A letter from a highschool student in Ibaraki, who has evacuated to Okinawa, to her teacher

How are you? We have moved to Okinawa. My father and sister are still in Ibaraki.

It’s certain that I am getting health effects of radiation, I am so sure, as I’m having various symptoms. Mainly, my thyroid gland is swollen, and I have nosebleeds and nettle rashes. My immune system seems to be a bit down.

I am so surprised myself at all these disorders I have on my body and I was told by a doctor in Okinawa that if I was to remain in Ibaraki like that, I probably would have had to die soon.

I know that you teachers are public servants. So you can’t take actions as you like and you are not allowed to teach students about radiation.

It was terribly painful to me when I discovered what the truth was, as I searched for information. Do you know how many people have already died? It is said that, ten years from now, this whole generation of my age is going to disappear, or even earlier.

I am so worried about my friends in Ibaraki. I am sending them information using the internet, but they are mostly quite pessimistic about their future, saying like “I’m OK as long as things are going all right NOW”, or ”There’s nothing I can do. I cannot have children anyway” and ”My parents are public servants, so we can’t easily move out of here”.

Yes of course. A high school student discovering truth means nothing much. They can’t tell their parents about it, they would just spend their time worrying.

So don’t you think that it is the teachers who can tell their parents about the horror of radiation?

Yes there’s going to be significant risk involved in that. But aren’t children treasures for adults? It is only adults who can protect children now.

Unfortunately, the government has put importance on the economy rather than the lives of children. If the cancer rates increase in the future and if we say that’s because of the radiation we had from Fukushima, they would probably deny the connection.
They said “there’s no immediate danger”when the nuke plant exploded ! I mean, what about the future.
It is very clear that we will suffer in the future, if we continue living like normal. I never think like “I’m OK as long as things are fine NOW”. You can have your precious “NOW” moments anywhere fine. Your future depends largely on where you are now. I am so truly glad to be here in Okinawa.
But what concerns me most is the future of children in Ibaragi, Kanto and Tohoku areas. It is so scary. Nobody has done anything wrong. No one can be blamed. If there’s anybody, it’s the government and TEPCO. We are all victims. That’s why I think you have to protect your own life, while parents have to protect the lives of their children.
Please investigate the truth about radiation. Please tell that to many people and protect your precious students. After that, each individual can decide what to do.
Please take care of yourself, eat safely and don’t catch viruses through air. Thank you for reading.

Original text http://blog.goo.ne.jp/nagaikenji20070927/e/a0f32e0d10a294d046a4cb84c7a68d83
(A Japanese journalist Kouta Kinoshita’s blog)

Source: http://bilininfojp.blogspot.com/2011/12/letter-from-highschool-student-in.html