防災の日 被災地の声を対策に生かそう

The Yomiuri Shimbun September 2, 2013
Better national strategy needed to prepare for major disasters
防災の日　被災地の声を対策に生かそう（9月1日付・読売社説）

　◆緊急事態に備える国家戦略を

Sept. 1 is Disaster Prevention Day. Disaster drills and related events are scheduled around the country. On this occasion, the government should conduct a full review of its antidisaster measures.
　９月１日は、防災の日だ。全国各地で防災訓練や関連行事が予定されている。災害対策を総点検する必要がある。

Reconstruction work from the damage caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake has only been half completed. Torrential rain caused extensive damage in various parts of the country this summer. The government must conduct simulations of various kinds of disasters such as earthquakes, tsunami, torrential rain and volcanic eruptions, and work on measures to minimize damage.
　東日本大震災からの復興は道半ばだ。今夏は記録的な豪雨による被害も各地で相次いだ。地震や津波、豪雨、火山噴火……。様々な事態を想定し、「減災」に取り組まねばならない。

　◆関東大震災から９０年に

Today is the 90th anniversary of Great Kanto Earthquake, which killed 100,000 people.
　きょうは、１０万人もの犠牲者を出した関東大震災からちょうど９０年の節目でもある。

The earthquake occurred shortly before lunchtime, when many families used fire for cooking. The collapse of houses and strong winds spread the flames. Many administrative offices and bridges were razed, obstructing evacuation and rescue efforts. Water supplies were cut, hampering firefighting crews. Fire reportedly killed 90 percent of the victims. This shows the importance of making buildings earthquake-resistant and developing towns where fire cannot spread easily.
　発生時は昼食の少し前で、火を使っていた家庭が少なくなかった。家屋倒壊と強風で火の手が広がった。行政施設や橋も多くが焼失し、避難や救援を妨げた。断水のため、消火活動も遅れた。
　犠牲者の９割が火災で亡くなったという。建造物の耐震化と、火災が起きても容易に延焼しない街づくりの大切さを物語る。

Nonetheless, urban areas still have many districts where wooden houses are clustered together. The alleys in some areas are too narrow for fire trucks to enter.
　だが、いまだに都市部に木造住宅の密集地が多い。路地が狭く、消防車が入れない地区もある。

Japan needs resilience

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Cabinet has established an office under the Cabinet Secretariat tasked with making the nation more resilient through planning and coordinating measures to prevent or reduce damage from disasters. The Cabinet wants to have a bill passed through the next Diet session on a basic law to make Japan more resilient against disasters.
　安倍内閣は、内閣官房に「国土強靱(きょうじん)化推進室」を設け、防災・減災策の立案や調整をしている。国土強靱化基本法案も次期国会で成立を図る方針だ。

The Cabinet is also scheduled to draw up a bill on special measures to deal with a possible huge quake with a focus directly under the Tokyo metropolitan area and a massive Nankai Trough earthquake that could affect a very wide area ranging from Shizuoka Prefecture to Kyushu. We expect the Diet to enact them as soon as possible.
　首都直下地震と、静岡県沖から九州までを襲う南海トラフ巨大地震については、特別措置法を制定し、対策を特に充実させる予定だ。立法を急いでもらいたい。

What would make local communities more resilient against disasters? It is important to plan countermeasures to help people unable to return home from work or school if a disaster paralyzes public transportation systems. As many as 5 million people were stranded in the metropolitan area when the Great East Japan Earthquake struck in March 2011.
　災害に強い街をどう作るか。東日本大震災の際、首都圏で５００万人に上った帰宅困難者対策も重要だ。

The government must work on effective countermeasures, rather than throw a lot of money around on public works projects. In this regard, it is essential for the central government to coordinate actions with local governments and private companies.
政府は、公共事業のバラマキにならぬよう、効率的に対策を講じねばなるまい。自治体や民間事業者との連携も欠かせない。

Bigger role for govt
　◆国の役割強めた災対法

The Disaster Countermeasures Basic Law, the basis for other laws on natural disasters, stipulates that municipal governments are primarily responsible for disaster preparedness in areas under their jurisdiction. Municipal governments are assisted by prefectural governments that are supported by the central government, according to the basic law. However, this system failed to function after the Great East Japan Earthquake devastated municipalities over a wide area.
　災害法制の根幹である災害対策基本法（災対法）は、災害対策の一義的な責務は市町村にあると規定している。都道府県は市町村を支援し、国がさらに補う。広範囲に市町村が壊滅した東日本大震災では機能しない構造だった。

After the March 2011 earthquake, the government revised the basic law twice, mainly to enhance the central government’s role. According to the revisions, the central government would take emergency measures instead of municipal governments if the local governments were unable to function after a major disaster. The central and prefectural governments also would be able to supply relief materials to victims in disaster-hit municipalities without waiting for requests from municipal governments.
　政府は大震災後、災対法を２度改正した。ポイントは国の役割を強めたことにある。市町村が機能しない場合、国が応急措置を代行する。国や都道府県は、被災自治体の要請を待たずに、独自の判断で救援物資を供給できる。

