Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Dismissal of Comfort Women Compensation Lawsuit: "We Will Do Our Best to Support Victims"

Presenting Only a Fundamental Position Without Mentioning the Judgment Outcome

Grandmother Lee Yong-soo, a former comfort woman victim and human rights activist, is shedding tears after delivering a speech at the National Assembly on the 5th regarding the international court lawsuit on the comfort women issue. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family issued a statement regarding the dismissal of the damages claim lawsuit filed by former Japanese military comfort women against the Japanese government, saying, "Regardless of this ruling, we will do our best to ensure that there is no neglect in supporting the victims, including restoring their dignity and honor."

On the 21st, the Ministry commented on the dismissal ruling by the Seoul Central District Court, stating, "The issue of Japanese military comfort women is a wartime sexual violence problem proven through numerous testimonies of victims and investigations by international organizations throughout history," and added, "We must work together to prevent such human rights violations from happening again."

They continued, "We will actively promote projects to widely raise awareness of the seriousness of historical distortion related to the Japanese military comfort women issue and to expand international consensus."

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family avoided commenting directly on the ruling itself and only presented the existing policy direction regarding support for comfort women victims. Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also stated that it would "refrain from making specific comments" on the dismissal ruling.

As domestic courts have issued conflicting rulings on similar lawsuits, the government's dilemma in seeking solutions to the Korea-Japan conflict is deepening.

The Civil Division 15 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Min Sung-cheol) dismissed the lawsuit filed by the victims on the morning of the same day, ruling that the Japanese government should be granted "state immunity" (sovereign immunity). A dismissal means deciding not to hold a trial because the lawsuit does not meet procedural requirements, which is generally considered equivalent to a ruling in favor of the defendant.

This lawsuit was filed by 20 victims and bereaved families, including the late Kwak Ye-nam, Kim Bok-dong, and Lee Yong-soo. On the day, Lee Yong-soo said,

"All I can say is that we should take this to the International Court of Justice." The Justice and Memory Solidarity stated, "History will shamefully record today's ruling, which ignored the desperate pleas of the victims and abandoned its duty as the last bastion of human rights."

In January, the Civil Division 34 of the Seoul Central District Court (Presiding Judge Kim Jeong-gon) ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in a damages claim lawsuit filed by 12 comfort women victims, including the late Bae Chun-hee, ordering the Japanese government to pay 100 million won per plaintiff.