対馬市長に比田勝氏３選　「核ごみ」調査に反対―長崎

　任期満了に伴う長崎県対馬市長選が３日投開票され、原発から出る高レベル放射性廃棄物（核のごみ）の最終処分場選定に向けた調査受け入れに反対を表明した無所属現職の比田勝尚喜氏（６９）＝自民、公明推薦＝が、処分場の誘致推進を掲げた無所属新人で飲食店経営の荒巻靖彦氏（５９）を破り、３選を果たした。
　投票率は６４．５０％で、前回（６３．２３％）を上回った。比田勝氏は同日夜、市内で報道陣に「核ごみの誘致には反対の立場で、豊かな島づくりを目指す」と語った。
　同市では昨年９月、処分場選定に向けた第１段階となる「文献調査」の受け入れを求める請願を市議会が賛成多数で採択。しかし、比田勝氏は観光業や水産業への風評被害などを懸念し、受け入れない意向を表明した。
　市長選で比田勝氏は、引き続き調査を受け入れない考えを示す一方、観光業強化のため富裕層向けの高級ホテル誘致などに努めると訴えた。荒巻氏は「即効性のある経済政策」として処分場誘致を強く主張したが、支持は広がらなかった。（2024/03/03-23:30）

Tsushima Mayor Naoki Hitakatsu, who opposed accepting a "literature survey" to examine whether the city is suitable for hosting a final disposal site for high-level radioactive waste from nuclear plants, won a third term in Sunday's mayoral election.
   The 69-year-old independent incumbent, backed by the ruling coalition of the Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito, defeated independent rookie Yasuhiko Aramaki, 59, a restaurant owner who pledged to promote efforts to attract the final disposal site to the island city in Nagasaki Prefecture, southwestern Japan, to have it act as an immediate stimulus to the local economy.
   The voter turnout was 64.50 pct, up from 63.23 pct in the previous election.
   "I'm against attracting nuclear waste and will aim to create a rich island," Hitakatsu told reporters Sunday evening.
   In September last year, the Tsushima assembly adopted a petition asking the city to accept the literature survey, the first stage of the process to select a final disposal site. But Hitakatsu expressed his intention not to accept the survey due to concerns about reputational damage to the tourism and fisheries industries. He vowed to attract luxury hotels to the city for wealthy tourists during his election campaign.