One of the three South Koreans victims of forced labor under Japan's rule during World War II has agreed to accept a compensation from a domestic public fund, media reported on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 25th May, 2023) One of the three South Koreans victims of forced labor under Japan's rule during World War II has agreed to accept a compensation from a domestic public fund, media reported on Thursday.
In March, the South Korean government offered the forced labor survivors compensations from the domestic fund instead of Japanese companies as a move to ease tensions with Tokyo. Initially, all three of them rejected the offer.
The survivor will receive the compensation on Friday, Japanese Kyodo news agency reported, citing the South Korean Foreign Ministry. The person has decided to receive the damages from the domestic foundation after a conversation with family members, a source familiar with the matter told the media.
Besides, 10 out of 15 family members of other wartime labor survivors have also agreed to accept money from the fund, according to the report.
The South Korean government plans to persuade the two remaining victims of Japan's colonial regime and their family members to follow suit, Kyodo reported.
In 2018, a South Korean court ordered Japanese companies Nippon Steel, Fujikoshi Corporation and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which were using forced Korean labor during the Second World War, to pay compensations to the survivors. The verdict antagonized Tokyo, which argued that all related issues were settled "completely and finally" under the 1965 agreement, and led to the deterioration of trade relations between the countries.
The new administration of South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has decided not to demand compensation from Japan in order to normalize relations with Tokyo.
