Photographic Essay of Korean–Japanese Asbestos Mobilization1
On September 12-14, 2026, there was a dynamic and valuable collaboration between Korean and Japanese asbestos activists during which news of current developments was exchanged, information about the unmet needs of victims shared and colorful events mounted to highlight the ramifications of national asbestos legacies.
Eleven people from Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyushu, including four mesothelioma patients and five family members bereaved by the asbestos cancer deaths of loved ones, joined South Korean colleagues for unforgettable days of activism and solidarity. A full and varied program included discussion sessions, government interactions and outreach activities dedicated to raising the profile of asbestos issues. The events were co-organized by South Korean and Japanese partnering organizations. From South Korea: National Assembly Members Lee Hak-young and Kim Tae-sun, the Asian Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health (Eco-Health), the National School Parents Network for Ban Asbestos, the Ulsan Branch of Korean Plant Construction Union, the Chungnam Friends of the Earth Korea , the Yesan-Hongseong Friends of the Earth Korea, and the Ban Asbestos Network of Korea (BANKO). From Japan: the Mesothelioma Asbestos Diseases Patients and Families Association, NPO Mesothelioma Support Caravan Team and the Asian Ban Asbestos Network (A-BAN).
September 12, 2026 – Saturday
An international cancer victims’ exchange was held at the Gangnam Station Conference Center in Seoul. Amongst those in attendance were patients with asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer, bereaved family members, campaigners and medical professionals. Virtual participation from delegates in Japan, Korea, Singapore, Thailand, and elsewhere expanded the matters under consideration and enriched the discussion.
 In-person and on-line participation at the September 12, 2026 mesothelioma victims’ workshop at the Gangnam Station Conference Center, Seoul. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
 Shinichiro Sawada, Secretary-General of the Japanese Association of Mesothelioma and Asbestos-Related Disease Patients and Families, speaking at the international exchange event on lung cancer and mesothelioma. September 12, 2026. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
September 13, 2026 – Sunday
Discussions between South Korean and Japanese participants in September’s solidarity mission were progressed at the offices of the Asian Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. In attendance were: 4 mesothelioma patients, 4 bereaved family members and 2 activists from Japan, and 3 mesothelioma patients, 1 family member, 1 bereaved family member and 5 activists from South Korea. A variety of matters was raised during this informal session and preparations were made for Monday’s press conference and symposium at the National Assembly.
 Discussion group at the Asian Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. September 13, 2026. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
 Commemorative photo at the conclusion of the meeting at the Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health in Gwanghwamun, Seoul. September 13, 2026. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
September 14, 2026 – Monday 11:30 a.m.
 Asbestos victims from Japan and Korea held a press conference at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul. September 14, 2026. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
 Han Jeong-hee, representative of the National School Parents Network for Ban Asbestos, delivered the press conference statement. The full text of that document can be accessed at the link in the footnote below.2 September 14, 2026. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
 Japanese mesothelioma patient Mr I. Toshihiko from Kyushu called for improvements to asbestos damage relief systems in Korea and Japan. Picture courtesy of Eco-Health. |
September 14, 2026 –Monday afternoon:
The Korea-Japan Asbestos Victims’ Symposium took place at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building, ~200 meters from the National Assembly Building, home to South Korea’s Parliament. It is well-known that the National Assembly still contains substantial amounts of sprayed asbestos coating material. On September 23, 2026 – 9 days after the symposium – it was announced that asbestos decontamination work would recommence in Parliament in January 2027; however, the removal of the sprayed asbestos applied to the ceiling would be excluded. According to an official from the National Assembly Secretariat: “We cannot do it all at once, so we are proceeding sequentially… We plan to remove asbestos from the main building of the National Assembly in stages in the future.” 3
This high-profile and rewarding event was jointly organized by MPs LEE Hakyoung and KIM Taesun, who are both members of the ruling party.
 Participants filling out entry forms at the entrance of the National Assembly Members’ Office Building. In addition to the delegates from Japan, Korean asbestos victims and supporters from Hongseong and Boryeong, Chungnam Province also took part. Photo courtesy of Eco-health. |
 Professor Domyung Paek addressing the asbestos symposium at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building. Photo courtesy of Eco-health. |
 Korea–Japan Asbestos Victims’ Symposium at the National Assembly Members’ Office Building. The man in the middle wearing the suit and blue tie is MP LEE Hakyoung, a former vice chair of the parliament, and one of the co-organizers of this event. The signs being held by the participants said: Equal care for environmental and occupational asbestos victims, prolong access to government benefits for 2nd and 3rd degree asbestosis sufferers, recognize and compensate asbestos victims with laryngeal and ovarian cancers. Photo courtesy of the Hongju Daily. |
 Attendees pose for a commemorative photo with the National Assembly main building in the background. They were shouting “Fight” in a show of solidarity after the symposium. Photo courtesy of the Hongju Daily (Enlarge this image). |
September 12-15, 2026
The Japanese and Korean members of the solidarity delegation registered to attend the 2026 World Conference on Lung Cancer. They monitored several key sessions between September 12-15, 2026. There was a poster presentation by a Japanese lung cancer patient group.
 Taking a commemorative photo with asbestos victims from Japan and Korea at the World Cancer Congress held at COEX Convention & Exhibition Center, Seoul. Picture courtesy of the nonprofit organization (NPO) Mesothelioma Support Caravan Team. |
 Picture courtesy of the NPO Mesothelioma Support Caravan Team. |
Commenting on last month’s solidarity exchange, organizer Yeyong Choi – Director of Asian Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health (Eco-Health), South Korea – said:
“For decades, asbestos victims in South Korea and Japan were invisible. They and their families suffered in silence as their diseases progressed. There was no official recognition of their conditions, little medical care available and no compensation paid. Both governments were shamed into recognizing the deadly asbestos legacies which caused ill-health amongst asbestos-exposed workers as well as members of the public who lived near asbestos-producing and using facilities. Even now, there are major deficiencies in both national systems: inequalities in compensation paid to different types of asbestos victims; failures to provide up-to-date medical treatments; continuing contamination of the built and natural environments. The only way change will come is for the victims’ voices to be heard not only at the grassroots but at the very highest levels of government. With solidarity comes progress. The struggle continues.”
October 9, 2026
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1 2026년9월12~14 한일 석면피해자 국제교류 [September 12–14, 2026 Korea-Japan International Exchange of Asbestos Victims]. September 14, 2026.
https://eco-health.org/bbs/board.php?bo_table=sub09_04&wr_id=631
Also see: Kazan-Allen, L. Report from the Asbestos Frontline: Summer 2026. July 15, 2026.
https://ibasecretariat.org/lka-report-from-the-asbestos-frontline-summer-2026.php
2 환경보건시민센터 보도자료 2026년 9월10일자 . 석면피해제도 개선위한 한일 석면피해자 국제교류
Citizens’ Center for Environmental Health Press Release. International Exchange of Asbestos Victims from Korea and Japan. September 10, 2026.
Amongst the demands expressed by the demonstrators at the press conference were: equal access to compensation and benefits for environmental and occupational asbestos victims, better medical care for patients with asbestos-related cancers such as mesothelioma and the continuation of payment of government relief to Korean sufferers of Grades 2 and 3 asbestosis.
https://eco-health.org/bbs/board.php?bo_table=sub02_02&wr_id=1389
3 [단독] 국회, 내년 본관 1층 '석면' 제거 나선다 [[Exclusive] National Assembly to Remove Asbestos from the First Floor of the Main Building Next Year]. September 24, 2026.
https://news.tf.co.kr/read/ptoday/2369608.htm
