Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Conclusion

     I have been writing about CNIC and its characteristics as antinuclear movement group which has hosted and  co-hosted many informative activities. Its goal is to secure safe, nuclear-free world. Its reasons to justify are the possibility that nuclear-fuel and waste are used to make nuclear weapon, danger of radioactive exposure from nuclear power plant, the problem of nuclear waste, and the problem of building the fragile society based completely on the electricity. It can be categorize as intellectual and instrumental activism. It uses many kinds of protest to nuclear power through informing citizen by discussion or website and more physical way like marching. Each protest contains some implications of its idea of antinuclear power by using symbolical item. And new technology is helping it to pursue its ideal.
.




     At the very last...

     I hope that this blog help you to understand antinuclear movement and CNIC in Japan. At the same time, as one Japanese citizen, I really appreciate the help for 3.11 Japan disasters from all over the world.
Photograph#1
(Image by ZombieTeddyBearz;source of image:http://zombieteddybearz.deviantart.com/art/Pray-for-JAPAN-200544492)

       Personally, I hope we can independent from the nuclear plant, and the nuclear disaster will never happen again.


Photograph#2
(source of photograph:http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiedosto:Sprout_Lightbulb.jpg)




References

Bearz, Zombie.T. 2011. "Play for JAPAN". http://zombieteddybearz.deviantart.com/art/Pray-for-JAPAN-200544492. consulted 20th March 2012

Wikipedia 2012.  "Tiedosto:Sprout Lightbulb.jpg". http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiedosto:Sprout_Lightbulb.jpg.  consulted  20th March 2012

What does it do?

As social movement group
     Then I will write about how it acts. Since social movement has particular aim or idea it wants to be realized. How does it approach to the goal? This is also important to know. 

     As I introduced, CNIC's primary method is dispatching information via website or newsletters, and holding discussion with citizen and politician. 
   Let's take a look at newsletters. First to read this letter you don't have to subscribe if you want read in English. You just need to go to the website and click the button. You also read back numbers on that page. This letter is published every two months. 


     Then what is its content? CNIC's main purpose is abolishment of nuclear power. The latest which was published one has featured workers at  nuclear plant radioactive exposure not only in Fukushima but also other prefecture. It explains what is happening now with some numerical or graphical data. In addition, there are reports of conference it held, analysis of nuclear related news, especially now contamination map of Japan, and introduction of people who advocate abolishment of nuclear power in its newsletter.


     In addition, on the website it posts many article related to nuclear power such as, introducing nuclear related news, promoting its idea and justifying with scientific data. Because CNIC is consists of Japanese scientists, journalist, citizens, there are more information about CNIC and conference and discussion it holds in Japan in Japanese version.  From this, we can see that its primary object is to enlighten Japanese citizen to achieve nuclear abolishment in Japan. If it really wants to abolish nuclear from this world its English version would have as much information as Japanese version has. On the other hand, English version CNIC web has more information about nuclear weapon. One reason is Japanese constitution has an article which bans Japan to have any kind army and use of arm force.


"ARTICLE 9. Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes. (2) To accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph, land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained. The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized." (The constitution of Japan 1947)
     So legally Japan can't have nuclear weapons. Thus articles which related to nuclear weapon are mainly in the English version website.


     The conferences, open discussions, open study meetings come
next. I write about open study meetings. Study meetings are taken place in Japan in Japanese. At each open study meeting, a couple of speakers make speech about nuclear problems. Non-members can join this study. And you can watch its broadcast on USTREM too. Through this study meeting, it tries to give information and new perspective of specialists. As a result, citizen will be educated enough to be critical Japanese government's nuclear policy. Basically this open study meetings are like lecture style with slides or handouts. But it doesn't mean it's one way conveyance of information. The citizens are critical to CNIC too. Speakers and listeners face each other with sitting parallel during open study.   



This is example of CNIC's open studies.
                  





