Assemblyman So Byeong-cheol Proposes 'Radioactive Contaminated Water Victim Fishermen Support Act'

Rep. So: "Legal Basis Insufficient to Support Fishermen and Fishing Village Residents"
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Establishing Domestic Seafood Safety Management System Including Radiation Monitoring

So Byeong-cheol, the Democratic Party floor leader of the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, announced on the 10th that he has introduced the "Special Act on Support for Fisheries Victims and Others Affected by the Discharge of Radioactive Contaminated Water from Fukushima, Japan" as the main sponsor.

The Japanese government officially approved the ocean discharge of radioactive contaminated water stored at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant on July 22, 2022, and began the discharge on August 24, 2023. According to a public opinion poll released by ‘Yeoreonjosa Kkot’ in the first week of September, 8 out of 10 citizens responded that imports of Japanese seafood should be banned.

[Photo by So Byeong-cheol's Office]

This unprecedented event involves the long-term discharge of a massive amount of radioactive contaminated water into the ocean for at least 30 years, which humanity has never experienced before. However, both the Japanese and Korean governments have effectively supported this, leading to ongoing safety concerns and controversies.

In particular, there is a lack of legal grounds to support our fishermen, fishing village residents, and other Korean citizens who suffer actual damages.

The government claims to have spent about 1 billion KRW of tax money to produce and distribute advertisements asserting the safety of the contaminated water and has prepared 200 billion KRW in consumption promotion subsidies, but these measures cannot be considered practical solutions.

These are neither fundamental solutions nor do they address the criticism that only the middle distribution stage benefits rather than the actual fishing sites.

Accordingly, Representative So Byeong-cheol has introduced a special bill that can provide direct support to affected fishermen.

The bill requires the government to establish a domestic seafood safety management system including radioactive monitoring and to prepare a comprehensive plan every five years regarding support for affected fishermen and others as well as the restoration of the marine environment.

Furthermore, an annual survey on the status of radioactive contaminated water and an implementation plan for support to affected fishermen and marine environmental restoration must be established and executed.

Based on this, support funds will be provided to compensate for actual damages to affected fishermen and others, and a "Support Fund Deliberation Committee" will be established within the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries to review the criteria, amount, and timing of the support payments.

In addition, the bill implements a support system for items recognized as difficult to continue harvesting, collecting, or farming due to radioactive contaminated water, helping affected fishermen and related industry workers with business closure and recovery, and facilitating the prompt restoration of affected areas.

Especially, local governments will also be able to establish and implement support plans if they judge that the prices of seafood within their jurisdiction have fallen or production has decreased, potentially harming small businesses, self-employed persons, and the regional economy.

Representative So Byeong-cheol said, "The reality is that there is insufficient legal basis for support even when fishermen and fishing village residents, whose lives depend on the sea, including in Suncheon, Jeollanam-do, suffer actual damages," adding, "I have introduced a special bill to establish a domestic seafood safety management system including radioactive monitoring and to provide substantial support to affected fishermen and restore the contaminated marine environment."

Suncheon = Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Lee Yeon-gyeong hss79@asiae.co.kr

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