An independent commission under the Japanese Diet ruled that the March 11, 2011 nuclear disaster at Fukushima-Daiichi following the earthquake and tsunami was "man-made," and that "fundamental reforms" must take place.

In their finding, the commission said the accident over a year ago was a result of "collusion" between the government, the regulators, and Tokyo Electric Power Company.

"They effectively betrayed the nation's right to be safe from nuclear accidents," the panel said. "We believe that the root causes were the organizational and regulatory systems that supported faulty rationales for decisions and actions, rather than issues relating to the competency of any specific individual."

They add that the nuclear plant was incapable of withstanding the earthquake and tsunami and that the authorities involved failed to "correctly develop" the most basic safety requirements such as assessing the probability of damage, preparing for containing collateral damage, and developing evacuation plans.

Some members of the panel, meanwhile, think the quake may have caused more damage to the Fukushima plant than so far reported, and that government mismanagement has aggravated the problem.

"Tepco can't use the government as a scapegoat as its own information disclosure through the disaster was lacking," the report said.

The panel listed down a number of recommendations including monitoring the nuclear regulatory body, changing the crisis management system, laws related to nuclear energy, and the regulatory body itself.– EcoSeed Staff