Japan's 'man-made' disaster

The panel, called the National Diet of Japan Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (NAIIC), found that shortcomings in the Japanese government as well as the Toyko Electric Co (TEPCO), which ran the plant, contributed to the disaster that followed an earthquake and subsequent tsunami on March 11, 2011.

"The TEPCO Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident was the result of collusion between the government, the regulators and TEPCO, and the lack of governance by said parties," the report said, adding that the direct causes of the accident were foreseeable and that the plant was incapable of withstanding the forces of nature that hit it that day.

"We believe that the root causes were the organizational and regulatory systems that supported faulty rationales for decisions and actions, rather than issues relating to the competency of any specific individual."

"They effectively betrayed the nation's right to be safe from nuclear accidents. Therefore, we conclude that the accident was clearly 'man-made'," said the commission.

Earthquake may have played a role

The NAIIC said it could not rule out that initial damage from the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that preceded the tsunami's arrival had caused damage to the plant.

"We cannot rule out the possibility that a small-scale LOCA (loss-of-collant accident) occurred at the reactor No. 1 in particular."

The government and TEPCO had previously been reluctant to admit the earthquake may have contributed to the disaster, sticking to the belief that rising waters from the tsunami knocked out cooling systems at the plant and triggered reactor meltdowns.

Japan had long boasted of how its nuclear facilities had many safeguards against damage from earthquakes.

In the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster, all of Japan's nuclear reactors were eventually shut down pending safety checks. The first of the country's 50 reactors was started up again on Thursday at a plant in Ohi.

mz/ipj (AFP, dpa)