Electricity & Politics summer 2012 (2)

On Monday 16, Marine Day, a public holiday - unless you work in  some higher education institutions or the retail sector - anti nuclear protesters organised a major rally in Yoyogi Park.  I got there for the tail end of it. I had classes until 2.30 and had planned to go after that, but I'd left my hat at home and would burn to a crisp faster than you can say nuclear reactor...so delayed getting there until almost 4.The pictures are from the footbridges - it was very windy & I was doing my utmost not to have the ipad blow off...

Saikadou hantai - we oppose the restart, Genpatsu iranai - We don't need nuclear power.

 
The anti nuclear protesters march out of Yoyogi down Omotesando
with the park & stadium in the background

Marching down Omotesando. Protesters are kept to the far left
to disturb traffic as minimally as possible.

It was hot day, not for the faint hearted.

There are often breaks in the marchers - the reason for it is that
police hold marchers back at the traffic lights which is good for
traffic flow but not so good for unity of the march.
There is no civil disobedience in the marching - everything is
very orderly, in total compliance with the law & the wishes of the
police - even when the requests seem intentionally obtuse.

Just as well Tokyo has no real crime...

The very last of  the protesters march down Omotesando

The police giving orders.

Police keep protesters on a very tight leash

Lazy lazy journalism. Two journalists talking to two police on the
footbridge betwen the stadium and the station. The police had out
their notebooks and the journalists copied it down verbatim.
According to one of my professors at Sophia, it is customary
for police to feed news stories to the media, particularly ones
with salacious or gory details. A win win situation - police get their
version of events out, the journos don't have to do any work...
win win unless you factor in the public and democratic principles.
I had dinner with a friend  the other day who occasionally mixes
with serious bigwigs in Japan, and he summed it up well: "at the top
they're all drinking buddies."
..