years later. Sato saw their efforts recognized with the 1974 Nobel Peace Prize, a prize that Swedish academics often screw up quite often. And that reality was less pretty.
A Sato early sixties had become interested in developing nuclear weapons and had said something as nice as that " if another has nuclear weapons, common sense that you do too . The explosion of China's first atomic bomb in 1964 put the verge of a nervous breakdown. Taking a more scientific study of the costs and benefits that could lead to the atomic bomb to Japan and soon after they were told the Americans that his country could make a nuclear bomb as soon as you propose. He was a bit of bluffing (Japan had advanced in their research), but it went well. The Americans told him to stop and not to worry, that Japan would be covered by the U.S. nuclear umbrella if the Chinese put fools. By 1970, Nixon negotiated Sato recovery of Okinawa, the U.S. had been occupying since the end of World War II. It has been known long after, in order to recover the island, Sato agreed to allow the U.S. had nuclear weapons on Okinawa, in an emergency and if they asked permission. Something tells me that there were no major problems as to grant such approval.
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