By Kim Bo-eun
The government has pledged to swiftly hand out cash to surviving Korean victims of sexual slavery before and during World War II, following Japan’s transfer of 1 billion yen (10.7 billion won) to Korea for a foundation set up for the women last week.
The Reconciliation and Healing Foundation, founded by the government to manage the fund, said Monday it would collect opinions from the surviving victims until October and start providing them with cash afterward.
Japan transferred the money after Seoul and Tokyo reached a deal on Dec. 28 to put the disputed issue to rest, with Japan providing Korea with funds for victims. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said last month that surviving victims will receive 100 million won each and families of the deceased, 20 million won, from the fund.
“With the transfer of the funds by the Japanese government, we are now able to take follow-up measures to carry out the deal,” said foundation head Kim Tae-hyeon.
However, the cash provision may not be carried out as planned, because many of the 40 surviving victims have been voicing their opposition to the deal, as the Japanese government did not acknowledge legal responsibility for its atrocities and because the fund is not a form of legal reparations but of humanitarian assistance.
Civic groups launched their own foundation for the victims in June ― the Foundation for Justice and Memory ― countering the government-led one.
Supported by the Foundation for Justice and Memory, 12 victims filed a compensation suit against the government for failing to carry out its duty to ensure that the Japanese government take legal responsibility for its atrocities.
“We have been opposing the deal since it was made,” said a member of the Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, a civic group representing the victims, Monday. “Even though the money was transferred, it doesn’t mean that the victims are going to accept it. While some victims may accept the money, this will not be regarded as legal compensation, and they will still have their right to be legally compensated.”
In an earlier interview with The Korea Times, Kim Bok-dong, 90, one of the surviving victims, said, “We will not accept humanitarian assistance money, even if it were 10 billion won or 100 billion won; we want legal reparations.”
She said she and other victims want Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to apologize openly and officially, and for the country to make legal reparations.
An official at the government-led foundation said that they will try to persuade all of the victims to accept the money.
Although he did not specify the exact number, the official said, “Most of the victims support the idea of receiving the money. For those who are refusing, we will do what we can to persuade them.”
If they do not change their minds, the official said the government may have to use the money for memorial projects instead of direct aid.
The December deal has met with a huge backlash, as victims did not receive prior notification of the negotiations and were entirely excluded from the process.