Public foundation to compensate Japan's forced labor victims

Diplomacy

Published: 06 Mar. 2023, 19:07 Updated: 06 Mar. 2023, 19:28

Public foundation to compensate Japan's forced labor victims

Foreign Minister Park Jin, left, takes questions at a press conference held at his ministry in central Seoul where the government announced its plan to compensate forced labor victims through a Korea-backed public foundation Monday. [YONHAP]

The Korean government announced a plan Monday to compensate Japan's wartime forced labor victims through a public foundation funded by domestic companies, aimed at mending bilateral relations which have frayed in recent years.

Some victims and local civic groups immediately protested the plan because it didn't involve direct payments from the Japanese companies who were ordered to compensate the forced labor victims by Korea's top court in 2018.

Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin formally announced the plan in a press briefing Monday to compensate 15 plaintiffs, including three elderly survivors and family members of deceased forced labor victims, through the previously existing Foundation for Victims of Forced Mobilization by Imperial Japan.

The foundation, under the Interior Ministry, will be financed mainly through voluntary contributions from the private sector and other fundraising projects.

This includes initial contributions from some 16 Korean companies who benefitted from the 1965 claims settlement agreement which normalized ties between Korea and Japan such as steelmaker Posco.

The foundation will compensate the 15 victims, including any interest. It will also cover the compensation of other plaintiffs who may win additional pending cases in the future, as there are a number of ongoing forced labor suits in local courts, including nine awaiting final decisions in the Supreme Court.

Missing from the plan were any contributions from the Japanese companies involved in the 2018 court decisions — Nippon Steel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

Tokyo has been resistant to contributing to the fund, though Park said he hopes that the Japanese companies could contribute on a "voluntary" basis.

In landmark rulings in October and November 2018, the Korean Supreme Court ordered Nippon Steel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to individually compensate around 100 to 150 million won ($76,000 to $115,000) to the victims of forced labor during World War II.

The Japanese companies refused to comply, and courts began legal steps toward liquidating their assets in Korea, which was met by extreme protests from Tokyo.
Japan's export restrictions on the Korean chip and display industry, starting in July 2019, were widely seen as retaliation against the Supreme Court rulings, contributing to a series of tit-for-tat measures and the further deterioration of bilateral ties that are often rocky over historical disputes stemming from Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule over Korea.

Civic groups hold a protest in front of the Foreign Ministry in central Seoul Monday after the government announced plans to compensate wartime forced labor victims through a public foundation without the involvement of Japanese companies. [NEWS1]

Tokyo maintains that that all matters of compensation were settled under a 1965 treaty that normalized bilateral ties.

"Our government made a sweeping decision to find a breakthrough in improving the strained relationship between Korea and Japan," Park said Monday. "We hope that the Japanese side can respond with a comprehensive apology and voluntary contributions from Japanese companies."

Park said the government has sought understanding and consent for its solution from the victims and their families through several meetings.

He added the government will do its utmost to "ensure that the pain and wounds of the elderly victims and their bereaved families are healed as soon as possible."

Rather calling for a "new apology" from Japan for its colonial aggressions, Park said that it is "more important for Japan to consistently and faithfully stand by its previous past statements of remorse and apology."

He urged the Japanese government to inherit the joint declaration of 1998 adopted by President Kim Dae-jung and Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi.

In the landmark declaration, Obuchi acknowledged the "tremendous damage and suffering to the people of the Republic of Korea through its colonial rule" and expressed "deep remorse and heartfelt apology."

Responding to concerns on the lack of Japanese companies' participation, Park said that to his knowledge, "the Japanese government does not oppose voluntary contributions from the private sector," leaving that option open.

The two sides also plan to create a "future youth fund" to provide scholarships for students as part of the larger comprehensive agreement to resolve the forced labor issue, funded by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) and the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), according to government sources.

"I hope that we will overcome our unfortunate past history and work together to develop a future-oriented relationship based on reconciliation and good-neighborly friendship," added Park.

