Democratic Party: "Presidential Office's Awareness of Fukushima Nuclear Contaminated Water Is Appalling"

Presidential Office "1.6 Trillion Invested Due to Rumor-Mongering"
Jo Seung-rae "On What Basis Do You Denounce It as False Propaganda?"

The Democratic Party of Korea stated, "We condemn the Presidential Office's utterly appalling perception of Japan's Fukushima nuclear contaminated water discharge."

Cho Seung-rae, the senior spokesperson for the Democratic Party, said in a written briefing on the afternoon of the 23rd, "The Presidential Office issued criticisms such as 'rumors' and 'false agitation' against the opposition on the first anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear contaminated water discharge," adding, "On what basis does the Presidential Office claim that the contaminated water discharged by Japan is safe?" The Presidential Office criticized earlier that day, saying, "Despite the absurd rumors without any scientific basis being revealed as false agitation, the opposition, the source of these rumors, shows irresponsible behavior without even apologizing to the public," and added, "A budget of 1.6 trillion won, which did not need to be spent, was invested."

Cho Seung-rae, Chief Spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Korea. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Senior spokesperson Cho said, "The discharged contaminated water will reach our seas in 4 to 5 years or even up to 10 years," and fiercely questioned, "Did they go on a time travel?" He continued, "The Japanese government has not provided radiation data since February this year," and claimed, "Rather, data from the Japanese Ministry of the Environment revealed that the tritium concentration at the discharge point has increased tenfold." He then pointed out, "The Korean government, which should have been rigorously monitoring the discharge situation, has completely let go," and noted, "There are only 69 radiation inspection devices at 230 fish markets nationwide."

He also criticized, "The government, which has done nothing to ensure the health of the people and only focused on promoting safety, now absurdly tries to shift the 1.6 trillion won publicity expenses onto the opposition," and questioned, "The contaminated water discharge will continue for at least 30 years; how can they guarantee the impact on the marine environment?" Furthermore, he added, "The Japanese government committed a crime against all humanity worldwide because it was cheap, and the Yoon administration is an accomplice and abettor of this crime."