[Comprehensive] "The Current Government's Planned Murder of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant" Posters Posted Across University Campuses Nationwide

Green Nuclear Student Alliance Criticizes Moon Administration's Early Closure of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant
Ruling Party Strongly Condemns Prosecutors' Continuous Investigation of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant

A large poster put up by the Green Nuclear Student Alliance on university campuses nationwide on the 8th. Photo by Green Nuclear Student Alliance

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] As the prosecution launches an investigation into allegations of the early shutdown of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1, drawing criticism from the ruling party, posters criticizing the controversy over the closure of Wolseong Unit 1 are appearing on university campuses nationwide.

The group posting the posters is the Green Nuclear Student Alliance, which includes engineering students from a total of 18 universities such as Seoul National University, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), and KAIST. This group is a kind of student coalition formed for the 'Nuclear Revival Movement.'

The group announced on the 8th via its official SNS that it has started posting posters at 107 universities nationwide, including Seoul National University and KAIST. Previously, the group has continued the 'Nuclear Revival Movement' through one-person protests urging the resumption of construction of Shin Hanul Units 3 and 4, street signature campaigns, and online promotions.

In the posters produced and distributed that day, the group defined the allegations of economic feasibility manipulation of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1 as a "planned murder case of Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant by the current government."

They strongly criticized, saying, "From the beginning, the Blue House and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy decided to kill the Wolseong Nuclear Power Plant and manipulated the nuclear power evaluation report," and "Since the Moon Jae-in administration abandoned the nuclear-centered power generation policy, the answer was predetermined from the start."

Regarding the deletion of 444 documents related to Wolseong Unit 1, they claimed, "Would the evaluation of a nuclear power plant into which trillions of taxpayer won were invested be manipulated by just two public officials?" and "(The instructions for report manipulation and evidence destruction) were given by the Blue House and ministers, while the public officials received the disciplinary actions."

Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Democratic Party's Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 6th. Photo by Yonhap News.

◆ Ruling Party "Clear commissioned investigation, abuse of power... 'Yoon Seok-yeol prosecution' is going the wrong way"

Meanwhile, the ruling party continues to voice criticism over the prosecution's investigation into Wolseong Unit 1. Kang Sun-woo, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea, said in a statement on the 7th, "The Prosecutor General is a position to conduct fair and impartial investigations for the people, not politics for himself," and criticized, "The Prosecutor General is not an elected representative of the people, and the prosecution is not a political party."

Kang pointed out that the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office, which is investigating the nuclear power plant, was included in a video of Prosecutor General Yoon's provincial prosecutors' office visits released on the official YouTube channel of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on the 4th.

Kang said, "In the video, Prosecutor General Yoon appears cheerful throughout, which is quite different from the appearance he showed when attending the National Assembly inspection," and asked, "Was it a message to the prosecution staff?"

He added, "If you want to know a politician's thoughts, look at their feet, not their words," and pointed out, "The places where the People's Power's complaint related to the Wolseong Unit 1 investigation was sent and where Prosecutor General Yoon's feet went are all the same."

Kang further said, "Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae ordered a detailed report on the execution of Prosecutor General Yoon's special activity expenses," and added, "I hope the places Prosecutor General Yoon's feet went were within the boundaries of his duties and faithful to his position."

Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, who resumed nationwide prosecutor's office tour meetings after eight months, is arriving at the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office building on the afternoon of the 29th of last month for a meeting with prosecutors from the Daejeon area.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Democratic Party's criticism of the investigation into Wolseong Unit 1 continues. Earlier, on the morning of the 6th, Lee Nak-yeon, leader of the Democratic Party, at the party's Supreme Council meeting, described the prosecution's investigation related to Wolseong Unit 1 as "a political investigation and abuse of prosecutorial power," and pointed out, "The Board of Audit and Inspection did not even request an investigation, but the prosecution has responded massively to a politically motivated case filed by the opposition party."

Regarding the prosecution's search and seizure of related agencies such as the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, he repeatedly criticized, "It reminds one of the time last year when a large-scale search and seizure was conducted on the family of the Minister of Justice candidate while the National Assembly confirmation hearing was underway."

Lee pointed out, "It is suspicious that the investigation was launched just two weeks after the opposition party filed a complaint with the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office and one week after Prosecutor General Yoon visited the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office."

Earlier, on the 5th, the 5th Criminal Division (Public Investigation Division, Chief Lee Sang-hyun) of the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office sent prosecutors and investigators to conduct search and seizure at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy in the Government Sejong Complex, the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power headquarters in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, and the Korea Gas Corporation headquarters in Sinseo-dong, Daegu.

The homes and offices of former Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Baek Woon-gyu, former Blue House Industrial Policy Secretary Chae Hee-bong (current president of Korea Gas Corporation), and former Director-General of Energy Resources at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Park Won-joo (former Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office) were also included in the search targets.

Meanwhile, the People Power Party filed a complaint with the prosecution on the 22nd of last month against former Minister Baek Woon-gyu and others on charges including obstruction of audit and manipulation of economic feasibility evaluation related to the early shutdown of Wolseong Unit 1, violations of the Public Records Management Act, invalidity of official documents under criminal law, the Audit Act, abuse of authority, and obstruction of business.

Members of the National Assembly's Industry, Trade, Small and Medium Enterprises Committee from the People Power Party stated in a press release that "As revealed in the audit report by the Board of Audit and Inspection, which was released with great difficulty amid various obstructions and threats from the Moon Jae-in government and the Democratic Party, the early shutdown and economic feasibility manipulation of Wolseong Unit 1 was a joint effort by the Blue House Secretariat, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power." They added, "The early shutdown of Wolseong Unit 1, whose safety and economic feasibility were proven in just over two months, was forcibly carried out," criticizing the move.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.