Minamata di Jepang pada tahun 1956/ Minamata in Japan in 1956 FOR GENERAL HISTORY
Minamata di Jepang pada tahun 1956
(Sumber: Asia/ Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO. Asian/ Pacific Co publication Programe. Air di Negara Asia Psifik. Ekologi.)
Di suatu daerah di Jepang, telah terjadi hal aneh. Mendadak saja, kucing terjun menari gila dan banyak ditemukan burung air yang terjun menancapkan paruhnya dalam air. Namun, air laut itu pernah indah indah dan tenang telah berubah, bahkan jauh sebelum ini.
Sebelumnya, lautan itu penuh ikan. Namun, ikan laut, ikan sarden, gurita dan ikan bandeng segera menjadi langka dan ikan pun musnah. Hanya dalam beberapa tahun hasil tangkapan ikan menurun hingga seperlimanya.
Tempat itu adalah Minamata, wilayah Kumamoto di Jepang. Kota itu dilanda penyakit yang dikenal sebagai penyakit Minamata, yang disebabkan oleh racun merkuri dari kota itu sendiri. Semula, orang hanya bingun melihat binatang bertingkah laku ganjil tetapi ketika gejala yang sama dialami pula oleh manusia, tiap orang mulai panic. Lengan dan kaki mereka menjadi mati rasa dan mereka tidak dapat berhenti bergerak. Para penderita lalu menjadi buta dan lumpuh. Mereka mati dengan kesakitan yang mendalam, sesudah tiba-tiba saja mengeluarkan jeritan. Penyakit ini cepat menyebar di sepanjang pantai. Bayi yang baru lahir mengalami cacat. Dokter kota tidak mampu menentukan penyebabnya sehingga mereka memperlalukan sebagai ‘penyakit aneh’.
Hanya ada satu penyebab dari kucing gila, burung yang mati, dan manusia yang menderita oleh penyakit aneh itu. Yaitu, keracunan merkuri dari limbah industry yang dibuang oleh sebuah pabrik di Minamata. Limbah merkuri yang dibuang dalam jumlah banyak kedalam laut ini larud dalam air laut. Kemudian, diserap oleh phytoplankton yang dikonsumsi oleh zooplankton. Selanjutnya, zooplankton dimakan oleh ikan dan merkuri menjadi bagian dari rantai makanan. Manusia, kucing, an burung yang memakan ikan itu ikut keracunan merkuri.
Sebenarnya, dari gejala awal, rumah sakit pabrik itu tahu bahwa penyakit tersebut disebabkan oleh limbah industry. Namun, dengan semampunya, mereka menyembunyikan kenyataan itu karena takut adanya akibat yang merugikan usaha pabrik mereka serta akan menghambat pemulihan ekonomi pasca Perang Asia Timur Raya (Perang Dunia Kedua di Asia).
Sebagai akibatnya, barulah sampai tahun 1968, yaitu 12 tahun setelah penemuan penyakit aneh ini, pemerintah mengaku bahwa penyakit tersebut disebabkan oleh buangan merkuri pabrik. Para korban telah menggugat, tidak hanya perusahaan yang bersangkutan tetapi juga pemerintah. Sayangnya, proses gugatan berlangsung sangat lama sementara para korban pun telah menjadi tua.
Barulah sampai tahun 1996 akhirnya pemerintah meminta maaf kepada korban dan pembayaran ganti rugi diberlakukan.
Meski demikian, ribuan pasien Minamata tidak pernah dapat kembali ke kehidupan yang sama seperti sebelumnya, hidup dekat lautan yang bersih dan indah.
IN ENGLISH (with google translate Indonesian-english):
Minamata in Japan in 1956
(Source: Asia / Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO. Asian / Pacific Co. publication programe. Water in the Pacific Asian countries. Ecology.)
In a region in Japan, there have been strange things. Suddenly, the cat crazy dancing waterfalls and abundant water birds stick their beaks in the water falls. However, the sea water had been beautifully landscaped and quiet has changed, even before this.