The Japanese government in turn indicated it plans to uphold previous cabinet's statements regarding its colonial rule over Korea but stopped short of expressing a direct apology.

Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said in a press conference later Monday that his government "reaffirms that it has inherited the positions of past cabinets on historical awareness as a whole," including the Korea-Japan joint declaration of October 1998.

He welcomed Seoul's announcement as an "impetus" for the expansion of exchanges between Japan and Korea in the political, economic and cultural sectors.

However, he said that there had been no agreement that Japanese companies will contribute to the fund.

Speaking at a parliamentary session on Monday, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida likewise indicated that said he stands by Japan's previous statements on its colonial wrongdoings.

"Regarding historical perception, I plan to inherit the position of past cabinets as a whole, and will continue to do so in the future," said Kishida, regarding the forced labor compensation issue.

Kishida commended Seoul's announcement as a move to "restore Korea-Japan ties to a healthy relationship" and said that he looks forward to continuing to communicate closely with President Yoon Suk Yeol "to further develop" bilateral ties.

He added that under the current strategic environment, "it is necessary to strengthen strategic cooperation between Korea and Japan and between Korea and the United States and Japan."

Yoon said in a meeting with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo Monday that Korea's decision to compensate wartime forced labor victims reflected his administration's determination to move toward a "future-oriented relationship" with Japan, according to the presidential office later that day.

"In order for Korea-Japan relations to enter a new era, the governments of the two countries must make efforts to play a pivotal role centered on future generations," said presidential spokesman Lee Do-woon in a press briefing.

Han replied that the government plans to expand exchange projects for the two countries' youths and students and promote cooperation in the fields of culture, diplomacy, security economy and global issues with a sense of urgency, added Lee.

U.S. President Joe Biden in a statement said that Korea and Japan's announcements "mark a groundbreaking new chapter of cooperation and partnership between two of the United States' closest allies."

He said that Yoon and Kishida "are taking a critical step to forge a future for the Korean and Japanese people that is safer, more secure, and more prosperous."

Biden said that the United States will continue to support the two countries' leaders "as they take steps to translate this new understanding into enduring progress," which will help to "uphold and advance our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific."

He added that the United States will continue to strengthen and enhance the trilateral ties between the three countries.

In a similar statement, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken welcomed the "historic announcements" by its two allies "regarding the conclusion of discussions on sensitive historical issues," adding it is "inspired by the work they have done to advance their bilateral relations."

Blinken applauded Yoon and Kishida for their "courage and vision" and called on the international community "to join our commendation of this momentous achievement."

U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg welcomed a "historic breakthrough in relations" between Seoul and Tokyo.

Goldberg said that the "agreement to deal with a painful period in history advances trust and reconciliation between the two nations and reflects the tremendous dedication and commitment of President Yoon to working with Prime Minister Kishida to redefine the future" of the Korea-Japan relationship.

However, some victims and civic groups immediately condemned the compensation plan, holding protests saying they can't accept any solution that doesn't involve an apology and direct compensation from the Japanese companies involved.

Activists from a coalition of 611 civic groups, including the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, held a rally in front of the Foreign Ministry in central Seoul.

They expressed their concerns over a third-party compensation method and criticized Seoul's "humiliating" diplomacy with Tokyo in which the Japanese companies neither demonstrated repentance nor accepted legal liability. They said the future youth fund does not make up for the lack of their direct contributions.

Legal representatives of the victims likewise lambasted the government plan through a press conference in Seoul and expressed concern at effectively providing the Japanese companies with immunity from their legal obligations.

"I won't accept any compensation given like money to beggars," said Yang Geum-deok, a 94-year-old forced labor survivor, after watching the news from her hometown of Gwangju.

"There are people who have done wrong, and there are people who need to apologize, but we can't solve this" with a third-person compensation method, said Yang.

"I won't die of hunger even if I don't receive that money."

Yang Geum-deok, an elderly forced labor survivor, protests the Korean government’s plans to compensate victims for Japan’s wartime forced labor through a public foundation in Gwangju on Monday. [YONHAP]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]