Korea's solution to forced labor issue draws backlash from victims

• Published date: 06 March 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

The government on Monday announced an agreement with Japan to compensate victims of forced labor during World War II through a fund created by Korean companies, without the direct involvement of responsible Japanese firms.

But the resolution immediately provoked a fierce backlash from wartime victims and their families, who described the proposal as Seoul's "total defeat" to Tokyo following a diplomatic fracas between the two sides that dragged on for nearly five years. The Japanese government, on the other hand, welcomed the announcement, hoping that the deal will help restore healthy bilateral relations.

During a briefing, Foreign Minister Park Jin unveiled the resolution on compensating 15 Korean victims of forced labor who won three separate lawsuits against two Japanese firms ? Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Nippon Steel ? in 2018. The Supreme Court here ordered the firms to compensate the plaintiffs who were forced to labor for Imperial Japan during its 1910-45 colonial occupation of Korea.

But both firms refused to comply with the ruling, leading to a diplomatic feud between the two nations which further impeded trade and military cooperation.

Under the resolution, the Korean government will compensate the victims through a public foundation created in 2014 under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety. Other plaintiffs, whose cases are pending in court, will also be eligible for the compensation once they win.

The necessary funds will be raised by local companies including POSCO that benefitted from a 1965 Korea-Japan treaty, under which Tokyo offered a package of $300 million (388 billion won) in economic aid and $500 million in loans in compensation for the colonial occupation.

The authorities explained that the settlement was based on in-depth discussions with 13 out of 15 victims, or their families, who were affected by the 2018 ruling.

In response to criticism that the ministry's plan ? without the participation of responsible Japanese firms ? is a half-baked resolution, Park said, "I do not agree with such views."

"Comparing it to a glass of water, I believe the glass is more than half full. And now we expect it to be filled further based on Japan's sincere response," he said, expressing hopes for Japanese companies to make voluntary contributions to the fund.

But the participation of Japanese firms remains elusive.

In January this year, the ministry initially proposed to launch a private foundation where Japanese firms can make voluntary donations...