Annals of Regional and Community Studies
Online ISSN : 2189-6860
Print ISSN : 2189-3918
ISSN-L : 2189-3918
Articles
Disaster Capitalism and Risk Management
Thinking on Hanshin-Awaji Great Earthquake and Great East Japan Earthquake
Nobuhiko IWASAKI
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JOURNAL OPEN ACCESS

2016 Volume 28 Pages 45-60

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Abstract

Twenty years have passed since Hanshin-Awaji Great Earthquake occurred. The results of the restoration projects from the damages are clarified by NHK research conducted in 2014. The author considers the new conception “disaster capitalism” proposed by Nomi Klein’s Shock Doctrine in 2007 is very important. Kobe city government had promoted City Management strategy before and after the Earthquake and it was truly “disaster capitalism”. It brought many scars of the damages and the inadequacy of the restoration through the capitalistic management activities. The Third World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction was held in Sendai in 2015 and the conceptions “disaster risk reduction” and “risk management” have been accentuated . The conception of risk management is based on three factors such as severity of damages, probability of disaster occurrence and cost-and-benefit. Therefore it cannot directly respond to the actual danger of disasters because of the mediational ideas of probability and cost-and-benefit. It also propels government centralization and impedes independent activities of habitants for disaster prevention. Risk society produces many ideological words and assertions such as “public finance should not be applied to individual compensation”, “nuclear power plants are truly safe”, “self-responsibility” and “resilience”. When we refer to Kanto Great Earthquake we find it was followed by tragic wars. The author is afraid that the legislation of military security has been now rapidly promoted by central government after Great East Japan Earthquake.

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© 2016 Japan Association of Regional and Community Studies
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