input
correction
Explained the progress of Korea-Japan negotiations and the government plan to about 40 people, including the bereaved families of the victims.
Regarding the government solution, “From the plaintiffs who judged positively, there were also people who criticized it harshly”
It is reported that the bereaved families showed mixed reactions, such as positive and critical opinions, to the compensation plan through the government’s “third-party reimbursement” method.
Minister Park met with the families of the victims for about 70 minutes at the Seoul District Bar Association in Seocho-gu that afternoon.
The government has consistently communicated with victim support groups and litigation attorneys, and has met separately with the victims, Grandmother Yang Geum-deok and Grandfather Lee Chun-sik, or individual bereaved families, but this is the first time we have met the bereaved families of the victims who participated in the lawsuit as a group.
During the meeting, Minister Park emphasized that the government is making efforts to receive a ‘sincere response’ from Japan, such as an apology and participation in a compensation fund, in the process of preparing a solution to forced labor.
In addition, the compensation plan through the ‘third party reimbursement’ method, which was disclosed through an open forum last month, was explained again and the opinions of the bereaved families were also heard.
The government is pushing forward with the idea that a third party, the Foundation for Supporting Victims of Forced Mobilization under Japanese Occupational Forces, will raise funds to reimburse the victims of conscription, which were finalized on behalf of the Japanese defendant companies.
According to Attorney Lim Jae-seong, the legal representative of the forced labor lawsuit, the opinions of the bereaved families on the government plan seem to be mixed.
Attorney Lim met with reporters after the interview and said, “Since there were more than 40 people gathered, from the plaintiffs who positively judged the Korean government’s position, ‘You must apologize first, and what you need to do now is to apologize and compensate Japan. There were some people who harshly criticized us, saying, “We have to come up with a strategy and strategy to get rid of our ruling, not an explanation to get rid of our ruling.”
“At the briefing session, Minister (Jin Park) said an abstract and declarative story, ‘I hope that you will understand that this meeting today is an expression of the government’s will not to neglect this issue any longer.'”
The victims explained that there was no progress regarding the existing government plan or negotiations between Korea and Japan, and that they had received only a principled position that they were working to participate in an apology and compensation from Japan.
Attorney Lim also said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained the government’s plan to the effect of “confirming that there is no problem with the Foundation for Supporting Victims of Forced Mobilization in Japan in compensating plaintiffs for victims of forced mobilization.”
He added that he did not mention the specific method of fundraising.
In the interview, a total of 40 people, including 6 plaintiffs who worked for Nippon Steel and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Hiroshima, 34 plaintiffs, including 5 victims of forced labor in Fujikoshi, and related officials, among the 3 lawsuits for which the Supreme Court has awarded final judgments on compensation. seated
Originally, it was planned that the survivors of the victim who received a final judgment on compensation and the survivors of the victim whose lawsuit is pending would meet with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs separately, but they met together.
Minister Park tried to attend the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting to be held in New Delhi, India on the 1st and 2nd of next month, but turned to boycott at the last minute, and the decision to attend the meeting was reportedly made after the cancellation of the visit to India.
It is interpreted that the foreign minister is meeting with the bereaved families in person to accelerate efforts to resolve the issue at a time when negotiations on compensation for forced labor are nearing their final stages.
Meanwhile, the victims of the Mitsubishi Women’s Volunteer Labor Corps, who worked in Nagoya, did not attend the lawsuit in which a final judgment was awarded.
Lee Gook-eon, representative of the Citizens’ Group for Forced Mobilization in Japan, which supports the lawsuit for victims of the Mitsubishi Labor Corps in Nagoya, said in a separate statement the day before, “There is no scheduled meeting (with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), and there will be no change in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ attitude toward the prerequisites. We are not considering meeting,” he said.
The Citizens’ Group for Forced Mobilization under Japanese Occupation is demanding an apology from Minister Jin Park for stopping the Grandmother’s National Medal of Honor and a second public debate hosted by the broadcasting company prior to the meeting between the victims and the government.
/yunhap news
