The Japanese Foreign Ministry protested to its Chinese colleagues over a caricature of the famous engraving “The Great Wave off Kanagawa” by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. Kyodo reports this on April 28, citing sources familiar with the situation.
On Monday, April 26, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian posted on his Twitter the original engraving and version of one of the Chinese illustrators, who depicted people in protective suits instead of boat passengers, who were dumping something into the water. This post is a reference to the Japanese government’s decision to dump water from the Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant into the sea.
The Chinese diplomat signed his post: “If the author of the original work, Katsushika Hokusai, were alive now, he would also be very worried about Japanese radioactive water.”
An illustrator in #China re-created a famous Japanese painting The Great Wave off #Kanagawa… If Katsushika Hokusai, the original author is still alive today, he would also be very concerned about #JapanNuclearWater… pic.twitter.com/NlTFkqvwmN
– Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 (@ zlj517) April 26, 2021
In the Japanese government, the publication caused concern. The interlocutor of Kyodo said that the Japanese foreign ministry considered the post offensive and called for it to be removed.
Earlier, on April 15, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, commenting on the Japanese authorities’ statement on the safety of drinking water from the damaged Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant, advised them to check it out on their own experience.
The Japanese government made the decision to dump water on April 13. The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, expressed regret that Tokyo did not consult with Russia and neighboring states before the decision to discharge water from the Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant into the ocean.
The Chinese and South Korean authorities are also concerned about this project. In their opinion, the discharge of radioactive water will negatively affect the environment and health of residents of neighboring states. The PRC announced its intention to discuss the environmental issue at the international level.
Thirty public organizations, the All Japan Federation of Fishery Cooperative Associations, and the Fukushima, Miyagi and Ibaraki Prefectural Fishermen Associations are opposed to the discharge of water from Fukushima-1 into the sea. In Fukushima Prefecture, 41 municipalities expressed their negative opinion – about 70% of the total. At present, 65,000 signatures have been collected outside Japan against the government’s decision. The country itself has collected 450 thousand signatures.