      The other methods are collecting signatures and pleading for abandonment of nuclear power or solving nuclear related problems, having negotiation with Japanses government directly. Since Japanese government has democratic political system, collecting signatures and pleading with politician; usually top of ministry, acknowledge them that this number of people hope to abandonment of nuclear power.




      Some members of CNIC publish books about nuclear too.  CNIC member can buy them with discounted price.



    The last method of protest is marching. This is not so often done by only CNIC itself compared to other method of protest. But still this is powerful way of protest. Latest marching was "さよなら原発(Goodbye to Nuclear Power Plants)" on 11th March 2012. CNIC is not the leader of this protest; it approved this protest and posted on its website to gather people for this.     
Photograph#1

photograph#2
    (Photograph#1 and 2;source of photograph:http://sayonara-nukes.org/2012/03/120311news/#more-1697)


     Seen from this picture, CNIC members' way of protest is mainly marching  and shouting with using sign and banner. There were about 14,000 protesters. Protesters walked about 3.4km includes in front of the building of Ministry of Economy, Trade, Industry, and the building of Tokyo Electric Power Company which has Fukushima nuclear plants. By passing the building of Tokyo Electric Power Company, they tried to reach their claim directly to the people who are working for nuclear power. They also passed by the building of Ministry of Economy, Trade, Industry, which means they were also claiming that this is not only technological nuclear problem but also commercial and economical problem. 

photograph#3

    
     (Photograph#3;source of photograph:http://sayonara-nukes.org/2012/03/120311news/#more-1697)









     After that the human chain surrounded the Diet made by protesters with holding a candle emerged. I can say that this is one of the physical ways of protest. Surrounding itself is obvious meaning that you are under the pressure to change your policy, in this case, nuclear policy. There is no way but changing your policy. Because by surrounding something, they are telling that there is no way to escape. And by using candle they express that they can live without electricity which nuclear plant make.  
  The web of internet made it easy to diffuse nuclear knowledge for them not only among Japan but also all over the world.  The CINC is the most obvious example. You can get various information from its website anywhere in the world.


     As conclusion, CNIC use many kinds of protest to nuclear power through informing citizen by discussion or website and more physical way like marching. Each protest contains some implications of their idea of antinuclear power. And protesters show them by using symbolical item such as candle to express that they can live without electricity which main point nuclear supporters insist. And by informing citizen CINC tries to create safe, nuclear-free world from Japan. And new information technology is helping it to pursue its ideal.   


     Finally, I will conclude about CNIC on the next blog.
    
 


References

CNIC.
2011."Nuke In Tokyo". No.145. http://www.cnic.jp/english/newsletter/pdffiles/nit145.pdf. consulted 19th March 2012
2012. " 3/8,15,22 CNIC連続公開研究会:福島第一原発事故から1年http://cnic.jp/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1315. consulted 19th March 2012
Prime Ministar of Japan and His Cabinet. "The Constitution of Japan". http://www.kantei.go.jp/foreign/constitution_and_government_of_japan/constitution_e.html. consulted 19th March 2012

さよなら原発1000万人アクション. 2012. "東京で「3.11東京大行進」、「3.11原発ゼロへ!国会囲もうヒューマンチェーン」開催".http://sayonara-nukes.org/2012/03/120311news/#more-1697consulted 19th March 2012

Supplement -Brief History of Antinuclear Movment-


  
       The beginning was invention of atomic bomb.


Photograph#1
      
      After WW2, United Nations (U.N.) proposed the Baruch Plan to establish an international corporation for the peaceful application of nuclear energy in 1946. A movement against military controlling nuclear energy by scientists has developed. The MacMahon Act was passed to realize civil control of the atom in U.S.


Photograph#2
(Photograph#2; source of photograph:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shippingport_Reactor.jpg)
    

     As a new source of energy, the first civilian nuclear power plant was installed in Shippingport, Pennsylvania. According to Downey, American view of "national progress as a process constituted by enhanced individual freedom manifest in increasing economic standards of living and facilitated by democratic government. The ideology makes progress a responsibility as well an effort of economic activity..." (Downey 1986:388) That is,  Americans were responsible for their progress.   

