Minamata Disease

Aileen Mioko Smith, co-author of "Minamata" and a former wife of photojournalist W . Eugene Smith, speaks before members of Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan, giving her view on a bill passed in the Diet in Tokyo on Wednesday, July 8, 2009. The Diet passed the bill offering financial relief to more sufferers of Minamata disease. It is expected to cover about 20,000 of some 30,000 people, mainly in Kumamoto and Kagoshima prefectures, who are seeking recognition as Minamata disease sufferers. Minamata disease is a neurological disorder caused by organic mercury that had been released into the sea for years by a chemical company in Minamata, Kumamoto prefecture in southern Japan, poisoning fish and unsuspecting people. With her husband, she spent three years documenting the human toll of mercury poisoning on the town of Minamata. (Photo by Yosuke Tanaka/AFLO/mis) [1122].