Court orders Japan to compensate sex slaves

SEOUL－A South Korean court on Friday ordered the Japanese government to pay compensation to 12 World War II sex slaves or their families, in an unprecedented ruling that prompted an immediate denunciation by Tokyo.

The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Japan should pay the victims 100 million won ($91,000) each.

It is the first civilian legal case in South Korea against Tokyo by wartime sex slaves for Japanese troops, who were euphemistically called "comfort women".

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said later on Friday that it respects the ruling and will strive to restore the dignity of the women. It said it will examine the verdict's possible effects on ties with Japan and make efforts to maintain "future-oriented" cooperation with Tokyo.

Imperial Japan was responsible for the "comfort women" system, the court said in its verdict.

"The plaintiffs, who were in their late teens or early 20s, were subjected to repeated sexual exploitation," it said.

"It amounted to an illegal act against humanity and the defendant has an obligation to compensate the victims for their mental suffering."

As Tokyo and Seoul are both major allies of the United States and market economies, their deepening rift will present incoming US president Joe Biden with an immediate foreign policy headache.

Ties between the neighbors are strained by Japan's early-20th century colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula and have plunged to their worst in years.

Tokyo denounced Friday's ruling as a violation of international law and summoned Seoul's ambassador to protest, demanding that the South Korean government intervene.

Historians say hundreds of thousands of Asian women, mostly from the Korean Peninsula, were kidnapped, coerced or duped into sexual servitude for Japanese troops before and during the war.

Friday's ruling came in a legal process that began eight years ago and only five of the original plaintiffs are still alive, the others replaced by family members.

'Deeply moved'

Tokyo boycotted the proceedings and insists all compensation issues stemming from its colonial rule were settled in a 1965 treaty and linked agreement normalizing diplomatic relations between the neighbors.

Under them, Japan paid South Korea financial reparations－which Seoul used to contribute to its transformation into an economic powerhouse－and the document said that claims between the states and their nationals had been "settled completely and finally".

But the court ruled that the pact did not terminate the women's right to seek compensation from Tokyo, which it said bore liability for their suffering decades ago.

"I am deeply moved by today's ruling," said Kim Kang-won, the women's lawyer.

"It is the first such verdict for victims who suffered at the hands of Japanese troops."

Speaking to reporters after the verdict, he insisted that at the time of the 1965 treaty, "the issue of comfort women was not discussed at all".

Agencies - Xinhua