  

Photograph#3
     In the 1958, there was the first Aldermaston march to protest nuclear weapon. Later they also started singing and playing guitar. [Wikipedia 2012]  



(Photograph#3; source of photograph: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2008/aug/10/aldermaston)


     During 1960s several protests were done by citizen to resist to both commercial and military uses of nuclear power. Before 1960's, nuclear energy was considered as eco-friendly energy even by antinuclear groups. [Wellock 1998] And still, some people believe that is true. In 1957 the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was founded.
  
     In the 1970's, people started paying attention to broad range of environmental problems such as air pollution, water pollution, and the quality of life. At the same time, the ecology and environmentalist movement emerged. As a result, antinuclear movement  started to deal with thermal pollution.[Prince 1990]


Photograph#4
        The large nuclear movement has emerged after 1973-73 energy crisis. The Sierra Club, one of the oldest, largest, and most influential environmental organization in the U.S,  started to oppose  nuclear plant construction until safety and waste disposal problems had been solved. This stance is called nuclear moratorium. The antinuclear movement was born.


     The accidental death of Karen Silkwood, a worker at the plutonium-reprocessing facility, and natural events such as  danger of tsunami at Diablo Canyon created a sense of urgency. And necessity of international cooperation was acknowledged. Supporters of antinuclear movement were becoming more inclusive of diverse segments of society.  [Prince 1990]
   
    
Photograph#5
     Occupancy of Seabrook nuclear plant in New Hampshire by members of the Clamshell Alliance was successful.




(Photograph#5 ;source of photograph: http://www.foodnotbombs.net/happy_birthday_fnb.html)


     The Three Mile Island accident occurred on 28th March 1979 in Harrisburg Pennsylvania triggered demonstrations such as "playing dead" in San Francisco. It became a symbol of antinuclear movement.


    There are many antinuclear movements in Europe too. The famous group is Friends of the Earth. They used similar strategic and tactical leadership to American used. In West Germany, Sweden, France, Holland, and Britain movement became strongest. [Prince 1990]


     There were not so many powerful oppositions to nuclear power in Asia or in South America. However in Japan antinuclear movement that oppose nuclear weapons was more popular.     


    "Reagan revolution" brought fundamental changes in national policy.  The Chernobyl nuclear power disastrous accident brought antinuclear protests change of their tactics and strategies of antinuclear movement. Their concern shifted to evacuation plans in the case of a nuclear accident, nuclear-waste dump sites, safety violations and cover-ups, the breeder reactor and nuclear fuels reprocessing and the production of plutonium for use in nuclear weapons. [Prince 1990] 


Photograph#6
(Photograph#6; Photogpraphed by REUTERS/Damir Sagolj ;Source of photographhttp://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/04/0425_060425_chernobyl.html)


   And now Japan's disaster occurred last year reactivated antinuclear movement not only in Japan but also all over the world.
  

Photograph#7







(Photograph# 7; Photographed by Manu Fernandez/AP Photo; Source of photography: http://www.timesonline.com/gallery/news/international-nuclear-protests/collection_a8923bf8-5964-11e0-8a5d-0017a4a78c22.html)

Photograph#8


 The black banner says "Fukushima warns: Pull the Plug on all Nuclear Power Plants" ( Beaver County Times 2011)

                              (Photograph#8; Photographed  Roberto Pfeil/AP Photo ; source of photography: http://www.timesonline.com/gallery/news/international-nuclear-protests/collection_a8923bf8-5964-11e0-8a5d-0017a4a78c22.html  )


References

Photograph#3
Bainbridg,Luke. 2008. "Power to the people". http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2008/aug/10/aldermaston.consulted 19th March 2012

Downey, Gary.L. 1986 Writting as Risk in Culture:The American Conlfict Over Nuclear Power. Cultural Anthropology Vol.1, issue 4:388-412
Photograph#7
Fernandez, Manu. 2011. "Spain Japan Eathquake". http://www.timesonline.com/spain-japan-eathquake/image_4e690b80-5963-11e0-925a-0017a4a78c22.html. 19th March 2012

