The victims sued the Japanese government in 2016 for kidnapping, sexual violence and torture during World War II. They had had adolescence and the early 1920s during the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula and were subjected to dozens of forced sexual acts by Japanese troops every day, the judge said in Friday’s ruling.
These girls and women forced to perform sexual acts of slavery are known as “comfort women”. The practice was sanctioned and organized by the Japanese Imperial Army before and during World War II.
The Japanese occupation ended in 1945, but the victims suffered severe psychological trauma in the post-war years, as well as widespread social stigma, the judge said. The judge awarded the total amount of $ 91,000 (100 million winners) claimed by the applicants, adding that the damage exceeded that amount.
Japanese prime ministers have apologized in the past, and Tokyo believed the issue was resolved in 1965 as part of an agreement to normalize relations between the two countries. But South Korea was a military dictatorship at the time, and many Koreans say the deal was unfair.
Another major deal in 2015 was another excuse and a $ 8 million commitment for a foundation to support surviving “comfortable women.”
Despite these existing agreements, the plaintiffs were entitled to sue for damages, the judge said on Friday.
In a statement after the ruling, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said the government “respects the court’s decision and will make every effort to restore the honor and dignity of the victims of” comfort women “.
He acknowledged the 2015 agreement between the countries and said the government would “also review the impact of the ruling on diplomatic relations and make every effort to continue constructive and forward-looking cooperation between Korea and Japan.”
Japanese officials have strongly criticized the decision, but the chief secretary of the cabinet, Katsunobu Kato, considered it “extremely unfortunate” and “absolutely unacceptable”, according to a Reuters feed of Friday’s press conference.
Kato added that the Japanese government was not subject to South Korean jurisdiction and that the country had repeatedly called for the case to be rejected. “We strongly urge South Korea, as a country, to take an appropriate response to correct this violation of international law,” he said.
Korea’s comfort women
“A large number of women victims talk about the violence used on family members who tried to prevent the abduction of their daughters and, in some cases, about raping soldiers in front of their parents before being forcibly removed,” the report said. .
Despite apologies and compensation from Japan, South Korean activists say the apology has not gone far enough and many are demanding further reparations.
“As a victim of great suffering from Japanese imperialism in the past, we, in turn, cannot but take Japan’s economic retaliation very seriously,” South Korean President Moon Jae-in said after the economic retaliatory measures. “It is all the more so as this economic revenge is in itself unjustifiable and has its roots in historical problems.”
Historical animosity is also felt among many citizens; more than 36,000 South Koreans signed a petition during the 2019 trade dispute calling on the government to retaliate against Tokyo. Many South Koreans have also called for a boycott of Japanese products on social media.
“The rising sun flag is like a symbol of the devil for Asians and Koreans, just as the swastika is a symbol of the Nazis that reminds Europeans of invasion and horror,” said An Min-suk, chairman of the parliamentary committee on sport.
But the Olympic organizers refused to ban the flag from the competition venues, arguing that “the flag itself is not considered a political statement.”