Boys file Japanese mustard gas suit

By Li Xiang (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-27 07:54

Two Chinese boys claiming to have suffered serious after effects from exposure to an abandoned Japanese chemical weapon filed a lawsuit against the Japanese government Tuesday in a Tokyo court.

Zhou Tong, 16, and Liu Haoyin, 12, were exposed in 2004 to toxic mustard gas that leaked from the abandoned weapon as they were playing near their home in Jilin province, northeastern China.

The two boys were treated in hospital for painful blisters on their hands and feet. Aftereffects of the exposure seriously impaired their immune systems and left them with chronic respiratory disease.

The boys filed a lawsuit earlier this year in the Tokyo District Court, seeking 33 million yen ($300,000) each in compensation, the Kyoto News reported.

"I hope Japan removes its abandoned toxic bombs from China as soon as possible," Zhou Tong said on Monday at a press conference in Tokyo.

Foreign Ministry spokesmen Qin Gang Tuesday urged the Japanese government to accelerate the destruction process of its abandoned chemical weapons and eliminate the threat they pose to the Chinese people.

"Abandoned Japanese chemical weapons constitute one of Japan's most serious atrocities during its invasion of China. They are still a serious threat to local people's lives, properties and the ecological environment," Qin said at a regular press briefing in Beijing.

The Japanese government should abide by its commitment according to the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and fulfill its responsibility according to the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries on the destruction of the abandoned chemical weapons, Qin said.

"We hope Japan will handle the issue properly and responsibly," he said.