Asbestos victims file 6.6 billion yen class action lawsuit in Tokyo

May 17, 2008 

According to the "Mainichi Daily News", the class action suit is the first that has been filed in Japan related to health damages caused by asbestos exposure at construction sites. The plaintiffs hail from the Japanese prefectures of Tokyo, Saitama and Chiba. 
The plaintiffs claim that the government and manufacturers knew of the dangers of asbestos inhalation but failed to take proper precautions, including ceasing to promote asbestos as a cheap fire retardant and banning production of the material. 
They state that after inhaling asbestos in the workplace, 172 people have developed lung cancer or mesothelioma, and that almost half of those afflicted are now dead. Plaintiffs argue that the government and health ministry did not act quickly enough after international organizations issued warnings in 1972 that asbestos could be a carcinogen.
Asbestos victims file 6.6 billion yen class action lawsuit in Tokyo May 17 , 2008 According to the " Mainichi Daily News " , the class action suit is the first that has been filed in Japan related to health damages caused by asbestos exposure at construction sites . The plaintiffs hail from the Japanese prefectures of Tokyo , Saitama and Chiba . The plaintiffs claim that the government and manufacturers knew of the dangers of asbestos inhalation but failed to take proper precautions , including ceasing to promote asbestos as a cheap fire retardant and banning production of the material . They state that after inhaling asbestos in the workplace , 172 people have developed lung cancer or mesothelioma , and that almost half of those afflicted are now dead . Plaintiffs argue that the government and health ministry did not act quickly enough after international organizations issued warnings in 1972 that asbestos could be a carcinogen .
Asbestos victims
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