Japanese Court Orders Nagoya City to Pay Exhibition Costs for 'Statue of Peace'

"Pay 33.8 Million Yen in Unpaid Charges"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] A Japanese court has ruled that Nagoya City must pay the full burden fee after refusing to pay the festival fee, citing issues with the exhibition content of the 'Statue of Peace,' symbolizing comfort women victims.

According to Kyodo News on the 25th, the Nagoya District Court ordered Nagoya City to pay the full festival fee of 33.8 million yen (approximately 340 million KRW) in a lawsuit filed by the executive committee of the 'Aichi Triennale 2019' demanding payment of the festival fee.

The Nagoya District Court ruled that the exhibition of the Statue of Peace and other works does not constitute a "situation where public fund expenditure is difficult to permit," as claimed by Nagoya City, and stated, "The refusal to pay the burden fee is not allowed."

The Aichi Triennale 2019 was an international art festival held in Aichi Prefecture from August to October 2019 under the theme of 'Era of Justice.' Among them, a special exhibition titled 'After the Non-Freedom of Expression Exhibition' was prepared, displaying about 20 works that had been removed from various museums. The exhibition included the Statue of Peace addressing the comfort women issue and works such as the silkscreen piece depicting Emperor Hirohito, titled 'Embracing Perspective,' which was shown burning.

When the works were first unveiled, the exhibition was halted after three days due to fierce protests from Japanese right-wing groups. In addition, Takashi Kawamura, mayor of Nagoya and a right-wing figure, refused to pay the burden fee, citing problems with the content of the special exhibition. Nagoya City reportedly argued that since the specific exhibition content was not disclosed and no meetings regarding operations were held during the opening, the reduction of the burden fee was justified.