'Seeking Solutions for Forced Labor' Public-Private Council 3rd Meeting to be Held on the 9th

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo In-ho] The third public-private consultative meeting to seek solutions for compensation for forced labor is expected to be held next week.

According to sources on the 5th, the government launched a public-private consultative council to seek solutions for compensation for forced labor and held two meetings on the 4th and 14th of last month. In the first and second meetings, representatives of the victims who received final compensation rulings from the Supreme Court, including those affected by Japan Steel, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Fujikoshi forced labor, also participated and expressed their opinions.

However, they declared on the 3rd that they would not participate in the public-private consultative council, claiming that trust was broken after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs unilaterally submitted a statement to the Supreme Court recently stating that "diplomatic efforts are being made."

Accordingly, the upcoming third consultative meeting is expected to be the first meeting held entirely without the participation of the victims. In the previous second meeting, discussions were held on legal questions that could arise from the civil lawsuit perspective, the issue of Japan's apology, and the "diplomatic protection" issue raised by the victims' legal representatives. The third meeting is expected to involve a deeper exchange of opinions on these matters.

However, there are concerns that the validity of the discussions may be diminished with all victims absent from the public-private consultative council. In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated its intention to continue efforts to communicate with the plaintiffs through means other than the public-private consultative council.

Meanwhile, this meeting is expected to be the last public-private consultative meeting held before President Yoon Seok-yeol's August 15 Liberation Day speech, which is likely to contain a message to Japan. However, considering the pace of progress in discussions, it is unlikely that specific proposals regarding solutions for forced labor compensation will be presented in the August 15 speech, and it is expected to mainly express a forward-looking willingness to resolve the issue.