"KTX Instead, Use Shinkansen"... Railway Union Protests Japanese Radioactive Water Promotional Material

Government Distributes 'Contaminated Water Safety' Promotional Materials on High-Speed Trains
Railway Union: "Was Contaminated Water Discharge a Policy of the Republic of Korea?"

The government produced a promotional material titled "10 Myths About Fukushima Contaminated Water" and has been distributing it on high-speed trains (KTX·SRT) since the 1st, prompting the railway union to protest, saying, "Distribute it on the Japanese Shinkansen instead."

On the 6th, the railway union issued a statement expressing "deep regret over the use of public railways as a one-sided propaganda tool by the administration on an issue that has caused great public concern and heated debate."

The booklet "10 Myths About Fukushima Contaminated Water" placed on KTX [Photo by Yonhap News]

The union said, "During holidays, government promotional booklets called K-Gonggam have been distributed on trains, so we might have overlooked it," but added, "Since when has the discharge of Fukushima contaminated water been a policy of the Republic of Korea government?"

They continued, "How should we understand this situation where the Japanese government's policy is being openly promoted on KTX?" and "We recommend collecting the Japanese government promotional booklets placed on KTX and placing them on the Shinkansen instead."

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism distributed a total of 75,000 copies of the booklet titled "10 Myths About Fukushima Contaminated Water" on the 1st of this month, with 60,000 copies on KTX and 15,000 copies on SRT.

The publisher of the booklet is the "Government of the Republic of Korea," and the front cover states, "We will protect the health of the people with science and truth."

The table of contents includes 10 questions such as "The Moon administration opposed the discharge, but the Yoon administration supports it?", "Is the discharged contaminated water full of radioactive substances?", "Will the discharged contaminated water cover our seas in three months?", "Will Fukushima seafood be imported after the discharge?", "Is the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) siding with Japan?", and "Does our country only trust the IAEA without verification?"

For each item, the government provided answers such as "This is a completely baseless claim" and "This is fake news," along with explanations.

According to materials submitted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to Rep. Kim Su-heung of the Democratic Party of Korea, the budget for placing the booklet on trains amounted to 39.35 million KRW (including VAT), including 21.2 million KRW for printing and 18.15 million KRW for distribution.

Previously, the government spent 1 billion KRW to produce a YouTube video promoting the safety of Fukushima nuclear power plant contaminated water, uploaded it on the official YouTube channel of the Republic of Korea government, and broadcast it as an advertisement during YouTube video playback, which also sparked controversy.