Japan’s Tokyo Electric Power Company began to slowly discharge the nuclear wastewater of the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea at 1 pm on the 24th. Since the Japanese government applied to the international organization for emissions, it has sparked controversy in neighboring Asian countries. China’s General Administration of Customs announced a complete suspension of imports of Japanese aquatic products, and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government followed suit by restricting the import of aquatic products from 10 prefectures in Japan.
However, public opinion in various places reacted differently. People in mainland China strongly criticized and scolded Japan for being selfish and irresponsible; Korean society also rebounded violently and launched protests and demonstrations; on the contrary, Hong Kong citizens tended to believe that it would not endanger food safety. “I don’t plan to have a next generation” street visits caused even more heated discussions; Taiwan, where the society has always been concerned about nuclear power issues, was relatively silent and there was not much discussion.
The official media criticized the Japanese side, and many related entries appeared on Weibo.
On the 24th, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly stated that it firmly opposes and strongly condemns Japan’s unilateral forcible discharge of nuclear sewage into the sea. It believes that Japan should not “cause secondary harm to the local people and the people of the world” “out of selfish interests”, adding that All necessary measures will be taken to safeguard food safety and the health of the Chinese people.
The official media also released criticism against Japan one after another. People’s Daily Online accused Japan of “self-directed and self-acted “authoritative certification””, and CCTV released a calculated animation about the spread of nuclear wastewater with ocean currents, calling it “shocking” and widely reprinted. Another post with the entry #历史会记录日本政府这一级# said, “It is unfair, unreasonable, and unnecessary for Japan to push nuclear-contaminated water into the sea. It is extremely selfish and extremely irresponsible.” “, received more than 700,000 likes.
The government strongly opposes it, and the Chinese Internet is also full of negative comments. Many related topics are at the top of the Weibo hot search list. At one time, 20 of the 50 topics on the list were related to Japan’s discharge of nuclear wastewater, and many of these entries were made by China. Hosted by official media. A common comment is: “It’s time for Mt. Fuji to wake up.” Similar or even worse hate speech can easily get tens of thousands of likes.
On August 24, 2023, a man walks past a large screen in a shopping mall in Beijing, where CCTV is broadcasting news that the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has begun releasing the first batch of treated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean.Photo: Andy Wong/AP/Dazhi Video
Claiming that the Japanese earthquake was retribution, many people forwarded the nuclear radiation brand lightning protection list
On the 25th, the entry of #日本本州东海东海远海5.8盛几地震# also entered the top 5 Weibo hot search list. Hu Xijin, the former editor-in-chief of “Global Times”, even posted that “At this time, it is not too much to say that Japan is condemned by God.” “, and many netizens also followed up and published the theory of “retribution”, referring to nature’s “revenge” against the Japanese government.
In addition to Weibo, on the platform X (formerly known as Twitter), several Chinese official media accounts also forwarded a large number of voices and satirical cartoons against the discharge of nuclear wastewater. “Wuhe Qilin”, known as the “Chinese Wolf Warrior Painter” who once cooperated with the official media for a long time, also created a cartoon this time. In the painting, a mutated giant marine creature wearing Japanese samurai armor is spitting out Radiation sewage.
In addition, some Chinese netizens also launched a boycott against Japanese brands. For example, “Lightning Protection List of Nuclear Radiation Brands” and “List of Japanese Products Summarized by Netizens” have been reposted on Weibo, ig, and X platforms, covering cosmetics, food, and daily necessities. replacement product.
In addition, according to a report by China Business News, low-sodium salt and non-iodized salt on multiple platforms are “out of stock” or “restocking”, and there may be panic buying and hoarding of iodized salt.
A popular science article said it should be analyzed scientifically, but it was deleted
There are also popular science articles and videos on the Chinese Internet, which analyze the issue of Japan’s nuclear wastewater discharge from a “scientific” perspective.
For example, a long article that has been deleted and has been widely forwarded is titled “From Fukushima Nuclear Wastewater: Are We Talking About Science or Position?” The article analyzes five sets of treatment methods and specifically explains the principle of the sea discharge method. , and why it is safe, and mentioned: United Nations agency reviews and scientists’ opinions, Chinese experts in the working group, and even almost all authoritative nuclear energy and environmental protection scientists in China, did not publicly voice their opposition.
