The nuclear crisis and Japan’s government
The response of Japan’s government to its multiple unfolding disasters has been better than its past performance in moments of crisis, but the country’s political leaders still have a long way to go to manage events well and win public confidence, MIT experts said in a public forum on Wednesday evening. “As best as I can tell, people have been reasonably straightforward in revealing what is going on,” said Kenneth Oye, an associate professor of political science who was in Japan during Friday’s earthquake and for a few days afterward. However, he noted, in the past Japan has had “a culture and a system that has often valued secrecy and covered up problems,” which has proven problematic in significant ways relating to the current crisis. While the ongoing problems with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remain extremely serious, in its overall emergency response for people affected by Friday’s earthquake...