Justin McCurry talks to Makoto Iokibe, chairman of the Japan Reconstruction Design Council
As chairman of the newly formed Japan Reconstruction Design Council, Makoto Iokibe oversees the blueprint for the reconstruction of areas devastated by the 11 March quake and tsunami. Iokibe, president of the National Defence Academy of Japan in Yokosuka, Kanagawa prefecture, has come out in favour of tax increases and called for greater involvement of foreign companies and individuals in the long rebuilding process. Drawing on his experience helping plan Kobe’s recovery after the 1995 earthquake, Iokibe envisages safe, environmentally sound towns and cities.
Have the authorities done enough to help the people of Tohoku?
I went to Tohoku one month after the disaster and again about two months later. The difference in the space of that month was very clear. The first time the coast was dark and forbidding, whole cities had been destroyed, and the only people on the streets were soldiers trying to clear roads. The citizens were all in evacuation centres. I visited the first batch of temporary housing units in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture, but there was no sense of human activity anywhere.
On my most recent visit, those places were beginning to regain their confidence. The intense sadness had lifted and the people were more positive. Local offices were able to offer more temporary housing since the government started to pay rent (¥60,000 to ¥80,000 per month) for those who lost their homes in the tsunami and wanted to stay in vacant private houses.
But the debris, especially in the sea, is still a big problem. The government is paying ¥12,000 a day to fishermen to help remove it, so now they are able to build a foundation for their future. Before, they had no money or work; they just stayed in shelters. Now they are positive and optimistic – it’s a dramatic change.
What will the new towns and cities look like?
Some citizens want to rebuild their homes in the same place as before because they own the land. But they are the exception. Many survivors told me they wanted this to be the last time that their homes were destroyed by a tsunami. They want to create a new history.
That’s much easier now because, regardless of tsunami, new towns are built on hillsides in many cities around Japan. Historically, the Japanese have mostly regarded nature as a friend, but occasionally it becomes violent. In the past, people would endure disasters and then work hard, together, to rebuild their towns. It was a way of life. But modernisation means they don’t have to do that now. We should build safe, resilient cities. This is our opportunity to do that.
Where and how will the new communities be built?
We will be recommending the use of tsunami debris to build artificial hills. The houses will be positioned on the hillsides, and low-lying areas will be turned into parks and agricultural land. We will also need to reserve harbour areas for industry, commerce and leisure, but in places that can be evacuated quickly in case of another tsunami.
Will participation in the reconstruction process be open to people and companies from outside Japan?
Before the tsunami thousands of foreigners, many from other Asian countries, were working in the region as trainees in fishing and agriculture. Sadly, some of them were among the victims.
So, yes, we need to think about improving the foreign contribution to the region’s reconstruction, ideally on a permanent basis. We should give priority to the local people who have suffered, but since the population is declining and the sea in that area is abundant in natural resources, there aren’t enough local people to make the fishing industry prosperous.
Although our council doesn’t have enough time to go into detail, we think it should be possible to combine the two groups of people. We should also encourage greater access to ports, which should be internationally competitive.
I’m hoping to draw on foreign ideas for the reconstruction of Tohoku’s towns and cities. There is a total of 200 places in Iwate and Fukushima prefectures that need advice. Each town and city should make its own plan with the help of the prefectural and central governments, as well as private-sector specialists. But there are so many affected places that we must think about how to cooperate with international groups.
Physical reconstruction aside, how important are quality-of-life issues?
Clean energy is the most important point. The Fukushima Daiichi accident has sent a message to the Japanese people. Some believe that nuclear energy should be abolished, while others think that it can continue as long as the necessary safety improvements are made. I think the nuclear accident has helped make the change to clean energy more urgent, and people have the desire to do that in the new cities we are planning. The task will be much easier with government support.
Can Japan afford this ambitious reconstruction programme?
I think so. We have no option. To rebuild places as they were would be a waste of time and money. Instead, we need places that can survive and prosper in an increasingly competitive world. One of our council’s guiding principles is that the reconstruction effort and the rebirth of a new Japan should proceed at the same time.
Tohoku is experiencing depopulation and its communities are ageing fast. How can you persuade young people to live there?
The people in that region love their home deeply – the only problem they face is a lack of opportunity. If there are good jobs available they will want to stay there, even the youngsters. Many fishermen are over 60 and about half of them have no successors, so we need to increase outside access to harbours and activities to create jobs, not only for young people in Tohoku, but also for those from all over Japan and the rest of the world.
The priority is to build safe towns, but that alone will not be enough for them to survive. They need industry as well.
Does the government have the political will to open fisheries and agriculture up to competition?
That is what Prime Minister [Naoto] Kan would like to do, but he has not been able to persuade everyone in his government. At the end of last year, the government was trying to come to a decision on free trade, but it has been put off until October because of the tsunami. I hope the government will have the guts to go with it.
Has the public’s perception of the Self-Defence Forces [SDF] changed since the disaster?
After the Kobe earthquake in 1995, the SDF was slow to arrive in the stricken area, but they learned a lesson from that and changed their approach. They are much more proactive now. Only the SDF can save lives under these circumstances. They have done a very good job and people have come to realise that the SDF is a last resort in guaranteeing national security and securing citizens’ safety. Until Kobe, the image of the SDF was rather negative. Afterwards, those affected by the earthquake had a more positive view, and since the recent disaster, that view has become even more widespread.