Abe on Forced Labor Discrimination Against Korean Workers: "Baseless Defamation"

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe [Photo by AP News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe referred to the issue of discriminatory treatment of Korean laborers forcibly mobilized during the Pacific War as "groundless slander."

According to the Sankei Shimbun on the 23rd, former Prime Minister Abe said at the Industrial Heritage Information Center in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which he visited the day before, "I hope that groundless slander will definitely be overcome and that Japan's vigorous industrialization efforts will be conveyed."

During his visit to the center the previous day, Abe met with Japanese residents who lived on Hashima (端島, Gunkanjima), a site of forced labor during the Japanese colonial period. At the center, he examined pay envelopes showing that Taiwanese forced laborers who worked at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Nagasaki shipyard during the Pacific War were paid wages, and emphasized to the former residents of Gunkanjima, "The truth of history will be conveyed through your stories."

The Industrial Heritage Information Center exhibits Japan's modern industrial facilities, including the Gunkanjima coal mine, and has been controversial for prominently featuring testimonies from local residents claiming there was no discrimination against Koreans on Gunkanjima. When 23 Meiji-era industrial sites were registered as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage sites in 2015, Japan promised to establish an information center honoring victims such as Korean forced laborers, but it was criticized for focusing mainly on exhibits showcasing achievements.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.