Members of a support group for South Korean women who had been forced to serve in the women’s labor corps during World War II held a press conference in front of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries auto display center in Gwangju City to urge the Japanese government to reexamine its decision to pay 99 Yen in response to their administrative lawsuit for pension compensation, Jan. 4.

A representative said, “Our lawyers will be asking the Japanese government to reexamine the cases by Jan. 15.” They added, “If the Japanese government rejects this request, we will file a case regarding this issue.” Yang Geum-deok, who had served in the women labor corps in Japan during World War II and is now 81-years-old, made a gesture to return the 99 Yen to the Japanese government and said, “If the Japanese government was a sensible one, it would not have given me this pittance.”

Lee Kuk-eon, head of the support group, said, “99 Yen during the colonial period was able to cover the cost of buying two calves, however, now it only allows us to buy two packages of ramen.” He added, “The Japanese government’s behavior belittles the plaintiffs, and it should recalculate its currency’s value.”

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