S Korea-Japan Sado mine

SEOUL, Nov. 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korea on Friday called on Japan to fully acknowledge the history of wartime forced labor at the Sado mine complex as it held a separate memorial ceremony for Korean victims of forced labor for the third consecutive year.

South Korean Ambassador to Japan Lee Hyuk made the call during the ceremony held at a hotel on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, with nine family members of the victims attending.

"Many Korean workers had been mobilized against their will and forced to work at the mine through government-arranged labor placement and conscription under the involvement of the Japanese colonial government-general," Lee said in his memorial address.

"Remembering the pain of the past and sharing our condolences here today will deepen our sense of empathy and healing, and provide an opportunity for everyone to fully understand the entire history of the Sado mine as a World Heritage site," he added.

More than 1,500 Koreans were mobilized to work at the Sado mine during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea. Many were assigned to dangerous underground tasks, and some lost their lives in underground accidents, according to historical records and officials.

The two countries agreed to hold annual memorial ceremonies at the site when Japan sought South Korea's cooperation for the Sado mine complex's inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2024. Seoul had called on Tokyo to acknowledge the site's entire history, including the forced labor of Koreans.

Tokyo, however, has declined to acknowledge the coercive nature of the mobilization of Korean workers since preparations for the first ceremony in 2024, prompting South Korea to hold its own separate ceremony each year.

The issue has also been addressed by UNESCO's World Heritage Committee, which in a decision adopted in July 2026 called on Japan to further clarify how the Sado mine's interpretation and presentation reflect the site's "whole history," which includes the period of forced mobilization of Korean workers.

The committee also urged Japan to submit a follow-up implementation report by December 2027.

(END)

[Copyright ⓒ K-VIBE. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution are prohibited.]