The Lessons of the Great Tohoku Earthquake and Its Effects on Japan’s Economy (Part 2)

Making Use of Juki Net to Provide Rapid Information about Citizens’ Wellbeing

April 18, 2011 (Monday)

The Great Tohoku Earthquake, which occurred on March 11, was of a magnitude that exceeded all imagination in terms of the size and range of the earthquake itself and the number of aftershocks. The scope of the damage wrought by the earthquake increases as the days pass. As of March 22, deaths and missing persons are reported at over 21,000, and refugees from the area affected by the nuclear power plant number more than 31,000.

The first concern of people in the disaster-stricken area must be to preserve their own lives. However, their second concern is to maintain their safety and way of life, and also to confirm the wellbeing of their families and relatives.

1. Information about Citizens’ Wellbeing Provided from the Private Sector

For refugees, remaining uncertain about the wellbeing of family and relatives can be very emotionally taxing. Also, it is unbearable for those who are worried about relatives who live in the affected area not to know what has become of them.

In answer to people’s concerns, Google set up “Person Finder: Great Tohoku Earthquake 2011,” which provides the functions “I’m looking for someone” and “I have information about someone”; there are already over 400,000 posts (as of March 22). Also, in cooperation with the Japanese Red Cross Society, the International Committee of the Red Cross has set up “Family Link Network,” which allows people to search a list of names and register on an “unharmed” list or a “seeking” list. Because these sites have been translated into six different languages, it is safe to assume that many people in foreign countries are using them as well. Other kinds of support through the providing of information are spreading as well, such as disaster message boards for cell phones, gathering information through Twitter, and refugee center registries.

This wide-ranging support from the private sector is most uplifting and will no doubt bring great hope during the rebuilding to come. However, as people begin to return to their everyday lives after the disaster, they will likely want more accurate information, and the government should be prepared for this. Of course, it is unavoidable that the government’s first priority will be maintaining the safety and way of life of the citizens, and that developing an information system of citizens’ wellbeing and whereabouts will take a back seat. It would be fortunate, however, if this proposal were remembered when the time comes to discuss such an information system.

2. Making Use of Prefectures’ Juki Net Information

After most normal disasters, city halls and town halls, which have disaster prevention features, would still be functioning, and, in accordance with the rules of the Act on the Protection of Personal Information Held by Government Bodies, article 8, paragraph 2, item 4 (copied below), these institutions should be able to use the information about citizens that they hold to compile information on people’s safety and wellbeing and provide it to those who require it.

Act on the Protection of Personal Information Held by Government Bodies

(Limitations on Use and Provision)

Article 8 (1) Unless otherwise decreed by law, the head of a government body must not use or provide the personal information which that government body possesses for purposes other than the purpose of utilization.

(2) Regardless of the rule in the previous clause, if the head of a government body recognizes that any of the following items is applicable, he/she may use or provide the personal information which that government body possesses for purposes other than the purpose of utilization. However, this provision will not apply in cases where it is recognized that there is the danger of unfairly harming the rights or interests of the owner of the information or a third person through the use or provision of the personal information that body possesses for purposes other than the purpose of utilization.

(Omitted)

(iv) Cases other than those cases raised in the previous item (iii) are: when providing personal information for the sole purpose of compiling statistics or academic study; when providing personal information to someone other than the owner of the information is clearly to the benefit of the owner; when there is some other special reason for providing the personal information.

However, the tsunamis which followed the recent great earthquake caused damage to some of the city halls and town halls themselves, and it may be impossible to make use of the citizens’ information held in cities, towns, and villages. In this case, we might be able to use the Juki Net information which a prefecture manages for its cities, towns, and villages. This is because the prefecture maintains up-to-date information (name, address, date of birth, and gender) about the citizens of its cities, towns, and villages on its Juki Net server.

There is one problem, however. According to a Supreme Court decision, the protection rule of the Basic Resident Registration Law is interpreted as taking precedence over the Act on the Protection of Personal Information Held by Government Bodies, and the prefecture cannot use the former to allow itself to use the information on its Juki Net server. If there is any possibility at all, it lies in the Basic Resident Registration Law’s article 30-8, item 2, “Discharging official work as determined by regulation.” For example, in prefectures with cities and towns which have been damaged by a disaster, why not immediately create some special regulation, such as a time limit, that would allow us to make use of Juki Net information to protect the safety and way of life of citizens in that prefecture?

Basic Resident Registration Law

(Use of Identification Information in the Prefectures of Japan)

Article 30-8 (1) A prefectural governor may use identification information within its retention period in any of the following applicable cases:

(i) When discharging official work as listed in Table 5;

(ii) When discharging official work as determined by regulation;

(iii) When discharging official work after gaining permission from the owner to use the information;

(iv) When compiling statistical documents.

3. Making Use of Juki Net Information

Juki Net has been criticized much in the past for being an invasion of privacy. However, it is unlikely to be criticized for infringement of rights when there is the clear goal of providing information about people’s wellbeing during a great disaster and if the information is tweaked so as not to show a person’s date of birth but rather their age as of January 1 and to not display their address beyond the block number.

If we were able to organize and transmit information about the wellbeing of every citizen and where they had taken refuge, it would provide great emotional support for the refugees and those who are worried about them, as well as become a source of energy for people in the future.

In terms of technology, because Juki Net data include kanji (Chinese characters) that normal computers cannot handle, there would be problems with displaying these kanji on computers. In which case, for the time being we might express these kanji orally and replace them in the database with a similar kanji at a later date. Until then, this problem could be dealt with by having those with such kanji in their names use the Japanese syllabary (alphabet) instead.

Over the coming weeks and months, there will likely be many people who will change evacuation centers, return to their homes, or go to live with relatives. Unfortunately, there are those who will pass away at evacuation centers as well. Furthermore, we must think about how much temporary housing is necessary, and also about the appropriate volume and type of support supplies to be distributed to evacuation centers. It is necessary to develop an information system of citizens’ wellbeing and whereabouts for these purposes as well.