94-year-old survivor of Japanese forced labor awarded national medal

Yang Geum-deok, a 94-year-old survivor of Japan’s forced wartime labor, poses for a photo after receiving the Moran (Peony) Medal of the Order of Civil Merit at a nursing hospital in Gwangju, Saturday. Courtesy of the Gwangju Office of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea

Yang Geum-deok, a 94-year-old survivor of Japan’s forced labor during World War II, has spent decades fighting for justice. She was recently awarded Korea’s Moran (Peony) Medal, the nation’s second-highest civilian honor.

The medal was presented Saturday at a hospital in Gwangju, where Yang has been receiving treatment due to her deteriorating health. The ceremony was modest and held without public notice. It was organized by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) and attended by a few local officials and civic representatives.

“I’m thankful to President Lee Jae Myung for this recognition,” Yang said, expressing her appreciation for the administration’s support. The idea of awarding her the medal had previously been raised by the NHRCK under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, but the plan was dropped after the foreign ministry objected, citing concerns about fairness among victims.

Yang was born in Naju, South Jeolla Province, in 1929. She was only 15 when she was taken to work at a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries factory in Nagoya, Japan. She was misled by her teacher, who promised her an education and a wage. Instead, she was forced to labor in harsh conditions during the war.

In 1992, she became one of the first Korean victims to sue the Japanese government and corporations that benefited from coerced labor during World War II, demanding compensation and an official apology. Her legal challenge gained support from human rights groups and lawyers, helping to bring global attention to the broader issue of forced labor under Japanese colonial rule.

Despite the recent honor, both Yang and the civic group supporting her have expressed reservations about the Korean government’s compensation approach. They specifically criticized last year’s plan to provide payments from Japanese companies without securing a formal apology. Yang accepted the third-party payment arrangement made by the Yoon administration in October last year due to poor health, and advocacy groups noted that the medal offered only “partial and selective justice."

“I never asked for an award,” Yang said. “All I ever wanted was to ensure that young people today don’t experience what I did.”