IAEA. 2012. "About the IAEA". http://www.iaea.org/About/.consulted 17th March 2012 

Photograph#6
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC NEWS. 2010. "Photo Gallery: Chernobyl, 20 Years After the Disaster". http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/04/0425_060425_chernobyl.html. 19th March 2012 

Photograph#8
Pfeil, Roberto. 2011. "Germany Nuclear Protest". http://www.timesonline.com/germany-nuclear-protest/image_bfe7a10a-5962-11e0-8636-0017a4a78c22.html. 19th March 2012
Price, Jerome . 1989[1982]. THE ANTINUCLEAR MOVEMENT.Rev.edition. Boston:Twayne Publishers

Photograph#5
The Food Not Bomb. 2012. "The Story of Food Not Bomb". http://www.foodnotbombs.net/happy_birthday_fnb.html. 19th March 2012
Photograph#1
TransGriot. "65th Anniversary Of Hiroshima Atom Bombing". http://transgriot.blogspot.ca/2010/08/65th-anniversary-of-hiroshima-atom.html. consulted 19th March 2012

Photograph#4
Wellock, Thomas R. 1998. Critical Masses. London:The University of Wisconsin Press
Wikipedia. 2012. "Anti-nuclear Protests". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-nuclear_protests consulted 19th March 2012
Photograph#2
Wilipedia. 2012 "File:Shippingport Reactor.jpg". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shippingport_Reactor.jpg. consulted 19th March 2012

Sunday, March 18, 2012

What is its goal?

What's next?

     What we should know next to understand the CNIC is their goal. Of course because they are anti-nuclear group they want nuclear to be abolished. On the other hand, now our lives are highly dependent on electricity and nuclear  technologies have huge potential to supply electricity with less carbon dioxide. And this is one of common idea of proponent of nuclear power. They are assuming nuclear power as kind green energy.






    (phogograph#1; source of photograph: http://thevividedge.com/sources-of-green-energy/)

     First, I recite their goal from their homepage.



"Citizens' Nuclear Information Center is an anti-nuclear public interest organization dedicated to securing a safe, nuclear-free world." (CNIC website:2012)

      

  Their aim is realizing a safe, nuclear-free world. Their primary goal is safe world, and to realize safe world, they advocate abolishment nuclear; mainly nuclear power plant. 


Then Why do they think so?

     Second, I picked up reasons they explain why abolishment of nuclear are:

  1. Risk of nuclear proliferation and terrorism. And to protect nuclear plant from them, social liberty and presentation of necessary information might be limited
  2. Possibility of nuclear disaster
  3. Environmental effects
  4. Worker's radiation exposure
  5. Waste of nuclear-fuel
  6. Unfairness between who get merit from nuclear power plant and people who don't
  7. Not enough uranium
  8. Fragile society results from reliant too much on electricity
  9. Retrogression to energy consuming society
  10. Nuclear plant can't adjust amount of electricity so we will need more plant to adjust to the demand 
  11. More plants as spare
  12. Problems resulted from remote location of nuclear plant 
  13. Limited source of electricity
  14. Hinder people from environmental decision-making
  15. Municipality's dependence 
  16. Uncountable case of fabrication
  17. Actually not cheap energy source, and building nuclear power without much money might lead to other safety problems.

     They listed many reasons. Those ideas contain various aspects which shows that CNIC has various kinds of people who have different background. For example, No.12, on the one hand they arguing technical problem caused by remote location of nuclear plant. It's little bit scientific knowledge, when the electricity flows, it make electric field around it and strength of electric field is depends on how much the electricity flows. If nuclear plant is built in remote place, we need to use  strong electric flow to send far away; the urban area which needs lots of energy, that is, there will be strong electricity along cable. Too strong electric field is not good to living thing. On the other hand they also argue that nuclear power hinder people environmental acting because it provide lots of electricity so that people don't have to worry about lack of electricity. That is moral problem that may accelerate environmental problem. Another example of moral problem is waste problem. They points out that it's virtually impossible to dispose nuclear waste because even if we bury nuclear waste in far deep ground, it takes long time to the waste to be safe to us. If we bury it, it won't be safe at least until your grandchildren dies. Furthermore, in Japan because it's on the circum-Pacific volcanic belt that is the ground of Japan is active. So it's relatively easy that waste come to the surface or near enough to be harmful to people. And it might not be our generation to be influenced because of the waste our generation dispose.


