Links

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Exhibition of Ainu woodwork and more at Yokohama Takashimaya



 From April 17th to the 20th, the 5th annual "Wood work, Wooden shapes" exhibition is being held on the 8th floor of Takashimaya in Yokohama

Nibutani-born Ainu artist Maki Sekine, whose carved wooden obon (tray) is seen in the poster above will have her woodwork and atush (elm bark carvings) on display. Maki Sekine just returned from Aotearoa (New Zealand) where she took place in the Aotearoa Ainumosir Exchange Program and some of her pieces on display are inspired by her interactions with Maori people she met there.

- Posted by Jen Teeter

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

"Safe until proven otherwise": Japanese court rejects demand to shut down Ohi nuclear power plant; plaintiffs to immediately appeal

"Illegitimate ruling: Lessons of Fukushima unlearned" (Courtesy of U-Stream)
Crowds gathered outside Osaka District Courthouse yesterday April 16, 20113 only to find the judge rejected the injunction put forward by 262 residents of Fukui, Gifu, and six other prefectures in the Kansai region on March 12, 2012 to provisionally shut down Ohi nuclear power plant units 3 and 4.
“The court ruling is stating there is no legal requirement in Japan to meet the first golden rule of nuclear safety, the ability to shut down a reactor within the required time in the event of an accident/earthquake. This is not true. Ohi received its licensing permit on the premise that it met this shut down time limit. The Fukushima Daiichi accident would have been much worse if the reactors had not shut down properly on 11 March 2011. It’s a travesty that after Fukushima, a court would say that Ohi is prima facie safe until it’s proven otherwise.”
This statement was made by Aileen Mioko Smith director of Green Action after the decision. Units 3 and 4 were restarted by Kansai Electrical Power Company (KEPCO) despite massive protest concerning under assessed fault lines running under the plant and control rods which do not meet regulation standards. Aileen Mioko Smith and Hideyuki Koyama, director of Osaka-based Mihama-no-Kai are co-lead plaintiffs in the case.

Although fault lines under the plant are still under investigation by scientists, the judge arbitrarily ruled that movement under the plant is most likely due to landslides. Furthermore, the court ruled that even if the plants control rods do not operate within 2.2 seconds, this is not a regulation that power plants must meet. Although the licensing permit for operation of Units 3 and 4 was issued on the basis of the 2.2 standard, the court upholdS KEPCOs argument that 11 seconds is enough time to shut down as long as the safety of the nuclear fuel can maintained.

 Mihama-no-Kai criticizes the recklessness of the court:
"This decision is trampling on the hearts of the survivors of the Fukushima nuclear accident...A large earthquake due to the interaction of 3 fault lines under the Ohi plant can happen tomorrow." 
The plaintifs are now planning for an immediate appeal.

For more detailed information on the key arguments of the case visit:
http://www.greenaction-japan.org/internal/130403_Press_Briefing_Ohi_Lawsuit.pdf

On April 20th, supporters of the appeal will gather from 6:30pm to 20:45pm at  L Osaka Main Building 7th Floor room 709. The meeting is being held by Ooi Genpatsu Tomeyou Hanketsu Kai (Group to Sentence Ooi Nuclear Power Plant to Shut Down).

Awaiting court decision outside Osaka District Courthouse
- Posted by Jen Teeter

Monday, April 15, 2013

Isn't it time to cut military spending to fund human needs in Japan?


(Photo: Shiho Fukada,  The New Yorker: "People wait in line to receive a charity meal in Kamagasaki, Osaka. Once a thriving day-laborer’s town, Kamagasaki today is home to about twenty-five thousand mainly elderly day laborers, with an estimated thirteen hundred who are homeless.")

In January 2013, Tokyo increased military spending for the first time in 11 years: to 4.68 trillion yen ($52 billion).

Meanwhile, 310,500 people in Tohoku remain in temporary housing; Fukushima nuclear meltdown radiation is still uncontrolled; and Japanese people overall are becoming increasingly unemployed, under-employed, and even impoverished.

1 in 6 (more than 20 million) people in Japan live without food security, under the poverty line. In the last 10 years, over 700 Japanese people have starved to death.

According to the Gini Index (“the degree of inequality in the distribution of family income in a country”), in Japan has gone from .25 (1993) to .33 (2008). Japan also has one of the OECD's highest poverty rates (15%), close to Mexico's. It is even higher for the elderly.

At the same time, the consumption tax and government debt has increased.

