Protesters rally at Tepco HQ on tsunami anniversary

Anti-nuclear protesters hold a banner reading 'Give us back Fukushima' in front of the headquarter of Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), operator of the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, in Tokyo March 11, 2012, to mark the first anniversary of the earthquake and tsunami that killed thousands and set off a nuclear crisis. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

 

TOKYO (AFP) - Anti-nuclear protesters Sunday gathered in front of the headquarters of Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), operator of the crippled power plant at Fukushima, a year to the day after the tsunami struck.
Some 50 demonstrators chanted slogans demanding all nuclear plants be shut down and the nation's largest utility be broken up.
'Stop all reactors right now!' protesters shouted in unison, punching their fists in the air and banging drums, as several dozen police officers looked on.
'We demand Teoco stop imposing any more burdens on us,' said organiser Manabu Kurihara, 40.
'We will not tolerate the company trying to get away with paying as little compensation money as possible to victims.' Exactly a year ago, a magnitude 9.0 quake sent a massive tsunami into Japan's north-eastern coast, swamping cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, 220km north-east of Tokyo.
Three reactors went into meltdown, spewing radiation into the environment and forcing tens of thousands of residents to evacuate a 20-kilometre (12-mile) no-go zone immediately around the facility.