Work and Proposals by National Federation of Organization for the Disabled Persons

National Federation of Organization for the Disabled Persons

Response to the Great East Japan Earthquake

National Federation of Organization for the Disabled Persons (Nissinren) is a federation of sixty-four organizations of persons with physical disabilities, including prefectures and designated cities, and each member organization has local branches in municipalities. In collaboration with the Disaster Area Special Response Headquarters (headed by Tohoku/Hokkaido Block Representative and Aomori-ken Shintaishogaitsha Fukushidantai Rengokai (Aomori Prefectural Association) Chairperson of the Board Tamotsu Maeda and established within the Secretariat of the Sendai-city Welfare Association For the Disabled on March 18), the Nissinren Great East Japan Earthquake Special Response Headquarters (headed by Nisshinren President Eiichi Ogawa and established within the Nisshinren Secretariat on March 17) worked to collect information on the disaster area, conduct surveys of the disaster area and member organizations regarding support, needs, etc., providing support for rebuilding member organizations and branch organizations affected by the disaster, making requests related to issues such as concrete emergency and medium- and long-term support measures to various entities including the government and political parties, and partnering with the Japan Disability Forum (JDF).

The unprecedented large disaster caused heavy damage to the member organizations and branch organizations in the disaster area, and shortages of information and daily life goods increased the chaos. Many of the members of member organizations were not provided with support or contacted by entities such as welfare facilities since they did not receive welfare services, and some of the members were happy that they were connected to the organization. However, only a small portion of persons with disabilities who live at home belong to a related organization. Many such persons with disabilities living at home have few connections with professional/organizational support, and were unable to obtain required daily goods and foods, which caused great concern and confusion during evacuation. Nissinren would like to broaden its members' connections.

Efforts based on collaboration between Nissinren and member organizations

Through the coordination of the Great East Japan Earthquake Special Response Headquarters, member organizations affected by the disaster helped JDF launch support centers and played a role in developing connections and trust between local organizations and local governments affected by the disaster.

On March 23, a meeting was held in Sendai-shi, Miyagi, to exchange opinions between JDF executive board members and local disability organizations and the Miyagi Mutual Support Network for Persons with Disabilities Affected by the Disaster was launched as a loose network of disability organizations in the prefecture (the network initially consisted for seventeen organizations). One week later, the JDF Miyagi Support Center was established and undertook various activities including conducting surveys on the condition of facilities for persons with disabilities after the disaster, cleaning homes that had been flooded, and procuring and delivering goods for daily life and welfare items. The Miyagi Mutual Support Network for Persons with Disabilities Affected by the Disaster repeatedly exchanged opinions with several entities including JDF Miyagi Support Center, Association for Aid and Relief, Japan, and government organizations. The network that originally had less than twenty members grew to more than sixty.

After that, with the cooperation of local Nissinren member organizations, JDF support centers were established in both Fukushima and Iwate. Representatives of each member organization remained involved as representatives and deputy representatives of JDF support centers. This report does not include a detailed discussion of JDF support activities as they are covered in a different report.

In cooperation with the Disaster Area Special Response Headquarters, the Great East Japan Earthquake Special Response Headquarters inspected the disaster area, held meetings with entities such as disability organizations, strived to collect information, and provided necessary support and submitted requests to entities such as the central government. In addition, the headquarters accepted and distributed both donations (29,638,000 yen) and goods collected from entities such as member organizations throughout Japan and worked on numerous issues, including rebuilding the lives of persons with disabilities and supporting the revitalization of disability organizations.

The headquarters also promoted disaster response measures for persons with disabilities throughout Japan by dispatching representatives of disability organizations in the disaster area to ten areas throughout Japan and educating people about various issues such as current conditions of persons with disabilities in the disaster area and the role of disability organizations during emergencies.

At the Fifty-sixth Japan Convention on the Welfare of Persons with Physical Disabilities (held in Toyama in May 2011), the theme of the event was quickly changed to “reconstruction in unity with all our friends.” During policy discussions, which revolved around the topic of “persons with disabilities and the disaster,” member organizations that had been affected by the earthquake gave reports on current conditions in the area, and discussions were held regarding several issues including problems with support activities undertaken with government bodies. Furthermore, efforts were made to expand the scope of organizations taking part in activities by calling on support for reconstruction, including holding not only exhibitions of products produced at welfare facilities for persons with disabilities in the disaster area (the products were available for sale at the exhibition) but also fundraising drives, and at the Fifty-seventh Japan Convention on the Welfare of Persons with Physical Disabilities (held in Saitama in May 2012), there was a program for support for the disaster area.