Isn't it time to cut military spending to fund human needs in Japan?

(Tokyo already has the world’s sixth largest military budget.)

Sunday, April 14, 2013

"LIFE IS A TREASURE" (Nuchi Du Takara) monument groundbreaking ceremony @ Okinawa Peace Prayer Park - APRIL 22, 2013


"LIFE IS A TREASURE" (Nuchi Du Takara) monument groundbreaking ceremony - APRIL 22, 2013 at OKINAWA PEACE PRAYER PARK:

Nuchi Du Takara "Life is a Treasure" monument groundbreaking (Hikoshiki) ceremony will be on Monday, Earth Day April 22nd from 14:00, at the "Okinawa Peace Prayer Park". The "hinpun" monument will be completed on Saturday June 8th World Ocean Day.

The monument will be at the "Cornerstone of Peace" (Everlasting Waves of Peace). Un-veiling and blessing ceremony will take place on Sunday June 9th from 14:00, everyone welcome.

Charity Live will be held at the Okinawa Peace Prayer Park Hall (Okinawa Heiwa KinenDou) from 14:00~

Adults: ¥3,000 / Children and Students free.
Performance by Ishihara Emi, Karate, Ryukyu Buyo etc,

Other live events that support this project will be announced under the "Blue Peace Live".

Saturday, April 6, 2013

Handprint Cherry Blossoms Bring Hope to Miyagi


Via Asahi:
"Handprint cherry blossoms of hope are in full bloom"

ISHINOMAKI, Miyagi Prefecture--Although cherry blossoms are not in bloom yet in the Tohoku area, a handprinted painting of a tree in full bloom can currently be seen in the Ogatsu district of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, which was hit hard by the Great East Japan Earthquake. 

About 200 people including some from other parts of Japan, gathered together on March 30 and 31. Participants added their palm prints in pink and red paint to a white plastered wall, forming cherry blossoms on an illustrated tree.

The wall, which is four meters long and 40 meters wide, was built at Arahama beach in December as a canvas to express messages of hope.

“Because reconstruction has been stalled, I wanted to create an opportunity for people to come together here,” said Akira Komatsu, 38, a vice chairman of the committee for the canvas project. “I hope people's spirits will be raised by looking at this handmade cherry tree.”

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Spring Love Harukaze 2013: Creating the Future!




The legendary free urban gathering, Harukaze (“Spring Love”), is back for its fifth year—again set to bring good vibes to Tokyo’s Yoyogi Park on Saturday, March 30th and Sunday, March 31st during the height of cherry blossom season. Following the ongoing event theme of “Building the Future”, this year we will focus upon three main sub-themes: supporting children in Fukushima, shifting to alternative energy use, and advocating the right to dance.

Come out with your family, friends, or on your own to this amazing weekend extravaganza to contemplate new lifestyles following the 2011 disaster, while also enjoying the gorgeous sakura and feeding your mind and soul with some Spring Love!

Date/Time : Saturday, March 30th (12:00〜20:00)
Sunday, March 31st (11:00 〜 20:00)
Venue : Yoyogi Park (Outdoor Stage area)* Rain or shine!!

Admission : Free!! (Donations kindly accepted)


Event Highlights :
  • Top-rated musical and dance performances on three stages
  • Peace Dome featuring talk sessions related to this year’s event themes, and more
  • All stages and booths powered through solar energy and biofuel…no nuclear energy or fossil fuels!!
  • Art Gallery
  • Workshops
  • Kids activity area
  • Skate Ramp
  • Love and Peace Parade / The Un-named Parade
  • Chillout Flea Market featuring ecological and fair-trade goods
  • Food/drink stalls featuring healthy/organic ingredients
  • NPO/NGO booths
Event sponsored by:
 Harukaze Organizing Committee
, Kanto Regional Environmental Office
, Shibuya Ward Office
With cooperation from: A SEED JAPAN, BE-IN, BUENA SUERTE, Kadoman Planning, BALANCE, TEAM, Third Culture, WAON PRODUCTION, Peace Not War Japan, POSIVISION, RA, natural smile

Sister Event : Earth Day Tokyo 2013

This year’s event themes :

* Supporting Citizens in Fukushima

We believe that one of the missions of Harukaze Spring Love is to keep the conversation going re. what is continuing to take place in Fukushima prefecture. In Tokyo in particular, our lifestyles have been supported by the electricity made at the Fukushima nuclear power plants. The reality, however, is that nuclear power has provided large amounts of money in Fukushima prefecture, from which the lives of certain individuals have benefited economically. Fukushima’s innocent citizens, including its children have suffered greatly as a consequence of nuclear policy and the resulting accident. By keeping the discussion going regarding what citizens in Fukushima continue to face, we can figure out ways to offer support in this regard.

