ブックタイトル人道ジャーナル第3号

概要

人道ジャーナル第3号

The Journal of Humanitarian Studies Vol. 3, 2014DISPLACEMENT AND OLDER PEOPLE:THE CASE OF THE GREAT EAST JAPANEARTHQUAKENahoko OKAMOTO 1 , Chieko GREINER 1 , Godfred PAUL 2 , Marcus SKINNER 3 , Ayaka SOBU 4 ,ShihokoFUJIMURA 4 ,Hidenori HASHI 5 ,Yoshiko TSUKADA 6 ,Hiroshi HIGASHIURA 1&61］OLDER PEOPLE IN THE GREAT EAST JAPAN EARTHQUAKEJapan has the world’s highest proportion of older people. While the overall population of Japan is expected todecline due to low fertility rates, the proportion of older people is projected to increase significantly. In 1989,only 11.6% of the population was 65 years and older, yet it is estimated that by 2030, a staggering 32% of thepopulation will be over 65, rising to 40% by 2050. This change is happening faster than in any other country inthe world, and, as in other countries in the region, is characterized by‘feminisation of ageing’with growingnumbers of women outliving men. Due to changes in family care practices and urban migration, many olderpeople, particularly older women, increasingly live alone.On 11 March 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake（GEJE）struck off the Sanriku coast of northern Japan.Measuring 9 on the Richter scale the earthquake caused one of the most devastating tsunamis in recorded history,with the most severe consequences in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures. The wave affected 561 sq km ofJapan’s coastline, killing 15,883 people, destroying over 126,600 houses, and damaging the nuclear reactor atFukushima ? the worst nuclear accident since Chenobyl. Combined with the nuclear accident, a total of 470,000people were initially displaced, and 8,000,000 houses lost power paralyzing basic communication andinfrastructure systems in the region.The crisis was significant not only due to the combination of the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear power plantfailure; but also because it occurred in a country experiencing a rapid increase in the numbers of older people, anddeclining numbers of young people, creating new challenges for disaster relief and reconstruction efforts. Theimpact of the GEJE on the older population cannot be ignored; 56.35% of those who lost their lives, and 89.1% ofdisaster-related deaths were among those aged 65 years and over.（1）123456Japanese Red Cross College of NursingEast Asia/Pacific Regional Development Centre, HelpAge International, Chiang Mai, ThailandOffice of Humanitarian Policy, HelpAge International, London, UKIwate Prefectural University, Iwate, JapanJapanese Red Cross Akita College of Nursing, Akita, JapanThe Japanese Red Cross Institute for Humanitarian Studies, Japanese Red Cross Academy, Tokyo, Japan86人道研究ジャーナルVol. 3, 2014