    According to Valentine and Sovacool, one of the reason Japanese nuclear technology development is financial support and centralized coordination of Japanese government. So aiming citizen's intervention in nuclear policy decision making will modify development of nuclear technology and use of nuclear technology without enough consideration to environment and human.  


    According to Price, there are four main types of social action; intellectual, moral reaction, instrumental activism, and expressive. Intellectual social actionist places an emphasis on their knowledge of nuclear technology. Other groups have moral reaction to the nuclear problems. They try to define and explore the ethical dilemma. Instrumental activism is action aiming to realise ideal values in our culture concerning self-reliance, appreciation of the natural environment, and efficient utilization of resources. Groups like Direct-action groups are categorized in expressive social action. They are always aiming realizing more general political or social objectives through anti-nuclear movement.[Price:1990] Since CNIC has some scientists, I can categorize it in Intellectual category. At the same time, CNIC tries to protect people from nuclear disaster and environmental crisis caused by nuclear power. It means CNIC is also instrumental activism. 

   
     In general, they are warming that possibility that nuclear power leads to making and using nuclear weapon, danger of nuclear accident, exposure to radioactivity in daily life, undone nuclear waste for the future generation, and building electricity dependent society. Their main concerns are nuclear weapons, influence of radiation to natural environment and human, and building fragile society. So they are not expressive social group


     As conclusion, their goals are securing a safe, nuclear free world. To reach this goal, they are claiming that  abolishment of nuclear weapons, danger of radiation from nuclear plant,  problem of nuclear waste, the problem of building the fragile society based completely on the electricity. They are categorized intellectual and instrumental activism.


References

CNIC. 2012
"なぜ反原発か". http://www.cnic.jp/modules/about/article.php?id=15. consulted 17th March 2012

Jerome Price. 1990 THE ANTINUCLEAR MOVEMENT.Rev.edition. Boston:Twayne Publishers

Scott, Valentine. and Benjamin Sovacool. 2010 writing as The socio-political economy of nuclear power development in Japan and south Korea. Energy Policy(38):7971-7979.

Vidican Sergiu. "Source Of Green Energy" http://thevividedge.com/sources-of-green-energy/. consulted 17th March 2012

Saturday, March 17, 2012

What Is CNIC?


     In this page, I'm going to write about what is CNIC and what kind of group they are.
     First of all, what does CNIC stand for? The answer is Citizens' Nuclear Information Center. Then next question is what that is. According to their website,



"Citizens' Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) is an anti-nuclear public interest organization dedicated to securing a safe, nuclear-free world. The Center was formed to provide reliable information and public education on all aspects of nuclear power to ultimately realize this goal."  (CNIC 2012)
 
These are their website and facebook
http://www.facebook.com/messages/100001607709685#!/CNICJapan
(sorry CNIC has facebook in only Japanese)




     It is informative anti-nuclear group. And according to CNN which was published on 23rd March 2011, CNIC is the biggest antinuclear group in Japan. (CNN 2011)  





History CNIC
     About 40 years ago, in 1974 CNIC was established in Tokyo. Its primary purpose is to collect and analyze information related to nuclear energy including safety of worker and local residents, economic, and proliferation issues and to conduct studies and research on such issues.




Photograph#1

 (Photograph#1 source of photograph: http://nakazora.wordpress.com/category/energy/page/2/)


     It researched Three Mile Island accident. When Chernobyl accident happened in 1986, It participated in an anti-nuclear meeting in Vienna to protest the First Special Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency. In 1987 it published the English letter of 1st edition of "Nuke Info Tokyo" which is one of  their main method to inform people about nuclear problem and their ideas and it started to be open to other countries.

