Following Forced Labor, 'Comfort Women Victims' Win Lawsuit Against Japanese Government... Deterioration of Korea-Japan Relations, Japanese Ambassador Nam Gwan-pyo Summoned

Court: "Japanese Government Must Pay 100 Million Won Per Comfort Woman Victim"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Victims of the Japanese military's comfort women system won the first trial in their lawsuit seeking damages against the Japanese government. As the Korean court ruled in favor of the comfort women victims following the ruling on forced labor compensation during Japanese colonial rule, tensions between South Korea and Japan over historical issues and other matters are expected to deepen.

On the 8th, the Civil Division 34 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Jeong-gon) ruled in favor of 12 comfort women victims, including the late grandmother Bae Chun-hee, ordering the defendant to pay 100 million won per plaintiff.

The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it cannot accept the Korean court's ruling and immediately summoned Ambassador Nam Gwan-pyo to Japan. Ambassador Nam told reporters, "We expressed our intention to resolve the issue without causing undesirable effects on Korea-Japan relations," adding, "We emphasized the need for calm and restrained responses from both countries."

This first trial verdict is likely to further strain Korea-Japan relations. The series of bilateral conflicts that have been ongoing since October 2018?including the forced labor compensation issue, export restrictions, and the Korea-Japan General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA)?remain at a standstill without progress.

Diplomatic disputes between the two countries' foreign ministries are expected to continue immediately. While the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has maintained that this is a matter for the judiciary, it has consistently urged Japan to sincerely acknowledge responsibility and apologize for a genuine resolution. In particular, South Korea holds the position that the 2015 Korea-Japan comfort women agreement is unacceptable because the victims' opinions were not sufficiently collected and reflected. On the other hand, the Japanese government has strongly insisted that the South Korean government must faithfully implement the 2015 agreement regardless of changes in administration.

Researcher Choi Eun-mi of the Asan Institute for Policy Studies analyzed, "Considering that Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's approval rating is very low, Japan may react more strongly to the comfort women ruling, making Korea-Japan relations even more difficult going forward."

However, since the inauguration of the Joe Biden administration, it is highly likely that the U.S. government will become deeply involved in Korea-Japan relations. President-elect Biden and Secretary of State nominee Antony Blinken are expected to actively pursue the restoration of the "trilateral alliance" under the banner of "strengthening multilateral alliances." This process may lead to situations unfavorable to the South Korean government.

Researcher Choi explained, "In Japan, there is a strong perception that the comfort women issue is over, and the forced labor compensation and comfort women compensation issues have become economic problems that damage Japanese assets," adding, "The subsequent developments will likely proceed similarly to the forced labor issue."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

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