Within 10 minutes of landing in Tokyo Narita International Airport, I encountered my very first earthquake, and it was a brutal one. More than 15,000 people were confirmed dead and more than 3,000 are still missing. While Japan marks its first year since the quake, tsunami and nuclear disaster, I contemplate the incident. There’s one lesson for Tokyo: Do not hide a problem under the rug and pray that it will simply go away.

Tokyo was quick to silence dissent when a spokesman for the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency stated that a meltdown was a possibility. According to The Korea Herald, only in mid-May did the government admit that three of the six reactors suffered meltdowns. It takes no genius to understand the low sentiment of trust shared among Japanese citizens toward their government’s belated and irresponsible response to the crisis.

However, I am not a victim blaming the Japanese government for its failures. On the other hand, I am advising the Japanese government for a change in how they deal with potential or existing crises. I hope this change will bring positive re-enforcement to their national and international handling of issues. I believe a proactive attitude of acknowledging and identifying a problem, taking responsibility and taking honest blame and criticism will help reconstruct Japan. As we see from this tragic incident, Tokyo is a passive government. It is quick to silence dissent and coerce conformity for the “greater good.” In this process, Tokyo shuts out healthy and critical thinking essential for problem-solving.

Like every other crisis, Fukushima came with a warning. According to The Korea Herald, the meltdown warning came in the very first meeting of a task force. However, the chief cabinet secretary at the time, Yukio Edano, repeatedly denied the notion of a meltdown. Despite assurances, the tsunami knocked out the vital cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant causing meltdowns at the three reactors and spewing radiation into the air. As a result, tens of thousands were left homeless and people who survived continue to live in fear of high radiation levels.

As a debater for many years, I’ve come to realize the importance and beauty of logical thinking without fear of penalization or retribution. And many times living in Korea and not necessarily conforming to some of the traditional way of thinking, it may pose many risks to your career and social life. Despite these risks, I still firmly believe that one must master the ability to maintain a balance between conforming to others’ expectations and fostering individual logical thinking in order to solve a problem. With this in mind, a transition to a proactive government from the current state-of-denial on the part of Tokyo would play an important role to restore its trust from its own citizens. Furthermore, I hope it will be a stepping stone to promote international ties with Japan’s neighboring country, South Korea, to deal with issues like the comfort women issue. 

By Kim Ji-yeon

Kim Ji-yeon has a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Ewha Womans University. ― Ed.