TOKYO, June 11 (UPI) -- Thousands of people rallied Saturday in Tokyo, protesting the use of nuclear power in Japan.
Demonstrations were held in other cities, The New York Times reported. The protests came three months after an earthquake triggered the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.
Hiromasa Fujimoto, a farmer, said he had never before joined a demonstration.
"I want to tell people that I'm just so worried about the soil, about the water," he said. "I now farm with a Geiger counter in one hand, my tools in the other. It's insane."
Aki Ishii brought her 3-year-old daughter, who wore a sign reading, "Please let me play outside again."
There were a number of marches in Tokyo, culminating in a rally of an estimated 20,000 people. When police tried to disperse the crowd at 9 p.m., some demonstrators resisted, although there was no real violence.
"We now know the dangers of relying on nuclear power, and it's time to make a change," Hajime Matsumoto, an organizer, said in a speech to the crowd. "And, yes, I believe Japan can change."
