The Japanese consul general in Hong Kong yesterday rejected claims that some tourists had fallen sick or had miscarriages in the wake of Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster.
His comment came after a new international study found that radiation contamination caused by leakage at the tsunami-stricken plant could be more widespread than projected.
'There have not been any health problems in Japan related to radioactivity,' Yuji Kumamaru said. 'The only ones affected were workers at the plant. People living in Fukushima are not affected.'
He was trying to counter rumours widely circulating on the internet.
One posting said a pregnant woman was advised to abort her baby after visiting Japan, while another woman was supposedly told not to get pregnant within three years because she had been exposed to excessive radiation.
But Kumamaru said the comments were 'scientifically unfounded', saying radiation levels in Tokyo were lower than those in Hong Kong, Seoul and Beijing.