Message to President of the International Olympic Committee Dr. Thomas Bach sent on June 15, 2015 


Mitsuhei Murata
Executive Director, Japan Society for Global System and Ethics
Former Japanese Ambassador to Switzerland

Dr. Thomas Bach
President of the International Olympic Committee
Chateau de Vidy, 1007 Lausanne / Switzerland

Tokyo, June 15, 2015



Dear President Thomas Bach,

Allow me to send You a letter, motivated by my sense of mission to inform you of the worsening situation in Fukushima, which regrettably is being downplayed by our Government and does not seem to be well known internationally. My own concern and that of many critical citizens are the planned Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2020.  
   
    Contrary to the assurances of the Japanese Government and the Tokyo Electric Power Company TEPCO, the situation at the site of the Fukushima – Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is not at all under control. Many of us therefore feel, that the Olympic Summer Games under these circumstances should be cancelled and the preparations abandoned. Not only do we have a continued contamination of the groundwater and the Pacific Ocean by the instable plant, but the brittle structure of the damaged plant represents itself a serious threat, in particular in our earthquake prone region. Given the relative proximity of Tokyo, just some 200km South of Fukushima, represents in my view an ongoing risk for our largest city, for its citizens and all visitors. You might agree, that one more alarming development as the recent earthquake of magnitude 8.1 just some weeks ago might indeed increase the pressure to stop the planning process of the 2020 games all together.

    I would like to urge You to discuss sending to Japan independent experts to assess the current and future risk situation emanating from the damaged nuclear plant. Personally I believe, that the IOC cannot and should not take on the responsibility to plan for the Olympic games in a region, where daily 7000 workers are attempting to clean up a contaminated nuclear reactor. The meltdown of three of the four reactor cores in Fukushima, where the contamination is clearly not under control and where a natural disaster as an earthquake quickly could increase the danger in my opinion should strongly advocate restraint.

    I could gladly cooperate with you and could also help finding independent scientists and experts, who could assist the IOC assessing the current situation and the future risks. In this regard allow me to copy some Phyisican friends of mine. They are part of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War IPPNW (Peace Nobel Prize 1985) and with others have repeatedly issued critical statements on the poor management of the serious nuclear power plant accident in Fukushima. 

Please allow me to count on your understanding and support.

With highest regards,


Mitsuhei Murata
Former Ambassador of Japan to Switzerland 


Cc: Dr. M. Vosseler, MD; Prof. A. Nidecker; MD IPPNW Switzerland    
 
   

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