Government Employees' Union Court Headquarters Condemns Dismissal of Forced Labor Lawsuit

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] The National Public Officials Labor Union Court Headquarters (hereinafter Jeongongno) has condemned the court ruling that dismissed the compensation claims of forced labor victims.

On the 9th, Jeongongno issued a statement titled "Condemning the pro-Japanese ruling that mocks the people," criticizing that "the ruling directly adopted the claims of far-right pro-Japanese figures in our country and far-right Japanese politicians as its basis." They also pointed out, "Lacking confidence and integrity in the ruling, the court hastily advanced the judgment date and delivered a secret ruling excluding the parties involved."

Jeongongno criticized the court for using expressions in the ruling such as "The money brought in through the Korea-Japan Claims Agreement led to the Miracle on the Han River," calling it "an outrageous remark that is hard to believe came from a judge of the Republic of Korea." They added, "It reveals a distorted and narrow historical perspective, as well as an unfiltered anti-national, anti-state, and anti-humanitarian philosophy and conviction."

Jeongongno stated, "Simply blaming the unresolved pro-Japanese history will not bring change," and urged, "We hope to find our role starting from not allowing such pro-Japanese rulings." They further added, "We define the dismissal ruling by the presiding judge as a pro-Japanese ruling and demand a reasonable ruling that meets the public's expectations in the appeal trial."

Earlier, on the 7th, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 34 (Presiding Judge Yangho Kim) dismissed the compensation claims filed by 85 forced labor victims, including Mr. Song, against 16 Japanese companies such as Nippon Steel (formerly Shin Nippon Steel) and Nissan Chemical.

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