The Guardian UK Strongly Criticizes Japan for Releasing Fukushima Contaminated Water into the Ocean

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] The British leading media outlet The Guardian strongly criticized the Japanese government's plan to discharge contaminated water from Fukushima into the ocean.

On the 13th (local time), The Guardian published an online article titled "Japan has decided to dump contaminated water into the sea," revealing this stance.

The Guardian used terms such as "contaminated water" and "radioactive water" instead of the Japanese government's term "treated water" for the contaminated water generated by the Fukushima nuclear accident.

This contrasts with the U.S. State Department, which used the Japanese government's term "treated water."

The Guardian reported, "The Japanese government's decision will anger neighboring countries and the local fishing industry," adding, "Environmental groups are also pouring criticism on this decision."

Furthermore, The Guardian stated, "Especially Greenpeace Japan is strongly criticizing the government’s decision," explaining that "Greenpeace said the government thoroughly ignored the interests and human rights of people living throughout Japan, including Fukushima, and the Asia-Pacific region."

The Guardian quoted a Greenpeace Germany official saying, "It is a clear mistake for the Japanese government to claim the contaminated water as 'treated water,'" and "The Japanese government is desperately trying to deceive both domestic and international audiences on this issue."

The Guardian also pointed out that approximately 1.25 million tons of contaminated water stored at the Fukushima nuclear power plant site are scheduled to be discharged.

Regarding the damage to the local fishing industry, The Guardian reported, "The fishing industry says that years of efforts to regain consumer trust in their seafood will be set back to square one due to the discharge of contaminated water."

The Guardian added that this decision came about three months before the Tokyo Olympics, noting, "Some events are scheduled to take place about 60 km from the nuclear power plant."

It also devoted considerable space to introducing the opposing positions expressed by the governments of South Korea, China, and Taiwan.

Earlier, on the 13th, the Japanese government decided at a ministerial meeting on the "Basic Policy on the Disposal of Treated Water," which includes plans to release contaminated water containing a large amount of radioactive materials generated by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in March 2011 into the ocean.

The Japanese side calls it treated water to claim that the contaminated water has undergone a purification process.