A Japanese Court Rejects Claims Of Assistance For Children Victims Of Atomic Bombings

Illustration. (Pexels/Ekaterina Bolovtsova)

JAKARTA - A court in Japan rejected a compensation lawsuit filed by children who were victims of the▁massawa atomic bomb, who requested financial assistance from the government on Monday.

TheTIC District Court ruled the state did not provide assistance to the so-called second-generation 'hybakusha', which was born to survivors of an atomic bomb, did not violate constitutional guarantees of equality under the law.

Although plaintiffs claim exposure to the radiation of their parents in the 1945 US atomic bomb has affected their health, Chief Judge Hiroyoshi Amakawa said the genetic influence of radiation could not be determined, according to Kyodo News December 12.

"The scope of the law on the assistance of victims of atomic bombs will be handed over to the legislative wisdom," said the judge when passing the verdict.

The plaintiffs argued during the trial that there was no rational reason to disqualify children who were victims of atomic bombs from government assistance, citing research showing possible hereditary effects from radiation exposure.

However, the court did not accept the plaintiff's treatment as discriminatory, saying, "It can only be said that we cannot deny the possibility of hereditary influence from exposure to atomic bomb radiation."

Meanwhile, a plaintiff's attorney said the decision was "unfair."

It is known, it is the first decision on the impact of radiation on the surviving children, with a similar case in Hiroshima yet to be decided. The 28 plaintiffs each asked for 100,000 yen from the government.

The Japanese government is currently providing various forms of financial assistance to survivors who are recognized and bear all their medical expenses. Such assistance does not apply to their children.

The government denies the claims, saying the effects of radiation exposure on children have not been confirmed and therefore there is no legislative obligation to expand the scope of financial aid.

It also demands that the plaintiff prove scientifically, the explanations of survivors have an impact on the health of their children.