In addition, Weibo user “Biotic Dog YBo” also released a self-made video analyzing the actual impact of nuclear wastewater, and bluntly said: “Under another extreme populist instigation by the Japanese side, I hope there can still be rational voices. “However, the video has been deleted now. Some people commented on this post, “Like the warrior who insists on popularizing science”, “Scientific answers are abused. The wisdom of the people is not as good as it was 10 years ago”, and many of them are insults , Criticize bloggers.
In addition, by the 25th, there was also a voice on the Internet in mainland China, accusing the excessive exaggeration of the hazards of nuclear sewage, which will affect China’s marine fisheries and aquaculture industries with an output value of trillions.
On August 24, 2023, in Seoul, South Korea, a college student who tried to break into the Japanese embassy to demonstrate was arrested by the police. Photo: Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images
South Korean people strongly oppose it, but Taiwan’s reaction is lukewarm
There are also fierce civil opposition voices, as well as South Korea.
On the 24th, South Koreans demonstrated outside the Japanese embassy against the discharge of nuclear wastewater. A number of environmental groups and civic groups unanimously condemned the Japanese side and demanded to stop the emissions, and will hold a series of rallies and protests.
The current President of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yue, is committed to improving the deadlocked relations with Japan. The ruling party has not strongly opposed the discharge of nuclear wastewater before, so it has been criticized by the South Korean people, and the opposition party has also condemned it. On the Korean forums theqoo and naver, many netizens accused the government of disregarding people’s health. Seeing the strong backlash from the people, South Korean Prime Minister Han Deok-soo said in his speech on the 24th that if the Japanese government discharges the sea according to the previously announced measures, then South Korea has no reason to worry too much, but asked Japan to disclose relevant information in a transparent and responsible manner in the future.
As for Taiwan, the government and the people were relatively silent, and the matter did not cause heated discussions.
Nevertheless, many environmental groups voiced their opposition. For example, the “National Nuclear Abolition Action Platform” posted on Facebook on the 22nd, expressing its opposition to Japan’s discharge of nuclear wastewater into the sea, saying that Japan should not put the environmental ecology, marine fisheries, and people’s health of neighboring countries at the expense of the cost of filtering wastewater. the threat of radioactive contamination.
On August 24, 2023, Hong Kong, a sushi counter in a supermarket in Kowloon Bay.Photo: Ryan Lai/Duan Media
Hong Kong Netizens Called “Food”: No Plan to Have a Next Generation
Regarding the incident of Japan’s discharge of nuclear sewage, Hong Kong netizens had completely different reactions.
Following the General Administration of Customs of China, the Hong Kong government has initiated import control measures to prohibit the import of aquatic products from Tokyo, Fukushima, Chiba, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Gunma, Miyagi, Niigata, Nagano and Saitama 10 (capital) counties, Includes all live, frozen, refrigerated, dried or otherwise preserved seafood, sea salt, and raw or processed seaweed.
There are many posts on the popular discussion forum “Lian Deng” discussing this matter. Some netizens regard the remarks of the Chinese authorities as political manipulation; The level of nuclear waste water is 7 times higher than that of Japan, and the people in the class are not scared” (“These people are not afraid”), “The International Atomic Energy Organization says nothing is wrong, so why is it so alarming? (There are) classmates who are afraid that the world will not mess up and come out to do it. Make an earthquake.” (“The International Atomic Energy Agency says nothing is wrong, so what’s there to be afraid of?”)
Among them, the Now News Channel interviewed citizens on the street about their views on sewage discharge. A citizen, Mr. Lin, said that although he has the habit of buying Japanese aquatic products, he has never worried: “Because we don’t plan to have a next generation.” This sentence It sparked a series of discussions on the Internet.
For example, jojo__wu, a well-known Instgram account, posted a screenshot of Mr. Lin’s interview with a sentence similar to the words “We are the last generation, thank you!” that was common on the Internet in China before, causing a large number of netizens to leave messages expressing their agreement, “My generation is not optimistic, Zhongsheng the next generation? (Li Shen: I don’t represent other people)” “Hong Kong is not suitable for having the next generation” “Good style speaks out the aspirations of contemporary Hong Kong people”, some people even describe this as “the last generation of leeks”.
The Facebook page “Xiao Feibo” made a scientific analysis, pointing out that the Fukushima nuclear treatment water will not cause food safety risks. It received more than a thousand retweets and likes. Sushi, etc., referring to “Trust the Japanese government, don’t be surprised!” Before the ban came into effect, many well-known Japanese sushi chain stores and Japanese restaurants had long queues.
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2023-08-25 09:04:28
