Male,Age: 72,Unemployed Nishikasugai County, Aichi
Prefecture
The local governments in the disaster-stricken area seem to be paying a little more attention to the evacuees outside Hyogo prefecture than before. But we still cannot return home even though we want to. Such a circumstance has not changed and it shows no sign of improvement. Since this “Paper plane” project appeared in the national paper, a lot of messages of encouragement have been sent and I have read them. I was moved by them as I could find people in the world who were still taking the earthquake victims to heart, while memories of the Earthquake are wearing thin with time.
However no message made any mention of the evacuees who were obliged to leave Hyogo and still have to live there, and it makes me sad. Recently “the earthquake victims” reported in the media seems to mean only those in temporary housing units.
Our appeal for those who live outside Hyogo Pref. has not been reached the public and been taken notice of.
In the near future, the temporary housing units will be dissolved and “the Declaration of the Recovery” will follow it. There is no guarantee that our hope of homecoming will be fulfilled by the time that event comes.
I’m afraid that the evacuees outside the prefecture will end up fading from people’s memories before the Earthquake comes to a real end for us.
(April 3,1998)
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