"I Will Definitely Stop It"... Lee Jung-mi and Woo Won-sik Begin Hunger Strike to Block Japan's Contaminated Water

Lee Jung-mi "Government has become Japan's parrot"
Woo Won-shik "I even suspect President Yoon agreed to the discharge of contaminated water"

Lee Jeong-mi, leader of the Justice Party, and Woo Won-shik, member of the Democratic Party of Korea, began a hunger strike on the 26th to prevent the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

On the morning of the same day, Lee held a press conference in front of the Japanese Embassy and declared, "Starting today, I am entering a hunger strike protest to stop the unauthorized dumping of Fukushima nuclear contaminated water," adding, "I have taken this stand with a desperate heart, believing that if not now, the dumping cannot be stopped."

She criticized, "Our government remains silent even though the nuclear contaminated water dumping is imminent," and said, "Neither the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) final report nor the inspection report from the Korean inspection team has been submitted yet, but they are asserting it as a ‘scientific fact.’ Our government has pre-written the answer sheet that nuclear contaminated water dumping will happen, and within Tokyo Electric Power Company's timetable, it has become Japan’s parrot."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

She also refuted Japan’s claim that the discharge of contaminated water is inevitable. Lee said, "There is only one reason they insist on ocean dumping," and pointed out, "The root cause of this entire disaster is their greedy mindset to impose enormous opportunity costs on global citizens for their own profits." She introduced, "The Japanese government already released a report in 2020 stating that ‘delaying the discharge time and storing the water sufficiently before deciding the discharge timing can significantly reduce the period and amount of tritium exposure to the natural environment,’" adding, "They know that storing it on land is a better method for the marine ecosystem."

She continued, "There are alternative sites in Fukushima to store nuclear contaminated water, and places prepared for decommissioning the nuclear power plant. There are also alternatives such as expanding storage tanks and underground storage," and explained, "Various procedural issues continue to arise, including potential violations of Japan’s nuclear regulations, breaches of Tokyo Electric Power Company’s internal rules, and violations of agreements with the Japanese public that ‘no disposal, including ocean discharge, will be done without the understanding of related parties.’"

Lee declared, "84% of our citizens are raising their voices that this cannot continue as it is," and said, "The Justice Party will vigorously fight at the forefront with the people until our demands are fully realized."

Separately, Woo held a press conference at the National Assembly and declared, "We will definitely prevent our country and our seas from becoming dumping grounds for nuclear waste," adding, "Starting today, I will begin an indefinite hunger strike and take all possible measures to unite with fellow lawmakers and citizens who share the will to stop the contaminated water discharge."

He criticized, "Despite the Fukushima contaminated water discharge approaching imminently and public anxiety reaching its peak, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration is turning a blind eye and abetting it, making me even suspect that they have agreed to the nuclear contaminated water discharge," and asked, "Why on earth is President Yoon blocking the voices of the people of the Republic of Korea?"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Woo pointed out, "Do not deceive the public in the name of science," and said, "It is not a matter that ends by diluting the discharge concentration under the name of scientific verification as the government claims. The destruction of the marine ecosystem and food safety concerns caused by the contaminated water discharge will never be resolved."

He added, "We cannot entrust our safety to the Japanese government and the IAEA," and said, "The only way left for us is to gather all of South Korea’s national power and the strength of the international community to fundamentally block Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant contaminated water ocean discharge."

Earlier, on the 20th, Yoon Jae-gap, a Democratic Party lawmaker, declared regarding the Fukushima contaminated water discharge, "Starting today, I will begin a hunger strike to urge the government to make proper judgments and take action."

On the same day, Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, said at the National Assembly’s Supreme Council meeting, "Japan says it will begin the final inspection of the facilities before discharge on the 28th. The golden time to stop the Fukushima contaminated water discharge is running out," and urged, "The government must firmly demand Japan to stop the contaminated water discharge."