     It participated the 20,000 People Action to Spot Nuclear Power as the secretariat. It hosted or co-hosted many international conference, forums, and symposium since 1991. For example, it co-hostedInternational Conference on Plutonium” with Greenpeace International in 1991 and an “international citizens forum Sustainable and Peaceful Energy Future” with Friends of the Earth Japan in 1997. It co-posted public debate with the Atomic Energy Commission entitled “Thinking about the Reprocessing and Nuclear Fuel Cycle Policy” with Japan Congress against A- and H-bombs.




     And now it keep informing people in Japanese and in English about nuclear. It is criticizing reaction of Japanese government to earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear leak.   
  

Photograph#2
Image was taken when its members protested for decommissioning of the ”Monju” nuclear power plant which is built in Fukui prefecture in Japan with the All Japan Anti-nuclear Liaison Association.
                                                                                                (photograph#2 Photograph by CNIC; Source of photograph: http://cnic.jp/english/newsletter/nit146/nit146articles/monju.html )

 


Characteristics of CNIC
  1. This organization acts mainly in Japan. But it works with groups which act not only in Japan.
  2. Antinuclear groups which aims realizing nuclear-free world
  3. Their main activities are gathering, compiling, and analyzing data of nuclear related and supply those information to public 
  4. Specified Non-Profit corporation
     From the characteristic No.1 we can see that International connection of social movement. The nuclear problem is energy problem which is many people who lives in modern era involve this problem. However its core members are all Japanese. There are scientists, photographer, former politician, lawyer, member of Consumers Union of Japan. Its members have various background. Still there are more scientists who can analise information from scientific perspective. And it can explain complex scientific matter to citizen who don't have much background in science. Since it are acting as reliable source of nuclear information, diverse background is really helpful them to be neutral: free from governmental influence, emotional argument, and one-sided opinion.




     The characteristic No.2 is their main idea why it acts. Its aim is realizing nuclear free world. It means their protesting not only use of nuclear power but also use of nuclear weapon.




     The characteristic No.3; its main activities are supplying reliable information to citizen through their website, publication, and newsletter "Nuke Info Tokyo" and by holding discussions, seminars and symposiums. Sometimes, it has chance to discuss with politicians: it has some influence over decision-making.




     Finally it was certified as specified Non-Profit Corporation  by the Government of Tokyo which meant it came to have same status as legal Corporate status. Now it can take more various actions legally. It also means it is NOT direct-actionists or someone who violates law to protest even if it does peacefully. Since it applied as specified Non-Profit Corporation, it doesn't mean to use illegal method to protest. After all, it claims that it is going to against government's the policy of use of nuclear within the existing social frame. So I can say that it is really well-behaved organization and their goal isn't changing social frame, I mean, drastic change of social structural change.              




    As conclusion, Citizens' Nuclear Information Center is an anti-nuclear group dedicated to securing a safe, nuclear-free world which was established in 1974. It hosted or co-hosted many informative activities, such as conferences and discussion, but also physical activities like marching. Their characteristics are: they act in Japan and other countries too, antinuclear group which aims realizing nuclear-free world, their main activities are gathering, compiling, and analyzing data of nuclear related and supply those information to public and specified Non-Profit Corporation.   


     Next, I'll write about their goals. Since soical movement, they should have specific goals to achieve. I can say that goal is one of the identities of the group.


 


References


CNIC.
"Introducing CNIC". http://www.cnic.jp/english/. consulted 13th March 2012
"原子力資料情報室の歴史" http://www.cnic.jp/modules/about/article.php?id=4. consulted 17th March 2012
Photograph#2
"Rallies against the Monju Reactor". http://cnic.jp/english/newsletter/nit146/nit146articles/monju.html. consulted 17th March 2012 CNN.
2011. "Japan:Economy slip tot he third". http://edition.cnn.com/2011/BUSINESS/02/13/japan.economy.third/index.html. consulted 17th March 2012
2011. "Nuclear crisis highlights operator's checkered past". http://articles.cnn.com/2011-03-23/world/japan.nuclear.operators_1_fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-plant-tepco-citizens-nuclear-information-center?_s=PM:WORLD. consulted 17th March 2012


Photograph#1
SHIKIGAMI "News from Japan". http://nakazora.wordpress.com/category/energy/page/2/. consulted 16th March 2012

Friday, March 16, 2012

Introduction

First of All...



