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Shinjitai Hōsō Kyōkai / Shinjitai Broadcasting Corporation / シンジ協会放送太極拳

Reporting History every day.

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Friday, 16th December, 2011



Japanese Prime Minister declares 'cold shutdown' at Fukushima

Engineers have brought the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant to a "cold shutdown condition", nine months after the earthquake and tsunami, Japan has confirmed.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda made the announcement at a nuclear task-force meeting.

Declaring a cold shutdown condition is seen as a key milestone in efforts to bring the plant under control.

But the government says it will take decades to dismantle it completely.

The six-reactor Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant was badly damaged by the earthquake and tsunami that occured earlier this year on March 11. Blasts occurred at four of the reactors after sea waves knocked out vital cooling systems.

Workers at the plant, which is operated by TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company), have been using sea water to cool the reactors. Waste water has built up and some contaminated liquid has been released into the sea.

A 20km (12m) exclusion zone remains in place around the plant.

The Japanese government said earlier this year that it was aiming to reach a "cold shutdown condition" at the plant by the end of the year.

This is where water that cools nuclear fuel rods remains below boiling point, meaning that the fuel cannot reheat.

TEPCO has also defined it as bringing the release of radioactive materials under control and reducing public radiation exposure to a level that does not exceed 1mSv/year at the site boundary.

Attending a meeting of the nuclear disaster task force, Mr Noda said that conditions for a cold shut-down had been met.

"Even if unforeseeable incidents happen, the situation is such that radiation levels on the boundary of the plant can now be maintained at a low level," he said.

At a news conference afyterwards, Mr Noda said the "battle is not over."

He promised the government would "set a clear roadmap and will do its utmost to decommission the plant".

The next phase would focus on the clean up operation, including decontaminating the ground around the plant, he said.

With the reactors stable, Mr Noda said the government would review the evacuation zones established in the immediate aftermath of the incident.

More than 80,000 people had to leave the area in March, but radiation levels in some places remain too high for them to return home.

Earlier this week, the government said it could take up to 40 years to fully decommission the plant and clean up surrounding areas.

Spent fuel rods and melted fuel inside the reactors must be removed. Waste water must also be safely stored.

Contamination has been found in food from the region including rice, beef and fish, while radioactive soil has also been found in some areas.

Some experts have also warned that the plant could be further damaged if a powerful aftershock were to strike.

Engineers are also continuing to encounter new problems - last week Tepco officials confirmed that 45 cubic metres (1,590 cubic feet) of water had leaked into the sea from a crack in the foundation of a water treatment facility.

[Shinjitai]

Saturday, 17th December, 2011



Flash Floods Kill Hundreds In Philippines

The number of people killed after a typhoon hit the southern Philippines has risen to 440, reports say.
Hundreds more are missing after torrential rain triggered by tropical storm Washi caused rivers to burst their banks while people slept in the Mindanao region.

Among the worst-hit cities are Cagayan de Oro and Iligan.

An estimated 100,000 people have been left homeless.

Those missing include a prominent local radio broadcaster, who was swept away while trying to save his neighbours, according to the city's mayor.

Authorities said several people drowned in floodwaters on the island province of Negros Oriental, whose southern tip was hit by the eye of the storm.

Many people managed to escape by climbing onto their roofs, while tens of thousands fled to higher ground.

"We stayed on top of our roof. All we could see were lights flashing while we made a hole on our roof to climb on," said one female survivor.

Ayi Hernandez, a former congressman, said he and his family heard a loud "swooshing sound" and water quickly rose ankle deep inside his home.

He decided to evacuate to a neighbour's two-storey house.

"It was a good thing because in less than an hour the water rose to about 11ft (3.3 metres)," he said.

The local government has declared a state of emergency in the flooded regions and sent food and water to the thousands of displaced families.

Authorities said the high casualties in Mindanao could be attributed "partly to the complacency of people because they are not in the usual path of storms."

[Shinjitai]

Saturday, 17th December, 2011

3 Day Weather Forecast

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Sunday, 18th December, 2011


Spreading festive cheer: Volunteers in Santa Claus outfits visit a temporary housing complex for evacuees in Sendai on Saturday


Evacuees Not Reassured By Milestone

People forced out of their residences near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant remain concerned about the huge obstacles to returning home, despite the government's declaration Friday that the crisis has been brought under control.

