Japanese people hold a rally in front of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on Monday, calling for "Don't release contaminated water into the sea!" To protest plans by the Japanese government and Tokyo Electric Power Company to release contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the sea.

Mizuho Fukushima, leader of Japan's Social Democratic Party, said at the rally that the nuclear accident is still going on and the relevant emergency declaration has not been lifted. Nuclear-contaminated water cannot be released into the sea and radioactive materials must be centrally managed.

Muto Yuko, who lives in Fukushima, issued a written appeal. She says once it starts dumping into the ocean, it will continue for decades to come. Where the contaminated water flows, there are people living on the sea and living things that call the sea home. The discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea is a violation of life. It is intolerable that the government and TEPCO are planning to release radioactive material into the sea after the nuclear accident has already released a large amount of radioactive material into the environment.

Haruo Ono, a 71-year-old fisherman from the town of Shindi in Fukushima Prefecture, posted a video message. He says fishing and tourism will be affected if contaminated water is released. The sea is the source of life, human arbitrary pollution is really OK? It is the companies that caused the accident and the fishermen, farmers and residents of Fukushima Prefecture who need to be protected.

The Japanese government decided in April 2021 to treat and dilute millions of tons of contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant and release it into the sea in the spring of 2023. The plan to release contaminated water into the sea has been met with opposition from domestic civil groups, including the fishing industry. Despite domestic and international opposition, the Japanese government said on January 13 that it would start releasing treated contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant into the ocean "this spring and summer."