Urging Japan to Reflect on Its Past Wrongdoings

 

By Kwon Ji-hye, Student Editor

 

   Chonnam Tribune examines the matter of Korean A-bomb victims through this report from the Memorial Service for Korean A-bomb victims and interviews some attendants following the previous issue that looked into many memorial sites such as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. –Ed.

It was erected by the Korean Residents Union in Japan at the western edge of the Honkawa Bridge on April 10, 1970 and moved to its present location on July 21, 1999 by protesting Korean residents and the recommendation of Japanese students. They insisted that the monument outside of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park reveal the discrimination between different nationalities.

   The CNU Special Coverage Team attended the Memorial Service for Korean A-bomb victims. This ceremony is held every August 5, and this year there were about 300 people attending, including Korean survivors, Koreans nationals and some non-Japanese foreigners. We could hardly find Japanese attendants at the ceremony. The ceremony began with two Korean women performing a traditional Korean dance. An opening address and some speeches about cherishing the memory of Korean victims for the peace of the world were followed by a rendition of a song in memory of Korean A-bomb victims. The attendants prayed for a moment of silent tribute and offered flowers before the monument. 
 

   After the ceremony concluded, we met several Koreans and non-Japanese foreigners and asked them some questions about the ceremony and Korean victims. A Korean student living in Japan said, “Teachers notify only the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony held on August 6. I have never heard of the Memorial Service for Korean A-bomb victims in school, but the ceremony has a strong influence on the society of Korean residents in Japan. Thanks to this ceremony, some people take an active part in this ceremony.”

A Dutchman named Jan Compaan answered, “I work in Japan now, but I have worked in Korea for a while. Though I know a little about Korean A-bomb victims and this ceremony, I think this ceremony is very important. Japanese citizens must know that there were many Korean victims and it should offer compensation for them and attend this ceremony.” 

   While covering the Memorial Service and interviewing some attendants, Japanese citizens tend to think they are the only victims of A-bomb diseases and have never reflected on their past wrongdoings committed during its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula and World WarⅡ. Though the Japanese government has offered compensation for Korean victims living in Japan since 1989, it is not at all sufficient.

A-bomb victims outside Japan must visit Japan with two witnesses in order to prove themselves and to receive compensation of A-bomb damage. Yoo Seung-sa, Executive Director of the Korean Residents Union in Japan said, “The Japanese government has only given some financial support to Korean victims residing in Japan. The victims outside Japan cannot receive any support from the Japanese government. Even the compensation for the damage is very small and limited.” Korean residents in Japan have made an effort for fair treatment claiming that Korean victims have to be treated equal to Japanese victims. However, it does not seem to be possible for Korean victims outside of Japan because their average age is 78.

   As A-bomb victims continue to age and concern about them decreases, it is also a serious matter that the Korean government, Korean people and many foreigners know very little and have little to no concern about Korean A-bomb victims. Therefore, it is urgently necessary to notify that we have to solve this problem and make descendants remember Korean A-bomb victims.
 

   After the ceremony we met Korean high school students and a teacher named Lee Tea-jae. They had a campaign to obtain signatures for Korean A-bomb victims at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. We talked about the matter for some time. He said, “My father is one of the A-bomb victims. He came to Korea but he did not receive any kind of support from the Korean government. I took legal steps against Japan and after seven years I won a lawsuit. So now A-bomb victims living in Korea are entitled to receive compensation.”
 

   Fortunately, the Korea government is currently supporting the victims owing to great efforts of people like Mr Lee. However, the support is insufficient and the Korean government’s concern about A-bomb victims is not yet satisfactory. Moreover, North Korean victims are unable to receive any support. The South Korean government should also endeavor to pursue North Korean victim’s compensation on their behalf. It seems to be difficult to solve these Korean A- bomb victims’ issue, but it is not impossible because many people are trying to solve the problem.

   To be frank, we had little knowledge of the Korean A-bomb victims and were not concerned about them until attending the Memorial Service for Korean A-bomb victims. Through this ceremony and some interviews, we felt sorrow for the Korean A-bomb victims and realized the Korean A-bomb victims’ current situation.
 

   In the city of Hiroshima, there are many monuments dedicated to the casualties of the A-bomb, such as the Peace Memorial Park and the Peace Memorial Museum. These places have a lot of pictures and articles on exhibition, some of which illustrate diseases associated with the A-bomb. Japan is responsible for A-bomb diseases. The A-bomb diseases wreaked great damage on many people residing in Japan, but dying in a foreign country was much more miserable for Korean people conscripted for forced labor during the colonial time. Japan has to show more remorse, at least, and confess their past faults. If Hiroshima reflects enough on the fundamental Japanese actions of the past time, the city of Hiroshima will be real city of peace in the world.