by Arun D’Souza

Fr Arun D’Souza, SJ, a missionary in Yamaguchi Prefecture, a thousand kilometres south of Tokyo, talks about his experience.

 Tokyo (AsiaNews) – As foreign countries try to repatriate their citizens from Japan, Br Arun D’Souza SJ, from India, is still in Yamaguchi, a prefecture about a thousand kilometres south of Tokyo (some 1,200 kilometres from the epicentre of the recent earthquake). The Jesuit spoke to AsiaNews about the situation. For him, Japan “is in God’s hands”.

Yamaguchi Prefecture, where I am, was not directly affected by the quake. Still, we felt the tremors, and we can see the unfolding tragedy of the Japanese people. The earthquake was just the start of things. The tsunami, with its ten-metre waves, destroyed the lives of thousands of people as well as the basic infrastructure. Water moved five kilometres inland, and the salt has made the area uninhabitable.

The losses go beyond the imagination and human control. In Japan, for example, it is still winter, and the temperature still dips below zero. The cold at night is terrible. In the worst cases, four people have to share a slice of bread because food is hard to find. Roads and airports have been seriously damaged, and helicopters are now allowed to fly within a 50-km radius of the affected area.

About half a million people are homeless, huddling in the streets or sheltering in evacuation centres. Every day, rotating blackouts are implemented in and around Tokyo to save energy. In other words, things are getting worse.

The first quake, which lasted four minutes, was followed by another 300 and experts expect them to continue for the remainder of the year. The ground moves several times a day, sometimes for three minutes.

The cross on the belfry of Saint Ignatius Catholic Church in downtown Tokyo was destroyed in the first quake. The parish has about 18,000 members.

I think people need prayers and encouragement to put the pieces of their lives back together. Only prayers can give them a boost.

In a country like Japan, which is always prepared for a massive tragedy like this, right now everything is in God’s hands and nature's fury.

(Nirmala Carvalho contributed to the article)

• japan
• yamaguchi
• earthquake
• tsunami
• witness