Not for Jamboree, but for trophies

Lee Sang-eon
The author is an editorial writer of the JoongAng Ilbo.

Summers in Korea are hot and humid, owing to the influence of the North Pacific high-pressure system causing the subtropical climate. Sweltering summer has become a norm for Koreans. Summers in other parts of the world are different. Most parts of Europe as well as the lower-altitude Mediterranean coastal regions are more familiar with a dry summer. Even with the mercury above 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit), the heat is bearable under shade.

The U.S. Midwest is also hot, but not humid. The sun is sizzling in Africa and the Middle East, but bearable due to dryness. Weather report shows humidity at Cairo, Egypt, at 36 percent at 3 p.m. Aug. 9. Humidity level hits 60 percent in Seoul at the same clock. The temperature in Dubai points to 40 degrees Celsius with humidity at 39 percent, much lower than in Korea.

Most of the thousands of youths aged between 14 and 17 taking part in the 2023 World Scout Jamboree would have experienced the hottest and most humid in their lives when they arrived at the massive and shadeless makeshift campsite at Saemangeum reclaimed on Korea’s western coast. Scouts from Southeast Asia and Japan would have been used to such summer climate, but they would never have been exposed to the scorching heat wave without air conditioners for so long. Humidity averaged 85 percent from morning to evening around the camping site on the coast. That level of humidity is hardly endurable even for adults if they are forced to use tents without electric fans or air conditioners.

Storms and typhoons are a regular event for Korea in August. Uninterrupted downpours of up to 300 millimeters (12 inches) of rain for four days from Aug. 8 last year had drenched the middle part of the country. The monsoonal front at the time hung over the capital region and Gangwon Province. Had the rain front built up in the south as it did during last month’s downpour, Saemangeum could have bombarded with torrential rains. Super typhoons Rusa in 2022, Kompasu in 2010, Bolaven in 2012, Francisco in 2013, Mysak in 2020, Talas in 2022 had been notorious visitors in August that hammered through the Korean Peninsula. Talas last year landed over Jeju and pierced through Jeolla Province.

Organizers of the Jamboree would have been well aware of weather dangers. The documents of the organizing committee list the readiness against the extreme heat wave and inclement risks from storms and typhoon. The representative of a local civic group three years ago called the idea of tenting out on a reclaimed swath of land as plain crazy, because such a location turns extremely humid after rains — and after the steam rises from the wetland under the scorching sun. Defiant bureaucrats claimed they would plant trees and build greenery tunnels to create shades. They promised sufficient restrooms and shower booths, but they did not keep their promises. The venue was tree- and shade-less. Shower booths and toilets were slack and short. Typhoon shelters were loosely designated in nearby school gyms. There were no specifics on exactly where the 40,000-plus scouters should sleep, rest and clean upon evacuation. The visitors eventually had to be relocated across the country due to a typhoon forecast.

The Jamboree event has provided impetus to long-neglected Saemangeum development. Reclaimed cost came from the central government and roads were built on the land. The construction of a new airport was approved without the necessary preliminary feasibility study. But the fundamental deliberation on how to offer the teenagers from all over the world some memorable, safe and rewarding outdoor experiences was absent. It was a ceremony of all pretension without any essence. Bureaucrats took advantage of what they can during the preparation. They enjoyed tours under the pretext of Jamboree preparation. How they spent the budget of over 100 billion won ($75 million) cannot be known. The farce over the Jamboree flopped, sapping high expectations of global youths and wasting tax money.

A K-pop extravaganza is being readied in Seoul in hopes to make amends for the sufferings in Saemangeum. We hope global youths at least can return home with one memorable experience. Still, an idol-studded concert can hardly make up for all the mistakes. Nature and brotherhood are the scouting spirit, not the sensational culture. We are truly ashamed and very sorry to all of the young visitors.