Concrete Settlement? Asbestos we can do...

[Mike Oxlong]

Cement maker to offer 2 million yen for asbestos tragedy victim

Even though it is not liable, a Tokyo-based cement maker has decided to offer 2 million yen to a woman with lung cancer who spent part of her childhood living close to an asbestos factory that was operated by a former company affiliate. The factory was in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture. The 45-year-old woman is believed to have developed lung cancer as a direct result of living next to the plant. Inhaling asbestos particles is known to cause lung cancer. Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co. has no legal obligation to make amends as it secured its stake in the affiliate after it had moved to a new location.

It is rare for any business to make such an offer in connection with an illness caused by another company prior to it becoming an affiliate. Observers said the move by Sumitomo Cement may inspire other companies to do the same. This is because many asbestos-related firms went out of business years ago or merged with other companies. As a result, it is often impossible to assess accountability. Sumitomo Cement said it was responding to a request from the Amagasaki Occupational Safety and Health Center in July to assist the woman.

Members of the support group said the woman's parents used to work for Kansai Slate, a construction materials maker based in Amagasaki. Asbestos was a key ingredient of the materials. The woman grew up in corporate housing just across the street from the asbestos factory. She lived there for about 10 years from the age of 13. She also used to play with neighborhood children at a storage site next to the factory and where asbestos cement sheets were stored.

In 1973, Kansai Slate moved its operations to Kakogawa, also in Hyogo Prefecture. In 1978, Sumitomo Cement's predecessor obtained a stake in Kansai Slate. But slumping demand caused the company to go belly up and shut down its factory in December 2000. It went into liquidation in March 2001, according to Sumitomo Osaka Cement officials. In 2003, the woman was diagnosed as suffering from pleural mesothelioma. Her right lung was removed in September that year.

She was hospitalized again this past March after the cancer was confirmed to have spread to other parts of her body, including the lymphatic nodes. She is now receiving medical treatment at home, members of the support group said. In mid-August, Sumitomo Cement established a policy of offering 2 million yen in consolation to former employees of the defunct affiliated company who died as a result of asbestos-related cancer.

The offer also applies to family members. "We have no legal accountability since this case developed long before the company became affiliated with us," said a Sumitomo Cement representative. "But we decided to pay because her parents had been employed by the company." It said the offer of consolation does not apply to other residents who lived around the Kansai Slate factory.

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