The revisions have also enhanced evacuation measures in case of a disaster. Municipal governments are obliged to make lists of residents needing assistance when forced to evacuate by collecting personal information on the aged, disabled and other people considered vulnerable in a disaster.
　災害時の避難対策も強化した。市町村に対し、高齢者、障害者など災害弱者の個人情報を集めた「避難行動要支援者名簿」の作成を義務づけた。

Even though such lists have been drawn up, their effectiveness has been questioned because the ratio of those disaster-susceptible people who have been listed compared with the total is often low.
　名簿は、作成されていても名前の掲載率が低いなど、有効性に疑問符がついていた。

This is due mainly to the tendency of local entities to overemphasize the Personal Information Protection Law, under which listing the names of individuals is supposed to require their consent. Instead of sticking rigidly to the law’s provisions, local governments should place priority on drawing up lists that are useful at times of emergency.
自治体が名簿掲載に本人同意を求める個人情報保護条例を配慮し過ぎるからだ。緊急時に役立つ名簿にしたい。

The Disaster Relief Law, meanwhile, calls for prefectural governments to abide by the “principle of in-kind benefits,” under which disaster victims are to be provided with such facilities as evacuation centers and temporary housing.
　一方、災害救助法には、都道府県が避難所、仮設住宅などを提供する「現物給付の原則」がある。

In disaster-struck regions, however, this principle has been criticized because it is a major impediment to local governments in their efforts to make use of housing units rented from the private sector as “equivalent temporary housing.”
被災地では、民間から借り上げた「みなし仮設」住宅を活用するうえで、この原則こそが障害になっているとの不満が強い。

Since this includes houses or apartments rented by the victims, administrative procedures concerning their eligibility under the in-kind benefit principle are cumbersome and complex, as they include the need to have the rental agreements concluded afresh in the name of the local governments concerned. This principle should be flexibly implemented.
　みなし仮設の対象には独力で住宅を借りた場合も含まれるが、契約を結び直すなど、行政手続きは煩雑だ。運用を柔軟にすることにも配慮すべきだろう。

Studies should also be made in response to wishes from disaster-hit areas to make it easier to obtain certification of disaster victims and approve government cash assistance to rehabilitate their livelihoods.
　被災地の要望を踏まえ、罹災(りさい)判定、生活再建支援金といった支援制度が使いやすくなるよう見直してほしい。

Are these arrangements under existing laws sufficient for the government to cope promptly and effectively when an immense disaster occurs?
　こうした現行法の枠組みだけで、未曽有の巨大災害にも、政府は迅速かつ的確に対処できるのだろうか。

Compiling its final report in July last year, the government council for the promotion of antidisaster measures said additional steps must be worked out “to ensure the country’s existence as a state.”
　政府の防災対策推進検討会議は昨年７月、「国家として存立していくための対策が不可欠」とする最終報告書をまとめた。

The antidisaster basic law allows the prime minister to declare a state of emergency after a disaster. The issuance of this declaration is limited to when the Diet is in recess, while issuance of emergency ordinances following the declaration is restricted to such things as the rationing of daily necessities and controlling commodity prices.
　災対法には、首相が「災害緊急事態」を布告できるとの規定がある。国会閉会中などに限られ、緊急政令も生活必需物資の配給や物価統制などに限定されている。

The council’s report also referred to the need to expand emergency measures for such purposes as protecting commuters unable to return home and ensure public order in the aftermath of a massive earthquake. In addition, the panel urged the government to make preparations in case the Diet was unable to function after a powerful earthquake beneath the capital.
　報告書は、帰宅困難者対策や治安維持にも緊急措置を拡大することの必要性に言及した。首都直下地震で国会が動かない状況下での対応も検討を促している。

The revisions of the law, however, failed to change its provisions in these respects. It is possible that Diet debate may have been avoided because such attempts may infringe the Constitution.
　だが、この点での改正は見送られた。憲法に抵触しかねない、と議論を避けた面は否めない。

Prepare for crises
　◆未曽有の危機想定して

By placing top priority on human lives, it goes without saying a bare minimum of restrictions should be placed on the freedom of habitation and movement as well as on other fundamental human rights, such as owning property.
　人命救助を最優先するには、居住や移転の自由、財産権など基本的人権を一時的に必要最小限の範囲で制限することはあり得る。

Most foreign countries have “emergency situation articles” in their constitutions that lay down what a government should do in response to an emergency.
　ほとんどの国の憲法が「緊急事態条項」を備え、国の対処を規定している。

The Constitution must be revised in this respect. If amending the Constitution is considered impractical because it is time-consuming, legislation of an “emergency situation basic law,” which was once discussed by the Liberal Democratic Party, New Komeito and the Democratic Party of Japan, should be taken up again.
やはり、憲法改正が必要だ。時間がかかるというなら、かつて自民、公明、民主の３党が議論した「緊急事態基本法」の制定を再検討すべきではないか。

The situation in which government is slow to respond in taking necessary measures every time a disaster occurs must end.
　災害のたびに対応が後手に回る事態を繰り返してはならない。

It is essential to thoroughly review the nation’s antidisaster legal system as an integral part of the country’s national strategy.
国家戦略の観点からも、災害法制のあり方を見直すことが肝要だ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 1, 2013)
（2013年9月1日01時56分  読売新聞）