Previously, the sea was full of fish. However, marine fish, sardines, octopus and sea bass soon became scarce and fish disappeared.Only in recent years catches dropped to fifth.
That place is Minamata, Kumamoto, Japan region. The city was hit by a disease known as Minamata disease, caused by the toxic mercury from the city itself. At first, people just bingun see animals behaving odd but when the same symptoms also experienced by humans, everyone started to panic. Their arms and legs become numb and they can not stop moving. The patient then became blind and paralyzed. They die with deep pain, after suddenly issued a scream. The disease is rapidly spreading along the coast.Newborns disability. Town doctor was unable to determine the cause so they memperlalukan as 'strange disease'.
There is only one cause of the crazy cat, dead birds, and humans are afflicted by a strange sickness that. Namely, mercury poisoning from industrial waste dumped by a factory in Minamata. Mercury waste dumped into the sea in large quantities is larud in seawater.Then, absorbed by phytoplankton is consumed by zooplankton.Furthermore, zooplankton eaten by fish and mercury to be part of the food chain. Humans, cats, birds that eat fish an it take mercury poisoning.
Actually, from the beginning of symptoms, hospital plant know that the disease is caused by the waste industry. However, with his best, they hide the fact that because of fear of adverse effects of their factories and businesses will hamper the economic recovery after the Great East Asia War (World War II in Asia).
As a result, only then until 1968, which is 12 years after the discovery of this strange disease, the government claimed that the disease was caused by mercury waste plant. The victim has sued, not only companies but also the government concerned.Unfortunately, the lawsuit last a very long time while the victim had become too old.
It was only until 1996 the government finally apologized to the victims and the payment of compensation applied.
However, thousands of Minamata patients may never return to the same life as before, living close to the sea is clean and beautiful.
(Source: Asia / Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO. Asian / Pacific Co. publication programe. Water in the Pacific Asian countries. Ecology.)
In a region in Japan, there have been strange things. Suddenly, the cat crazy dancing waterfalls and abundant water birds stick their beaks in the water falls. However, the sea water had been beautifully landscaped and quiet has changed, even before this.
Previously, the sea was full of fish. However, marine fish, sardines, octopus and sea bass soon became scarce and fish disappeared.Only in recent years catches dropped to fifth.
That place is Minamata, Kumamoto, Japan region. The city was hit by a disease known as Minamata disease, caused by the toxic mercury from the city itself. At first, people just bingun see animals behaving odd but when the same symptoms also experienced by humans, everyone started to panic. Their arms and legs become numb and they can not stop moving. The patient then became blind and paralyzed. They die with deep pain, after suddenly issued a scream. The disease is rapidly spreading along the coast.Newborns disability. Town doctor was unable to determine the cause so they memperlalukan as 'strange disease'.
There is only one cause of the crazy cat, dead birds, and humans are afflicted by a strange sickness that. Namely, mercury poisoning from industrial waste dumped by a factory in Minamata. Mercury waste dumped into the sea in large quantities is larud in seawater.Then, absorbed by phytoplankton is consumed by zooplankton.Furthermore, zooplankton eaten by fish and mercury to be part of the food chain. Humans, cats, birds that eat fish an it take mercury poisoning.
Actually, from the beginning of symptoms, hospital plant know that the disease is caused by the waste industry. However, with his best, they hide the fact that because of fear of adverse effects of their factories and businesses will hamper the economic recovery after the Great East Asia War (World War II in Asia).
As a result, only then until 1968, which is 12 years after the discovery of this strange disease, the government claimed that the disease was caused by mercury waste plant. The victim has sued, not only companies but also the government concerned.Unfortunately, the lawsuit last a very long time while the victim had become too old.
It was only until 1996 the government finally apologized to the victims and the payment of compensation applied.
However, thousands of Minamata patients may never return to the same life as before, living close to the sea is clean and beautiful.
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