Voices from Fukushima: 15 Years After the Nuclear Power Plant Accident: A 15-Year-Old at the Time Sees Through the Deception of the “Peaceful Use of Nuclear Energy”
By Wakana
I seriously want to rid the world of nuclear energy and weapons. Even if people say this is idealistic or I’m living in a dream world, I’ve never thought of it like that.
On March 11, 2011, I was a 15-year-old junior high school student living in Date City, Fukushima Prefecture. It was the day of the graduation ceremony. The earthquake struck on that day and later the nuclear power plant exploded. After the accident, when I said I was afraid of radiation people around me looked at me with disdain. When I said I was going to evacuate, I was told, “If you go, rumors will spread.” I was sometimes called a “non-citizen” of the prefecture or Japan. The desire to protect my life was treated as betrayal. I will never forget that atmosphere. It was like wartime. It became impossible to say obvious things. You couldn’t say you were scared. You couldn’t say life was the top priority. But looking back on history, it wasn’t as if this had suddenly happened.
This country experienced atomic bombing. But soon after the war, the term “peaceful use of atomic energy” was widely disseminated. In 1953, President Eisenhower delivered his “Atoms for Peace” speech. The idea that atomic/nuclear energy could be used for peace was conveyed to the world. The following year, the fishing boat Daigo Fukuryu Maru was exposed to radiation in a hydrogen bomb test at Bikini Atoll. After that, anti-nuclear voices grew stronger. Even so, with strong media influence, the trend to promote nuclear energy did not stop.
In Hiroshima, the Peace Memorial Museum was temporarily used as an Atomic Energy Science Museum to hold the Atomic Energy Peace Utilization Exposition. Demonstrations of a model nuclear reactor and the “magic hand” (for handling radioactive materials) were held, and a “bright future” with nuclear power was presented to the public in the A-bombed city. In 1955, the Atomic Energy Basic Act was enacted. The law, which clearly stated that nuclear energy should be used only for peaceful purposes, laid the groundwork not to stop but to advance nuclear energy.
12 years later, in 1967, the Three Non-Nuclear Principles were announced. The use of nuclear energy would proceed under the logic of no possession, no production, and no permission to introduce nuclear weapons into Japanese territory. But was that separation a real separation?
Looking back on history, I think the words “peaceful use” always approach with a reassuring face. Then, when we wake up to it, we find that an unstoppable structure and system has been created.
It is now 15 years since the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station accident occurred in 2011. I am now 30 years old. I have finally exceeded the 15 years I spent in Fukushima. Have we really changed over the past 15 years? Over the past 15 years, there have been calls for the restart of nuclear reactors and the construction of new nuclear power plants. What could I have done?
There was an election in February 2026. Many voices called for “an arms buildup for defense and to preserve peace.” But how does this differ from the peaceful use of nuclear energy? War comes wearing the face of justice and peace.
We must put an end to a system that prioritizes the economy and social status above lives. Left and right are irrelevant. Because when war breaks out, or when a nuclear disaster occurs, we are all involved. Everyone is affected.
I am convinced that if we can build a society that truly values life, we can reduce both war and nuclear power and weapons.
I don’t mind if some people say that can’t be done. Is it still wrong to wish for peace? Is it childish to wish for the abolition of nuclear energy and weapons? I don’t think so.
I would like you to please think together with me so that tomorrow you and your loved ones can live and be happy. Think about protecting life. Think about not repeating history. Living is hope itself. Individually, we may have very little impact, but we are definitely not powerless. That is what I believe. I want to live without giving up.
Wakana: Born in Fukushima Prefecture in 1995. Evacuated from Date City, Fukushima Prefecture, to Yamagata Prefecture in May 2011. Living in Hokkaido since 2015. Published “Wakana, 15: 3/11 as Reflected in the Eyes of a Junior High School Student.” Currently engaged in speaking activities all around Hokkaido to communicate her experience.
