SEOUL: Hundreds of people marched in South Korea’s capital on Saturday (Jul 8) demanding Japan scrap its plans to release treated wastewater from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant, as the head of the UN nuclear agency met with senior officials to discuss public concerns over food safety.
The protests came a day after South Korea’s government formally endorsed the safety of the Japanese plans, saying that the contamination levels of water pumped out from the plant would be within acceptable standards and would not meaningfully affect South Korean seas as long as the plant’s treatment systems work as designed.
The announcement aligned with the views of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which greenlit the Japanese discharge plans this week, saying the treated wastewater would meet international safety standards and pose negligible environmental and health impacts.
Braving blistering summer heat and closely watched by police, the protesters walked in long lines through a commercial district in downtown Seoul, holding signs reading “We denounce the sea disposal of Fukushima’s nuclear wastewater!” and “We oppose with our lives the sea discharge.” The marches proceeded peacefully and there were no immediate reports of major clashes or injuries.
“Other than discharging the water into the sea, there is an option to store the water on their land, and there are other options being suggested,” said Han Sang-jin, spokesperson of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, whose members accounted for many of the marchers.
He said that allowing Japan to discharge the water “is like an international crime”.