Cat's Dance...

....a tragic lesson on industrialization.
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I used to just teach about it - preaching the ill-effects of methyl mercury on human health and the environment. Now, after having the opportunity to visit the place,  I have a better understanding of the environmental tragedy that struck the small town of Minamata and the consequences of the disease it is more widely known for.

The small, idyllic town of Minamata

Minamata is a small, idyllic town in the Kumamoto Prefecture on Kyushu Island in Southern Japan. The town's lush, picturesque scenery is a visual delight that it was so difficult for me to reconcile my preconceived images to what I was seeing. 

It was hard to imagine, in fact, that around 60 years ago, in this same paradise, a young girl of five was found to have unusual neurological symptoms. She had convulsions and difficulties in walking and speaking. Also, around this time, strange behaviors in cats,  who tended to eat scraps from family tables, were observed - wildly running around, convulsing, going mad and drowning themselves. Thus, the term "cat's dance."

Crippled hand of a Minamata disease victim

The epidemic, popularly known as Minamata Disease,  was traced to methyl mercury poisoning associated with daily consumption of large quantities of shellfish heavily contaminated with the toxic chemical. The culprit was a chemical company called Chisso Corporation - once the very definition of industrialization in Japan. Methyl mercury was a byproduct in the manufacture of acetaldehyde synthesized by the hydrolysis of acetylene using mercury as catalyst.

A visit to the Minamata Disease Municipal Museum revealed the long and difficult struggle of the local populace to be compensated for their sufferings. The museum relays the experiences of pain and discrimination through visual displays as well as by oral historians who give personal, first-hand accounts of their experiences.

The road to "mea culpa" was a circuitous one. Even with mounting evidences, it took the government 12 years (in 1968) to officially declare that methyl mercury discharged from Chisso Corporation was the cause of the disease.

Scratches on the wall in one hospital made during episodic convulsions of the victims

Minamata disease is definitely one of the most significant negative consequences associated with industrialization with little consideration to the environment. The lesson is learned, however, and today, there is a unified (and very, very expensive!!) action to regain this lost paradise.


There is hope until the CAT DANCES NO MORE.....

There is hope...