On the 22nd, more than 140 people in Kumamoto, Kagoshima, and other areas demanded compensation from the national government, Kumamoto prefecture, and the companies responsible for the disease, claiming that it was unfair that they were not recognized as having Minamata disease and not eligible for relief measures. The Kumamoto District Court will issue the verdict. Last year, in the first ruling in a similar class action lawsuit, the Osaka District Court acknowledged that all of the plaintiffs had Minamata disease and ordered the government and other entities to pay compensation, and attention will be focused on how they will decide who will receive relief.

People in their 50s to 100s who live in Minamata City and Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Izumi City, Kagoshima Prefecture, have symptoms unique to Minamata disease, such as numbness in their hands and feet, but are not recognized as having Minamata disease. They are demanding compensation of 4.5 million yen per person from the national government, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Chisso, the company responsible, arguing that it was unfair that they were excluded from relief under the Special Measures Act.



The government's relief plan targets people who have lived in the "target area" around Minamata Bay for more than a year, and who were born before the end of November 1969, the year after Chisso stopped discharging organic mercury. The appropriateness of the standards for these remedies was disputed.



In previous court cases, the government and other parties have requested that the lawsuit be dismissed, stating, ``It cannot be said that the person ingested enough mercury to cause Minamata disease.''



In September of last year, in the first ruling in a similar class action lawsuit, the Osaka District Court recognized all the plaintiffs as having Minamata disease and ordered three parties, including the government, to pay compensation, and all parties are appealing.



The Kumamoto District Court's trial, which began 11 years ago, has so far attracted 1,400 plaintiffs, of which 144 who had been tried earlier are scheduled to be sentenced on the 22nd, and the court is the target of relief. It will be interesting to see how you decide.

History of class action lawsuit

It has been 68 years since Minamata disease was officially confirmed, and many lawsuits have been filed and remedies have been implemented twice.



Legally, those who are certified as Minamata disease patients can receive a certain amount of compensation, but according to Kumamoto Prefecture and other sources, there were a total of 3,000 certified patients as of the end of last month.



On the other hand, those who were not recognized as having Minamata disease have gone to court seeking compensation.



Under these circumstances, in 1995, the government implemented a remedy through a ``political settlement,'' in which a lump-sum payment was made on the condition that the lawsuit be withdrawn.



Subsequently, in 2004, the Supreme Court recognized the responsibility of the state and other parties in a lawsuit that some plaintiffs had continued, and handed down a judgment that looked at the damage more broadly than the standards for patient recognition.



This triggered a sudden increase in the number of people seeking re-certification, and new class-action lawsuits were filed seeking redress for the victims and seeking compensation from the government, Chisso, and others.



Therefore, the government implemented a second relief measure, including the provision of lump-sum payments, based on the Special Measures Act enacted in 2009 in order to ``seek a final solution to the Minamata disease problem.''



More than 50,000 people were eligible for this relief measure, but because the recipients were divided by area where they lived and the age they were born, many people were unable to receive compensation or missed the application deadline. .



In total, more than 1,750 people have filed lawsuits in courts in Kumamoto, where Minamata disease was first identified, as well as in Osaka, Tokyo, and Niigata, seeking damages from the national government, Kumamoto Prefecture, and the companies responsible for the disease.



The first of these judgments was handed down at the Osaka District Court in September last year, and the national government and other parties are appealing.



The Niigata District Court is scheduled to hand down a verdict next month.

Plaintiff Setsuko Fujishita

Setsuko Fujishita (66), who was born and raised in Kawaura-cho, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, which was not included in the government's relief measures, said her family had been fishing for generations, and there was fish on her table every day. Says.



While working as a nurse herself, she began to feel numbness in her hands in her 20s, and would sometimes drop her syringes and medicine bottles.



Looking back, Fujishita says, ``During her surgery, I messed up when working on her fingertips, and her doctor told me to go to someone else instead.'' That was the most pitiful thing, and I still regret it.''



Her relief plan targeted her two older brothers, both fishermen, who grew up eating the same fish, but she was not satisfied and filed a lawsuit.



Fujishita said, ``Our symptoms are invisible.As we continued the trial, I was told, ``Are you still trying to get Minamata disease?'' ``It's no longer possible, so stop it. It's not Minamata disease.'' Sometimes,” he says.



Under these circumstances, in September of last year, her older sister, who had moved to Osaka and was not eligible for remedies, was found to have been recognized as having Minamata disease by the Osaka District Court, which was fighting the same issue in Kumamoto. I did.



She says that Fujishita called out to her, ``'Good for you, you've paid off.' You were told to do your best, too, and she felt that you had to respond.''



Mr. Fujishita hopes that the Osaka District Court's ruling will support the Kumamoto District Court's decision and lead to early relief.



Fujishita said, ``I want the national government, Kumamoto Prefecture, and Chisso to admit their mistakes and provide adequate relief to the victims.''

Plaintiff Fusayo Nakamura

One of the plaintiffs, Fusashiro Nakamura (69), was born and raised in Kuratake-cho, Amakusa City, Kumamoto Prefecture, which was not included in the area targeted by the relief plan.



Mr. Nakamura says that he has eaten fish caught in Minamata Bay and other places every day since he was a child, either by receiving it from a fisherman he knows or purchasing from a peddler.



He was in his 20s when he developed sensory disorders such as numbness in his hands and feet, which is characteristic of Minamata disease.



Over the years, the symptoms have worsened, and in addition to daily life, the couple has been involved in the pearl farming industry for many years.This has made it difficult for them to do detailed work such as inserting the core, which is the source of pearls, into oysters, making it difficult for them to engage in work. It is said that it has become.



Nakamura said, ``I feel numb and can't stop shaking. It comes on suddenly even while I'm at work. I can't move my body the way I want, and it's really pathetic.''



She applied for the relief measure at the recommendation of her husband, but the result was ``not applicable,'' and since the area is not included in the area targeted by Kuratake Town, fish that had been contaminated in the past cannot be used. I couldn't admit that I had eaten it.



So she sought redress from the judiciary.



Nakamura commented on the fact that the target area was only 5km from the town's port and that there were people in the same town who were also rescued, saying, ``I think it's unfair.The people around me had the same diet. "The oceans are connected, and I believe that no matter how many lines are drawn, they are the same. I feel regret and anger."