Japan: Judicial review panel votes to indict ex-Tepco execs
Prosecutors have twice previously decided not to seek such indictments, saying Tepco could not have expected such a massive tsunami to hit the nuclear plant and cripple its critical safety systems. But on Friday the committee overrode the prosecutors’ decisions for a second time, which will lead to a compulsory indictment of the three Tepco executives. They were all responsible for major disaster prevention planning. ... [A representative of a resident group stated that] many elderly people who evacuated from the radiation-contaminated areas have since died in shelters away from their hometowns, while numerous people still living in Fukushima are being exposed to radiation via contaminated materials from the heavily damaged plant. [She] said many people outside the prefecture have the impression that the nuclear crisis is over. “If who should be held responsible is not made clear, (the dead) victims won’t rest in peace,” she added.