Activities of member organizations affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake

Staff of member organizations affected by the disaster visited their branch organizations on the coast that were hit by the disaster and worked to ascertain the conditions of persons with disabilities after the disaster, confirm their safety, and provide support to them. One example of this was a member organization working with the prefectural social welfare council to transport goods and to distribute various items including emergency packs, fire extinguishers, medical masks, food, and clothing to persons with disabilities affected by the disaster through the branch organizations. In addition, measures were taken to protect persons with disabilities affected by the disaster from the cold, including distributing reflective heaters, heaters with fans, electrical kotatsu (tables with built-in-heaters), electrical carpets, etc., and activities are continuing to be undertaken to monitor and promote social interactions among those affected by the earthquake and living at home or in temporary housing.

Furthermore, after fukushi emergency shelters opened, member organizations who had struggle with an insufficient number of staff received help in the form of staff from various entities including other member organizations and Nissinren. Member organizations that had concluded emergency mutual support agreements designated some of their vehicles emergency vehicles and worked to deliver necessary supplies, food, and other items to the various facilities including fukushi emergency shelters. Fukushi shelters were also opened in facilities for persons with physical disabilities operated by these organizations, and they accepted persons with disabilities, such as those who have a difficult time controlling their body temperature. For various reasons such as collaboration among Nissinren members having supported activities of member organizations in the disaster area, Nissinren would like to promote collaboration among member organizations.

Issues that came to light since directly after the disaster

It was determined that the mortality rate for persons with disabilities is more than double that of the general population, and this once again brings into question evacuation support measures for persons with disabilities, those vulnerable to disasters. There is a need to not only get more people to register for assistance when there is a disaster (an insufficient number registered before the Great East Japan Earthquake) but also to expand the system. On account of insufficient understanding of disabilities, persons with disabilities found it difficult to live in general emergency shelters, and many returned to their own homes that were damaged in the disaster or moved between the homes of relatives. It is important to increase people's understanding of disabilities.

Because users of welfare services have links to those facilities, they were able to receive support to a certain extent, but persons with disabilities living at home, with no connection to facilities, received very limited support as the social environment had collapsed and they were unable to live where they were used to living. Considering that many members of Nissinren member organizations are people who live at home and do not receive welfare services, there is a strong awareness of the importance of expanding the network of connections with the local community. There is a need for collaboration with neighborhood associations, regional social welfare councils, and Minsei-iin/Jido-iin community and child welfare volunteer committees.

Some member organizations strived to participate in disaster prevention training and training/registering of specialist volunteers for emergencies, which was effective for mitigating damage from a disaster to a certain extent. Some organizations also continued to release material including Daily-life Support Information for Those Affected by the Disaster, issued by local governments' disaster response headquarters, as special issues of the organization's newsletter in various formats including print, braille, audio, and email to meet the needs of members. It is also important to examine and analyze other good examples of activities, etc., and get them adopted as regular activities of member organizations.

After the earthquake, efforts were made to confirm the safety of organization members, but there were many situations when it was impossible to do so because the list of branch association members had been washed away. Even though inquiries were submitted to the government, it was impossible to obtain information on people who had a certificate for persons with disabilities. Protecting personal information acted as an obstacle to providing required support. It is important to fully discuss and examine the handling of personal information in the future.

Toward the future

The life of people affected by the disaster changed dramatically as time passed. They continue to live in temporary housing and privately-rented temporary housing. Many persons with disabilities use privately-rented temporary housing, but there is the danger that these people will remain unknown and become more isolated because of efforts to protect personal information. In addition, many persons with disabilities living in temporary housing and privately-rented temporary housing have to overcome many difficulties in their daily life because of barriers in the homes and insufficient access to medical facilities, etc. There is a need to not only improve the system but also operate it in a flexible manner.

There is concern that as the links between people affected by the disaster and society are restored, persons with disabilities and the elderly will be left behind. There must be a diverse choice of support options so that persons with disabilities do not become isolated and can participate in the local community through health maintenance activities, education, and work. There is also a need to build a mechanism for helping people move into barrier-free public housing for people affected by the disaster and making it possible for persons with disabilities and the elderly to live full lives as members of the local community, not isolating them in public housing for people affected by the disaster that is away from the local community.

Nissinren is an organization of persons with disabilities living at home in local communities with connections to local residents. It is important to continue to foster mutual understanding among entities such as local private organizations and to work to build a society in which there are no people isolated and persons with disabilities and the elderly are not left behind. There is also a need for activities to ensure that the gaps do not develop between persons with disabilities and between the various areas affected by the disaster.

It has been reported that on account of the Great East Japan Earthquake, people became aware of the importance of the bonds between people, mutual support, and trust, and it is important that this awareness take root throughout Japan, not quickly disappear. Furthermore, in regard to future disasters, it is important that persons with disabilities become active in raising people's awareness of disaster prevention and mitigation while increasing people's understanding of disabilities and persons with disabilities. Nissinren has a major role to promote these efforts.