RADIOACTIVISTS - Protest in Japan since Fukushima

The three folded catastrophe that shattered the northeast of Japan on March 11 – first the 9.0 earthquake, then the tsunami, and finally the ‘manmade’ catastrophe of Fukushima – is already showing its consequences, that will probably last for the next decades. The whole dimension of the catastrophe cannot be realized today, but still, we are getting aware of the socio-political tremors of historical significance. Especially in Tokyo, the capital of Japan, a political interest is arousing just now, a protest against the information- and nuclear policies of the ‘iron triangle’, consisting of the government, Tepco and the Nuclear Safety Agency.

The present protest culture in Japan seems to be not really well-established, compared to other countries. There is merely one exception: shirôto no ran (amateurs revolt), a group of creative activists, who fight for more freedom in public space and an inventive Do It Yourself-culture in the alternative area of Kôenji, Tokyo.

Therefore it is not really a surprise that shirôto no ran organized the biggest demonstration in Japan since the 1970s, which took place on April 10th, just one month after the earthquake. This protest gathered more than 15.000 people demonstrating against nuclear power.

Furthermore, the mobilization of those anti-nuclear protests brings up a lot more subjects of discussion, for instance the work- and living conditions in the nowadays capitalism and globalization.

The documentary RADIOACTIVISTS - Protest in Japan since Fukushima wants to explore the Japanese protest culture under the effects of Fukushima and to illuminate the backgrounds of the current movements, protests and critical voices, which keep getting louder, not only in Japan.