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🇰🇷 South Korea /Environment & Climate

Environmental activists publicly accuse Minister Kim Seong-hwan of dereliction of duty

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Environmental activists have publicly accused the Minister of Climate, Energy, and Environment, Kim Seong-hwan, of neglecting his duties and failing to protect the environment.
  • The activists claim the ministry under Kim's leadership has abandoned its core roles of environmental conservation and regulation, prioritizing new nuclear power plant construction and neglecting plastic reduction policies.
  • They argue that despite promises of river restoration and a focus on renewable energy, the ministry's actions fall short, leading to a situation where environmental protection seems to be missing from its agenda.

Environmental activists gathered outside the "Environment Day" ceremony in Seoul to publicly denounce Minister Kim Seong-hwan, accusing his ministry of abandoning its environmental protection and regulation duties. Groups like the Korean Federation for Environmental Movements and the National Action for the Restoration of the 4 Rivers' Naturalness argue that under Kim's leadership, the ministry has failed to uphold its responsibilities.

Minister Kim Seong-hwan's administration is abandoning its inherent roles of environmental conservation and regulation.

— Korean environmental groupsActivists announced their intention to file a complaint against Minister Kim Seong-hwan for dereliction of duty.

The activists point to the minister's "decarbonization green civilization" slogan as a facade. They cite the push for new nuclear power plants, the abandonment of plastic reduction roadmaps, and the construction of park golf courses in national parks as evidence of the ministry's misplaced priorities. Despite promises to restore the four major rivers, the ministry has shown no substantial progress, leaving rivers choked by algal blooms.

Decarbonization green civilization.

— Kim Seong-hwanThe slogan Minister Kim Seong-hwan has been promoting since his confirmation hearing.

Furthermore, the "Climate Action" initiative launched on Environment Day was criticized for its simplistic citizen pledges, such as walking short distances or reducing plastic use. Activists argue this shifts the responsibility from the ministry to citizens, while the ministry itself seems to be moving away from its core mandate of expanding renewable energy. The ministry's focus has narrowed to renewable energy and climate disaster response, with new nuclear power plants presented as the solution to energy problems, effectively sidelining environmental conservation.

The rivers blocked by the weirs are still suffering from algal blooms.

— Park Eun-jeongPolicy team leader at Green Korea United, criticizing the lack of progress on the 4 Rivers restoration project.

The public accusation, framed as a criminal complaint for dereliction of duty, is not a political attack on Kim but a desperate plea to question whether the Minister of Climate, Energy, and Environment is fulfilling his duty to protect the environment and citizens' right to a healthy environment. The ministry's own website, with its frequent use of terms like "nuclear power," "industry," and "technology" over "environment," "ecosystem," and "biodiversity," suggests a shift towards becoming a "Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Industry" rather than a protector of the environment.

The Ministry of Climate, Energy, and Environment is missing environmental protection.

— Park Eun-jeongDescribing the current state of the ministry's focus.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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