     This blog is written and will be written to study about antinuclear movement as assignment of anthropology 207.In this blog, I'll feature on Citizens' Nuclear Information Center (CNIC) as an example of an antinuclear movement.



Photograph#1
(Photograph#1;source of photography:http://www.cnic.jp/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=94



Why antinuclear movement?



      There was a huge earth quake in Japan on March 11th 2011. It was disastrous not only because of gigantic earth quake, but also because of successive tsunami and nuclear leak at Fukushima Daiich nuclear power plant. This accident activated antinuclear movement all over the world including Japan. I chose this topic because I was born in Japan and this movement is very active now. In addition, science is my field so I think I can provide different perspective.



Photograph#2



















(Photograph#2; source of photography#2:http://www.bethge.org/archives/1294)








What is social movement?



  According to the lecture of  Anthropology 207
social movement is defined as:
  • Informal networks of people
  • Based on shared beliefs and solidarity,
  • Mobilize about conflictual issues 
  • Through the frequent use of various forms of protest
  • Intention is to change something that is status quo "
(della Porta and Diani 1999: 16)
(Young-Leslie 2012)


     It means social movement is group action which tries to change something by using various ways of protesting. According to this definition, the way of protest doesn't have to be marching or using signs. Also people have to have shared belief and solidarity. It means protesters should claim similar ideal that you will see in the marching. Of course this is protest, they intend to change something exists now.  





Definition of antinuclear movement






     In the Wikipedia antinuclear movement is defined as "The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes the use of nuclear technologies" (Wikipedia 2012)



     This is quite simple definition. The point of this definition is "use of nuclear technologies" which may include use of nuclear weapons. I need to mention that antinuclear movement is not only antinuclear power plant but also antinuclear weapon movement. So there is strong connection with the idea that making world peace by pursing the abolish of nuclear power and weapon. Because nuclear-fuel which are uranium and concentrated plutonium can be source of nuclear weapon. At the same time, according to this definition, anti-nuclear movement against using nuclear technology for academic use like atomic particle collide experiments or studying nuclear for just advancement of science because those experiments often need nuclear technologies which is not the things commercial or military use.NMR is one of most popular instrument to measure organic chemical compounds which use nuclear technology.  I can say that if organic chemists can't use NMR, they can't do almost any research.



     In this blog I don't deal with this anti-technology ideology. I only deal with the anti-nuclear power and anti-nuclear weapon movement. Therefore in this blog, I define antinuclear movement as the social movement which against using, building of nuclear power plant and may include using, producing, importing, or exporting of  weapons.
  




     As a conclusion, antinuclear movement is defined as informal group based on the solidarity and shared belief , which is opposing using, building of nuclear power plant and may include using, producing, importing, or exporting of weapons by using any kind of protest to mobilize about conflict issues whose aim is to change nuclear policy.






   The next topic will be what is CNIC. I will talk more about their organizational characteristics.





References


Photograph#1
CNIC "CNIC 写真館"
http://www.cnic.jp/modules/myalbum/photo.php?lid=94. consulted 13th March 2012
Della Porta and Diani
1999 Social Movements: An Introduction Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell
Dr.Young-Leslie
lecture slide #5, 23rd Jan 2012 

Photograph#2
Philip Bethge. 2011."Jonathan Schell: ‘Our Illusion Is that We Can Control Nuclear Energy’"
http://www.bethge.org/archives/1294. consulted 13th March 2012


Wikipedia. "Anti-nuclear".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-nuclear_movement. consulted 13th March 2012