‘Don’t speak loudly’: Japan issues warning to citizens living in China over Fukushima water discharge row

Japan issued a warning on Friday (Aug 25) to its citizens living in China to remain incognito for a while after Beijing slammed Tokyo over the release of radioactive water from the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear plant.

It also asked its people “not to speak Japanese loudly” while out in public as it may attract any unwarranted action.

"When going out, try to be cautious, such as not speaking Japanese loudly unnecessarily," the Japanese embassy said in an alert posted on its website on Friday.

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The embassy also warned its people to "pay close attention to the surroundings of the embassy" if planning to visit.

Japanese consulates in Hong Kong and South Korea on alert

Similar warnings were also issued in Chinese-ruled Hong Kong and South Korea asking citizens to “behave cautiously”.

Japan's consulate in Hong Kong has warned of protests there relating to the water release, after 100 marchers took to the streets on Thursday (Aug 24) objecting to the discharge.

In South Korea, Japan's embassy issued a notice advising its citizens there to avoid "unnecessary trouble" due to a rally planned around the embassy.

On Thursday, the police in Seoul arrested 16 protesters who entered the Japanese embassy in the capital city.

Tokyo begins releasing Fukushima wastewater, neighbours raise concerns

Meanwhile, China has banned all seafood from Japan after the discharge of 1m tonnes of radioactive water from the ruined Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.

The ban began immediately affecting all imports of “aquatic products” including seafood.

China defends marine food ban move

Justifying its move, China’s customs agency said that it risks the “radioactive contamination of food safety”. China’s foreign ministry said it was an “extremely selfish and irresponsible act”.

But Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco), the company that manages the plant, said rapid tests of samples taken from the first batch of released wastewater showed radioactivity levels well within safe limits.

“We confirmed that the analysed value is equal to the calculated concentration and that the analysed value is below 1,500 becquerels per litre,” a Tepco spokesperson, Keisuke Matsuo, told reporters. The national safety standard is 60,000 becquerels a litre.

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also said that his government used diplomatic channels to request China to lift the ban.

“We strongly encourage discussion among experts based on scientific grounds,” Kishida told reporters, according to the Kyodo news agency.

(With inputs from agencies)

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