"I am glad that conditions are improving, but I don't think we will return," said Taisuke Hori, 27, who fled to Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, after the crisis started.

His home is inside the 20-km exclusion zone around the wrecked nuclear plant.

"I doubt whether kids can live safely without concerns no matter how thoroughly local tracts of land are cleaned up," said Hori, who has children aged 6, 2 and younger than 1.

Hori would like to return to his hometown if he can, but out of consideration for his children's safety he is looking for a permanent job in Tsukuba.

Soichi Sanpei, 31, who has evacuated to Komoro, Nagano Prefecture, is angry and wants to know how the government can declare the crisis is under control "while radioactive substances remain" in areas around the plant.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Friday the nuclear accident has been "settled," declaring the plant's three crippled reactors have achieved cold shutdown, meaning they have been stabilized.

Among the 20,000 people from the town of Namie, which has been completely evacuated, there are some who are calling for a massive relocation to an area not far from the town.

Hoji Sanpei, 75, said relocation would maintain the bonds of the townsfolk and keep their hopes for reconstruction alive.

In a survey conducted last month by the Namie municipal office, some 30 percent of the respondents said they would not return to the town in the future.

Matsue Yoshida, 62, who is from Tomioka, Fukushima Prefecture, now lives in Katsushika Ward, Tokyo, with his wife and two children.

Yoshida was running a "ryokan" Japanese-style inn in the town before March 11, but it was severely damaged by the quake.

"I wanted my son to run my inn when he grows up, but I'm worried about his future. I want the government to show us reconstruction plans as soon as possible," Yoshida said.

[Shinjitai]

Monday, 19th December, 2011




North Korean Leader Kim Jong Il has died.

Many people wept openly on the streets of the capital, Pyongyang after hearing the news. State media said he had suffered a heart attack on Saturday, aged 69.

The official news agency KCNA described one of his sons, Kim Jong-un, as the "great successor" whom North Koreans should unite behind.

North Korea's neighbours are on alert fearing instability in the poor and isolated nuclear-armed nation.

Fears were compounded by unconfirmed reports from South Korean news agency Yonhap that the North had test-fired a missile off its eastern coast before the announcement of Kim Jong-il's death.

Following news of his death, South Korea put its armed forces on high alert and said the country was on a crisis footing. Japan's government convened a special security meeting.

China - North Korea's closest ally and biggest trading partner - expressed shock at the news of his death and pledged to continue making "active contributions to peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and in this region".

After meeting her Japanese counterpart Koichiro Gemba, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she hoped for a stable and peaceful transition in North Korea.

"We reiterate our hope for improved relations with the people of North Korea and remain deeply concerned about their well-being," she said.

North and South Korea are still technically at war, and the US has nearly 30,000 troops stationed in South Korea. Last year the North was accused of sinking a South Korean patrol boat and the two countries exchanged fire across the disputed maritime border.

Meanwhile, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly backed a resolution condemning human rights violations in North Korea. The vote, scheduled before his death was announced, called for an end to "systematic, widespread and grave violations". North Korea rejected the resolution.

Shinjitai's stock markets fell, aswell as the rest of the Asian stock markets, after news of his death was announced.

Kim's death was announced in an emotional statement on national television.

The announcer, wearing black, tried to hold back tears as she told the news.

The announcer said he had died of fatigue.

KCNA later reported that he had died of a "severe myocardial infraction along with a heart attack".

He had been on a train at the time, for one of his "field guidance" tours, KCNA said.

The state news agency said a funeral would be held in Pyongyang on 28 December and Kim Jong-un would head the funeral committee. A period of national mourning has been declared from 17 to 29 December.

Images from inside the secretive state showed people in the streets of Pyongyang weeping at the news of his death.

Ruling party members in one North Korean county were shown by state TV banging tables and sobbing, the AFP news agency reports

KCNA said people were "convulsing with pain and despair" at their loss, but would unite behind his successor Kim Jong-un.

It said millions of North Koreans were "engulfed in sadness".

"All party members, military men and the public should faithfully follow the leadership of comrade Kim Jong-un and protect and further strengthen the unified front of the party, military and the public," the news agency said.

Little is known about Kim Jong-un. He was educated in Switzerland, is aged in his late 20s and is believed to be Kim Jong-il's third son - born to Kim's reportedly favourite wife, the late Ko Yong-hui.

