Minister under fire for covering nose at oil spill

By Kim Da-ye

Oceans and Fisheries Minister Yoon Jin-sook covers her nose with her hand during a visit to an oil spill site in Yeosu, South Cheolla Province, Saturday. As this photo went viral during the weekend, criticism emerged she didn’t appear to be aware of the severity of the oil spill, though Yoon explained that she covered her nose with her left hand because she had flu. / Yonhap

Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Yoon Jin-sook is drawing public criticism for covering her nose with her hand and frowning when she visited the site of an oil spill in Yeosu on Saturday.

The photo of her covering her nose at the scene of the oil spill went viral over the weekend.

Yoon later explained that she had to cover her nose with her left hand because she was suffering from flu at the time of the visit. But her explanation caused further uproar on the Internet.

“I covered my mouth because I didn’t want other people to get ill. It’s a misunderstanding that I did so because of the stench. Maybe I consider others too much,” Yoon said in an interview with a TV station on Monday.

Some critics construed her comments Tuesday to mean taking the effects of the spill lightly.

According to Yonhap, nearly 40 residents of Yeosu were treated between Sunday and Tuesday in hospitals for conditions including headache, breathing difficulties or nausea while cleaning up along the coast. Not all residents were given the relevant protective gear before participating in the cleanup.

Some of Yoon’s comments were also thoroughly ridiculed over the Internet.

When the anchor of the JTBC channel news program asked the minister why she remains the subject of much discussion, she said, “I don’t know why, but many people read news when they see my name on the Internet. I think it’s because of my popularity.”

Yoon also rejected criticisms that the initial handling of the oil spill came too late.

She said, “Unlike the criticism, I think our first reaction was made fast. We formed a task force for cleaning up and another to handle the situation.”

The minister apologized for the oil spill at a session of the National Assembly on Tuesday.

There have been many reports about the delayed handling of the oil spill by various responsible parties. The accident was not reported for nearly 30 minutes after the ship crashed into GS Caltex’s oil pipelines at 9:35 p.m., Jan. 31. GS Caltex reported that 800 liters of crude oil had spilled ― one 200th of the Coast Guard’s estimate. Yoon arrived at the scene a day later, around noon on Feb. 1.