March 2012 Conference on Nuclear Power

People’s Energy Forum: Nuclear Power: an Obstacle to Renewables and Sustainability? Organized by Globalization Monitor, Hong Kong Society for the Study of Nuclear Radiation, Siu Lek Yuen-Yuen Chau Kok Environment Concern Group, C in C Learning Centre Co-organized with The Department of Applied Social Sciences Centre for Social Policy Studies at HKPolyU and Justice and Social Concern Committee of Hong Kong Christian Council. Date: 9th March 2014 Time: 1:30pm-6:30pm Venue: Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Y301)

A series of activities has been organized in March 2013 to mark the second anniversary of the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster. Please join us to find out what is happening in Fukushima 2 years after the accident and discuss the lessons we have learnt.

The new draft National Water Policy (NWP) circulated by the Ministry of Water Resources to water experts suggests that the government is poised to withdraw from its responsibilities of water service delivery, and that multinational corporations and financial institutions might have too big a say in water allocation and policy.

However, a closer look shows that some important points are missing. To begin with, water is not articulated strongly enough as a fundamental human right in this draft. This is despite India voting in favour of the United Nations General Assembly resolution on Right to Water, in 2010. But there are various suggestions to institutionalise the treatment of water as an economic good. In addition, the draft NWP proposes to limit the role for government in public services. When in other parts of the world water services are being brought back into public realm due to negative experiences with private sector water provision, this policy suggests that the government should function simply as a service facilitator, and that service delivery should be handed over to local communities or the private sector.

On this the first anniversary of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster questions remain to be adequately and correctly answered on: is life in Japan back to normal? What lessons were learnt about the hugely funded nuclear industry? What do we really know about radiation and nuclear energy, what impacts do these have on our lives?

A year on from the Fukushima disaster, is life in Japan back to normal? What lessons have we learnt about the massive nuclear industry? What do we really know about radiation and nuclear energy? What impacts do they have on our lives?