S. Korea’s Top Court Finalizes Compensation Order for Nippon Steel

Seoul, Dec. 11 (Jiji Press)–South Korea’s Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling that ordered Nippon Steel Corp. to pay a total of 100 million won, or about 11 million yen, in damages to South Korean plaintiffs for wartime labor, dismissing the Japanese company’s appeal. According to the plaintiffs, who are mainly bereaved relatives of former wartime laborers, there are some 50 similar lawsuits, suggesting that more compensation orders against Japanese companies may follow. These lawsuits were filed after the top court confirmed compensation orders for Japanese companies in 2018. Thursday’s top court ruling was the first among them. Regarding wartime labor lawsuits, the previous Yoon Suk-yeol administration came up with a scheme for a government-affiliated foundation, in place of Japanese companies, to pay compensation using donations from companies. The current Lee Jae-myung administration is expected to respond in line with this scheme. However, securing funds for the foundation remains a challenge. On Thursday, the plaintiffs’ lawyer said that the Japanese government and Japanese companies should participate in the scheme. Following the South Korean court ruling, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said that Masaaki Kanai, director-general of the ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, conveyed Japan’s position on the matter to Kim Jang-hyun, deputy chief of mission of the South Korean Embassy in Tokyo. Emphasizing that the ruling is against the 1965 Japan-South Korea agreement on property and claims, Kanai said that Tokyo wants to confirm responses based on the South Korean government’s scheme to resolve the issue, according to the ministry. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]