Payments for deaths ranged from ¥1.7 million to ¥4 million ($4,700 to $11,100), one-time payments from ¥1 million to ¥4.2 million ($2,760 to $11,660) and annual payments between ¥170,000 and ¥380,000 ($470 to $1,100) for surviving patients. On the day of the signing, the Minamata Citizens Council held a protest outside the Chisso factory gates. One of the Chisso trade unions held an eight-hour strike in protest at the poor treatment of the arbitration group by their own company.The litigation group, representing 41 certified patients (17 already deceased) in 28 families, submitted their suit against Chisso in the Kumamoto District Court on 14 June 1969. The leader of the group, Eizō Watanabe (a former leader of the Mutual Aid Society), declared, "Today, and from this day forth, we are fighting against the power of the state." Those who decided to sue the company came under fierce pressure to drop their lawsuits. One woman was visited personally by a Chisso executive and harassed by her neighbours. She was blackballed by the community, her familys fishing boat used without permission, their fishing nets were cut, and human faeces were thrown at her in the street.The litigation group and their lawyers were helped substantially by an informal national network of citizens groups that had sprung up around the country in 1969. The Associations to Indict those Responsible for Minamata Disease were instrumental in raising awareness and funds for the lawsuit. The Kumamoto branch, in particular, was especially helpful to the case.
ISBN 0-425-18999-6
Approaches to Water Pollution Control, Minamata City, Kumamoto Prefecture
Allchin, Douglas. The Poisoning of Minamata
Saito, Hisashi. (2009). Niigata Minamata Disease:  Methyl Mercury Poisoning in Niigata, Japan. Niigata Nippo. Walker, Brett. (2010) "Toxic Archipelago: A History of Industrial Disease in Japan." University of Washington Press. ISBN 0-295-98954-8

External links

ATSDR – ToxFAQs: Mercury – Frequently asked questions about Mercury
National Institute for Minamata Disease
Minamata Disease: The History and Measures – The Ministry of the Environments summary of Minamata disease
Soshisha – The Supporting Center for Minamata Disease and the Minamata Disease Museum
Aileen Archive – Copyright holder of W. Eugene Smiths Minamata photos
Photograph by W. Eugene Smith – Tomoko Uemura in Her Bath, 1972
Minamata disease – Chapter from Industrial Pollution in Japan by Dr Jun Ui
Toxic Archipelago: Industrial Pollution in Japan – A talk by Brett Walker, September 16, 2010
Minamata Timeline by Minamata City Council. Minamata disease museum