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By Jung Nam-ku, Tokyo correspondent
Japan showed no change in its official position after a May 24 South Korean Supreme Court ruling that Japanese companies ought to pay damages to Korean workers conscripted as laborers in the Japanese empire.
Japanese foreign minister Koichiro Gemba reiterated Tokyo’s position that the issue of personal claims had already been resolved. While his remarks only took the form of a rebuttal, analysts attributed them to the fact that there has only been a Supreme Court decision ordering compensation so far, with no amount or enforcement measures decided upon.
But the Japanese government voiced the same position on the issue in March 2010, when it said restitution would be refused even if victims filed suit in courts. Japanese media turned their focus to how the South Korean executive would respond, since its approach was different from the Supreme Court’s.
The Asahi Shimbun printed an interview with 85-year-old plaintiff Shin Cheon-su in which he said of the ruling, “I feel like I might cry.” In the piece, the newspaper said the decision was expected to cause controversy because it went above and beyond what Seoul has been calling for.
It also quoted an official as saying the South Korean government was unlikely to change its stance after the ruling. The piece noted that Seoul has based its negotiations with Japan over the years on the position that the issue of conscriptee compensation fell within the terms of the 1965 Korea-Japan Claim Agreement, while that of military comfort women did not.
The right-wing Sankei Shimbun quoted supporters of the plaintiffs as saying Japanese company assets in South Korea could be seized once the ruling is confirmed, and said the South Korean government would be compelled to use force if companies refused.
“In such a case, Seoul would have to respond in a way that violates the terms of the 1965 Korea-Japan Claim Agreement,” the newspaper said.
Other newspapers printed only simple reports on the details of the ruling.
Many messages critical of the ruling were posted on online message boards such as 2channel, painting a clear picture of the gulf in perspectives between the South Korean and Japanese sides. “We don’t need to obey another country’s court ruling,” said one, while another asked whether South Korea “wants to abandon the Korea-Japan Basic Treaty and sever diplomatic ties.”
　
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