Japan Orders TEPCO To Pay Compensation; Evacuees Say It's Not Enough

"TOKYO — The operator of Japan’s tsunami-damaged nuclear plant said Friday it would pay an initial $12,000 for each household forced to evacuate because of leaking radiation — a handout some of the displaced slammed as too little.

Tens of thousands of residents unable to return to their homes near the nuclear plant are bereft of their livelihoods and possessions, unsure of when, if ever, they will be able to return home. Some have traveled hundreds of kilometers (miles) to Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s headquarters in Tokyo to press their demands for compensation.

“We have decided to pay provisional compensation to provide the slightest help for the people (who were affected),” TEPCO President Masataka Shimizu told a news conference."

The Associated Press had the story April 14, 2011.

SEE ALSO:

"Japan's Nuclear Crisis Prompts Petition for U.S. Inquiry, Licensing Suspension" (ENS)

"As Japan Debates Its Policy on  Atomic Energy, a Town Faces New Concerns About the Local Nuclear Plant" (Washington Post)

"Nuclear Neighbors: Population Rises Near US Reactors" (MSNBC)

"Onagawa Nuke Plant Jolted Beyond Specs" (Japan Times)