K-Pop Concert Concludes 25th World Scout Jamboree in South Korea Amid Heatwaves and Typhoons

Even a K-Pop concert could not lift up the spirits of 40,000 Scouts who had gathered in South Korea for the 25^th World Scout Jamboree. On Tuesday, tens of thousands of scouts had to be evacuated from the site of the World Scout Jamboree because of Typhoon Khanun. 

An unprecedented heatwave prompted mass illnesses. But climate change is not to be entirely blamed. The annual event was plagued with problems from the start. Scouts from all over the world gathered in South Korea for the Jamboree had to pitch tents in swamp-like conditions and lack of natural shade at the campsite caused hundreds to fall ill, and there were also criticisms of the substandard sanitary conditions. 

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Ahmad Alhendawi, the secretary general of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, during the closing ceremony said the last few days have not been easy. He said everyone had other expectations. “Your dream of this jamboree was a different one. I know this wasn’t easy on you. No other event has faced this many challenges and extreme weather conditions. But also, no other jamboree in history showed the determination, creativity and resilience of you scouts.” 

The South Korean government tried to save the closing ceremony with a K-Pop concert at a wet soccer stadium, with performances by NewJeans and Ive. The Scouts made the most of it cheering on the singers, performing on a brightly illuminated stage, and waving heart-shaped light sticks. 

But critics also lashed out at the Han Duck-soo government saying this has been South Korea’s biggest public relations disaster. Isak Choi, K-Pop columnist, believes it’s a terrible totalitarian idea that the state owns K-Pop. Moreover, reports highlighted around 1,000 employees of the Korean Development Bank and the Korea Electric Power Corporation were mobilized to help out with the concert. The Korean Financial Industry Union said it’s almost at the level of forced conscription during wartime.