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A civic group demands the immediate withdrawal of a proposal by National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang for solving the issue of forced labor with Japan in Daejeon on Dec. 9.

A proposal by National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang that involves paying compensation to forced labor mobilization survivors through a foundation created with donations by South Korean and Japanese businesses and voluntary contributions from members of the public is set to be put before the National Assembly this week. This suggests that despite objections from survivors of forced labor mobilization by imperial Japan -- who were victorious in a related court case -- and related civic and social groups, the “Moon Hee-sang plan” is being pushed forward to coincide with a South Korea-Japan summit currently being coordinated for an upcoming trilateral summit with China on Dec. 23-24.

With Moon’s proposal structured in such a way as to require victims to drop their legal action to receive compensation without including terms requiring Japan to apologize or take responsibility, critics are contending that it stands to neutralize a South Korea Supreme Court ruling achieved after a 20-year legal battle. Questions about fairness also appear poised to grow, with compensation available to only the portion of the 220,000 victims officially recognized by the South Korean government who participated in related lawsuits.

Moon’s rush to sponsor the bill is motivated by the upcoming South Korea-Japan summit. While the termination of the two sides’ General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) was postponed on Nov. 22 on the condition that Japan participate in dialogue to resolve its export controls against South Korea, the determination is that the forced labor mobilization issue -- the key factor in the two sides’ conflict -- must be resolved if South Korea-Japan relations are to be turned around.

“The ‘Moon Hee-sang proposal’ could serve to prime the pump in the discussions between the South Korean and Japanese heads of state,” said an official with the National Assembly Speaker’s office.

“We’re looking forward to a declaration by [South Korean President] Moon Jae-in and [Japanese Prime Minister] Shinzo Abe that reaffirms the 1998 declaration by Kim Dae-jung and [Keizo] Obuchi stipulating Japan’s apology, while paving the way for the two sides to reconcile,” the official added, predicting that the company donations and contributions from the public could gather momentum as bilateral relations improve.

Moon Hee-sang is preparing two pieces of legislation in connection with forced labor mobilization: a bill to create a “Remembrance, Reconciliation, and Future Foundation” -- his key focus -- and an amendment of the Special Act on the Verification and Support for the Victims of Forced Mobilization under Japanese Colonialism. While he had originally intended to pursue the “Moon Hee-sang proposal” through a single amendment of the special act, he ultimately decided to create a new law for survivors who have pursued legal action.

The beneficiaries of support are to be the overseas labor mobilization survivors who have already received power of execution based on a Supreme Court decision, as well as survivors and family members who are expected to win their related court cases. Around 1,000 survivors have pursued or are currently pursuing legal action; for 700 to 800 of them, the related cases have yet to begin.

“Both the survivors who have current suits and those who are preparing for future suits would be beneficiaries. Those survivors who have initiated legal action would simply need to drop their cases and apply,” a staffer from the National Assembly speaker’s office explained.

“The foundation conducts a review and pays out the compensation,” the staffer added.

With trials lasting for a long time and raising cost issues, the confusion among survivors surrounding the “dropping” of cases appears likely to grow. Some are also arguing that the plan cannot provide a full salutation because it would still leave the issue of liquidation of Japanese company assets if survivors who do not agree with the plan carry on with their lawsuits.

The fairness of compensation reviews and payment is also expected to be the subject of controversy. Lee Sang-gap, an attorney representing survivors in cases against Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and others, said, “They’ve already been recognized by the government as victims according to the law. It makes no sense for them to have to undergo another review.”

“The idea of supporting only the portion of survivors who are involved in lawsuits is a violation of equality,” Lee said.

The number of people officially recognized by the South Korean government as forced mobilization victims alone stands at 218,639: 148,961 laborers, 32,857 soldiers, 36,702 civilian military employees, and 119 comfort women and others. The standard of payment to those “expected to win their related court cases” is also seen as vague. Jung Hye-kyung, a research fellow with the Imperial Japanese Forced Labor Mobilization and Peace Research Association, said, “Compensation is a very sensitive issue for the victims due to the inadequate levels of support in the past.”

“We could end up seeing a new legal battle if the selections for support are based on vague standards,” she predicted.

The foundation also appears certain to face accusations of being a “waste of taxpayer money.” With a support foundation for forced labor mobilization survivors already in place under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, passage of Moon’s plan would result in a separate “Remembrance, Reconciliation, and Future Foundation” being formed -- resulting in two different foundations for the same forced labor mobilization issue.

A staffer with the National Assembly speaker’s office said, “For the sake of compensation and such, there isn’t any option but to operate it separately for now. There will need to be discussions on what to do about it later on.”

In addition to the foundation bill, Moon is also preparing an amendment to the Special Act on Forced Labor Mobilization. His plan involves integrating the labor mobilization-related bills that have been sponsored in the National Assembly into a single amendment. He also announced plans to pursue support for soldiers and civilian military employees and the re-establishment of a forced labor mobilization investigation committee that was disbanded in 2015. But with this approach requiring the creation of a new government organization as well as considerable financial support to soldiers and civilian military workers, its chances of passing the National Assembly are unclear -- leading some to accuse Moon of “spin.”

“The forced labor mobilization isn’t the sort of thing that can be dealt with in a sloppy way,” said Kim Young-hwan, director of the external cooperation office at the Center for Historical Truth and Justice.

“They need to stop this legislative effort at once and go through the process of hearing different views to come up with comprehensive measures,” Kim advised.

By Kim So-youn, staff reporter

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