Ruling party expresses deep condolences over death of ex-Japanese prime minister

President Kim Young-sam speaks during a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, July 23, 1994 photo. Korea Times file

The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Friday expressed deep condolences over the death of former Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama, who was known for his historic apology to Asian victims of Japan's wartime aggression.

"As prime minister of Japan, he was the first to explicitly acknowledge Japan's past as an act of 'aggression' and delivered a sincere apology along with a courageous recognition of history," Rep. Park Soo-hyun, chief spokesperson for the DPK, said in a press release.

Murayama, best known for the landmark 1995 "Murayama Statement," in which he expressed remorse for Japan's colonial rule and aggression in Asia, died Friday at the age of 101.