Brussels, 13/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 12 March, at the opening of the plenary session in Strasbourg, European Parliament President Martin Schulz paid tribute to the victims of the earthquake and tsunami of 11 March 2011 in Japan, and to those of the resulting nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant. “Though the earthquake and tsunami in Japan were tragic natural disasters, the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl was caused by humans. Fukushima could have been prevented”, said Schulz (S&D, Germany).
On 11 March 2011, Japan was devastated by a triple catastrophe - a massive earthquake, followed by a 20-metre high tsunami which destroyed a 400 km long coastal strip and, a day later, the explosion of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which led to a reactor meltdown. Schulz expressed sympathy for the 19,000 people who lost their lives, the thousands more who lost family members and friends, and the many thousands more whom, fleeing radiation, had lost their homes and home localities for ever. He also praised the courage of the anonymous workers who risked their lives to get the damaged reactors under control.
Noting that nuclear energy accounts for 30% of the EU's energy mix, and that energy decisions are a matter for each member state, Schulz stressed the need for increased nuclear safety. He restated his demand that any of the 143 EU nuclear power plants that fail the current stress tests should immediately be removed from the network.
In a joint statement published on 9 March, the president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, and the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, also paid tribute to the victims of the great earthquake. “The terrible events of 11 March 2011 shocked the entire world by their suddenness and scale. As the first anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake approaches, we want to reaffirm, on behalf of the European Union, our deepest sympathy for the families of those who lost their lives and our profound admiration for the strength that the people of Japan have shown in the face of adversity. (…) We remain committed to building even closer ties of friendship with Japan and further strengthening the EU-Japan strategic partnership”, they write. (EH/transl.jl)