*Spring Love Harukaze will include exhibition booths with information about citizens in Fukushima, as well as inviting guest speakers who are involved in providing support in this regard. Donations will also be collected and given to groups doing work in this area.

* Shifting to alternative energy use

The electricity for all stages at Spring Love Harukaze will be provided through solar energy. Additional electricity usage will come from one to two electrical generators that are powered using biofuel. In addition to reducing the amount of noise coming from the event area and providing a more quality listening experience, this will prove that it is indeed possible to power music festivals—as well as society in general!—through existing energy networks without relying upon nuclear energy or fossil fuels.

In addition to simply raising our voice against nuclear energy, we are leading through an example of positive action in this regard.

* Advocating the right to dance

The Entertainment Business Act serves to enact restrictions with regard to appropriateness within the entertainment industry. Originally established in the immediate postwar period to prevent prostitution, the law in fact serves to regulate dancing in live houses and clubs—and police have recently begun utilizing this law as a justification for crackdowns in this regard (particularly in the Kansai region).

Spring Love Harukaze is participating in the “Let’s Dance!” petition drive, which aims to exclude dancing from the list of restricted activities associated with this law. Please sign one of the petitions circulating throughout the event venue and show your support for the freedom to dance!

2013 Participating Artists

MUSIC
ART
TALK GUESTS : Coming Soon!

Additional Event Information

* Smokers: Please respect the event’s general no-smoking policy by smoking only within designated areas!

* Harukaze has a “gomi-zero” (“no garbage”) policy
. Please leave the venue as clean as you found it by separating your trash at one of the provided garbage stations. Garbage cleanup is an extremely expensive undertaking, and if this policy is not respected, we may not be able to offer this free festival in the future. Show some spring love by supporting “gomi-zero”!!

Volunteers needed before and during the event!!
 We ask anyone with ideas and passion regarding our peaceful shared future to please contact us! We are looking for those who can help us before the event dates and during the event for the following tasks: Site management, translation/interpretation, cleanup, various administrative tasks,
etc. If you are able to help, please contact us at 
newstaff@harukaze.asia

* Organization: Harukaze is put together by a collective of individuals who aim to use the power of messages, ideas, expression and art to create a positive shared future that is built upon ideals such as peace, ecology and culture.
 All staff, activists and artists are working on an entirely volunteer basis, and Spring Love Harukaze is funded entirely by the donations of like-minded individuals, as well as sales from goods during the event.
Fundraising: 
Harukaze will have several fundraising collection boxes placed on site. This event is not possible without the voluntary work of our staff, and your donations will be an essential force for this
free event to continue in the future. We ask all attendees to stand up for SPRING LOVE and its peaceful and progressive causes for future generations to come!

Event History

Enjoyed by many event-goers during its first run from 1998-2002, when it was known simply as “Harukaze,” the festival returned in 2009 together with Peace Not War Japan—adding discussions on peace-related issues into the lineup and collecting donations for grassroots peace organizations during the 2009 and 2010 festivals.

Following the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake, the 2011 event included a candlelight memorial, panel discussions on issues related to nuclear power and alternative energy, and song tributes for disaster victims led by gospel singer (and festival director) Yuka Kamebuchi with her ensemble “VOJA” (Voices of Japan). The 2012 Harukaze event, “Think It!”, continued the discussion by encouraging festival-goers to reflect upon and implement alternative cultural perspectives and sustainable living into their own lives.

Highlights from Past Festivals:

2012 : http://tenthousandthingsfromkyoto.blogspot.jp/2012/04/tokyo-is-city-with-every-possible-sort.html

2011: 
http://pnwj-newsblog-e.blogspot.jp/2011/04/tokyo-art-and-music-event-mourns.html
http://asaphotograph.viewbook.com/album/springloveprayforpeople?p=1#47

2010 :
 
http://pnwj-newsblog-e.blogspot.jp/2010/04/spring-love-harukaze-2010-music.htm

2009 :
 http://pnwj-newsblog-e.blogspot.jp/2009/04/spring-love-rocks-yoyogi-park-with-love.htm

Monday, March 11, 2013