The South Korean government expressed its position on Japan's failure to appeal the judgment on the "comfort women" claims

Seoul, December 12 (China News Service) -- The South Korean government said on the 10th that the Japanese government did not appeal the verdict of the second instance of the second case of compensation against Japan for the victims of South Korea's "comfort women" that the government will continue to make efforts for the future-oriented cooperation between the two countries.

In response to media questions on the same day, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the government is making efforts to restore the honor and dignity of the victims of the "comfort women". The South Korean Foreign Ministry also said that the "South Korea-Japan Agreement on Comfort Women" signed by South Korea and Japan in 2015 is a formal agreement between the governments of the two countries. The ROK government respects the agreement, and successive governments have consistently adhered to this position.

On the 23rd of last month, the Seoul High Court ruled on the second claim filed by the victims of South Korean "comfort women" and their surviving families against the Japanese government, overturning the first-instance judgment and ordering the Japanese government to pay the plaintiffs in full the compensation demanded by the plaintiffs, that is, 16 million won (about 2.108 million yuan) per person.

Since the Japanese government did not appeal within the time limit prescribed by the law before 9:<> on the <>th, the second-instance judgment came into effect. The Government of Japan has never responded to the lawsuit on the grounds of the principle of State sovereign immunity under international law.

According to Yonhap News Agency, in December 2016, Lee Yong-so and other "comfort women" victims and survivors filed a lawsuit against the Japanese government, demanding that Japan pay 12 million won in compensation to each of the plaintiffs. In April 2, the Seoul Central District Court dismissed the lawsuit on the grounds that Japan was a sovereign state applying state sovereign immunity.

However, in January 2021, the Seoul Central District Court issued a different judgment on another case in which "comfort women" victims filed a claim against the Japanese government, requiring Japan to pay 1 million won to each of the plaintiffs. As a result, Lee Yong-so and other plaintiffs appealed to the Seoul High Court. (ENDS)