[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] The court has ordered the Japanese government, which was confirmed to have lost the damages lawsuit filed by former Japanese military comfort women victims, to disclose its property list in South Korea.
On the 15th, Nam Sung-woo, a judge of the Civil Division 51 at the Seoul Central District Court, announced that on the 9th, he accepted the application for property disclosure filed by the bereaved families of the late Bae Chun-hee and other comfort women victims against the Japanese government, stating, "The debtor must submit a property list specifying the status of assets on the property disclosure date."
The court reaffirmed Japan's liability for compensation, stating that an exception to state immunity is recognized in this case from a legal standpoint.
The court also stated, "Issues such as deterioration of Japan-Korea relations or economic retaliation that may arise after compulsory execution are within the exclusive domain of the executive branch and beyond the jurisdiction of the judiciary."
Twelve comfort women victims filed a lawsuit against the Japanese government demanding 100 million KRW per person in damages for illegal acts and won the case on January 8 of this year.
Japan invoked the principle of "state immunity" (sovereign immunity), which exempts a sovereign state from the jurisdiction of another country's courts, and did not respond to the lawsuit. After the first trial ruling, Japan did not appeal, confirming its loss.
After the Japanese government lost but remained unresponsive, the comfort women victims filed an application with the court in April requesting the disclosure of the Japanese government's assets in South Korea to forcibly collect the damages.
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