Kim Jong-un was unveiled as his father's likely successor just over a year ago. Many had expected to see this process further consolidated in 2012.

South Korea urged people to "go about their usual economic activities" on Monday, while putting the military on alert.

President Lee Myung-Bak spoke to US President Barack Obama by telephone and they "agreed to closely co-operate and monitor the situation together", a South Korean presidential spokesman said.

The two countries' defence ministers also spoke and "agreed that it is critical to remain prudent with respect to all matters related to our security posture there", a US Defense Department spokesman said.

China said it was "distressed" to hear the news of his death. "We express our grief about this and extend our condolences to the people of North Korea," foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu was quoted by Xinhua news agency as saying.

Analysts say that with the process of transition from father to son incomplete, Mr Kim's death could herald "very unstable times" in North Korea.

Kim Jong-il inherited the leadership of North Korea from his father Kim Il-sung.

Shortly after he came to power in 1994, a severe famine caused by ill-judged economic reforms and poor harvests left an estimated two million people dead

His regime has been harshly criticised for human rights abuses and is internationally isolated because of its pursuit of nuclear weapons.

Under Mr Kim's leadership, funds have been channelled to the military and in 2006 North Korea conducted its first nuclear test. It followed that up with a second one three years later. Multinational talks aimed at disarming North Korea have been deadlocked for months.

He had reportedly been in poor health since suffering a stroke in August 2008.

[Shinjitai]

Tuesday, 20th December, 2011



Japan chooses F-35 fighter Jet

Japan has chosen the US-made F-35 stealth fighter jet to replace its aging F-4s as the mainstay of its air defence fleet.

Tokyo announced it would buy a total of 42 of the Joint Strike Fighters from defence giant Lockheed Martin, in a deal worth some $8bn (£5bn).

The jet was chosen over the Eurofighter Typhoon and Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet.

The announcement comes amid regional uncertainty following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

There is also growing concern in Japan about China's increasing military might. In recent months, Japan has said it is bolstering its coastal defences after warning of an increase in Chinese naval activity in the region.

Japanese Defence Minister Yasuo Ichikawa said the security environment in which the fighters would operate was undergoing a transformation, but that the F-35 had "capabilities that can firmly respond to the changes".


The decision had been widely expected, given the close ties between Tokyo and Washington.

The US is Japan's main security ally and the two countries regularly conduct joint military drills in the region.

The move will be a major boost to Lockheed Martin, whose F-35 programme has been criticised in the US for its high cost and production delays. Analysts say it is likely to trigger more orders, including from South Korea, which is also seeking to replace its fighter fleet.

The exact details of the contract, including numbers and timings, are yet to be determined, but in a boost to the domestic economy, officials in Tokyo said Japanese firms would be involved in production of the jets.

The decision will, however, be a disappointment for European manufacturers behind the Eurofighter Typhoon, including British defence company BAE Systems, and to US-based Boeing, producer of the Super Hornet.

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Tuesday, 21st December, 2011



Thailand and Cambodia reach deal on temple border

Cambodia and Thailand have agreed to withdraw their troops from a disputed border area near the ancient temple of Preah Vihear.

The deal was reached after Thai Defence Minister Yuthasak Sasiprapha met his Cambodian counterpart, Tea Banh, in Phnom Penh.

A territorial dispute over a patch of land around the temple has sparked deadly clashes between the two nations.

In April, fighting left 18 people dead and tens of thousands displaced.

The International Court of Justice ordered both sides to remove troops from the disputed area in July - but neither has complied.

Indonesian observers

According to a joint statement, both countries agreed to set up a working group on "redeployment of their military personnel completely and simultaneously from their current positions in the provisional demilitarised zone at the earliest".

The withdrawal will take place in the presence of Indonesian observers, the statement added, according to AFP news agency.

Thailand does not dispute Cambodia's ownership of the World Heritage-listed temple, but both sides claim some of the surrounding area.

Tension had been increasing between Cambodia and Thailand since Unesco awarded Preah Vihear World Heritage status in 2008.

In April 2009, soldiers exchanged fire across the disputed border.

More serious trouble flared in February 2011, when at least eight people were killed in several days of fighting.

The violence moved westwards to another set of temples in April, before shifting back to Preah Vihear, as widespread clashes forced tens of thousands to flee

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Reserved.

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Reserved.