(ATTN: ADDS Seoul foreign ministry’s comments in paras 11-14; RECASTS 4th para; TRIMS)
By Kim Seung-yeon
TOKYO/SEOUL, Nov. 22 (Yonhap) — Japan announced Friday it will send a vice foreign minister to the upcoming memorial ceremony for wartime forced labor victims, including Koreans, who were taken to toil at a Japanese mine complex during World War II.
Akiko Ikuina, parliamentary vice minister at Japan’s foreign ministry, will be at the ceremony, scheduled to take place on western Sado Island, off its west coast, on Sunday, the ministry said.
Japan said Wednesday it will hold the memorial event to commemorate the victims from the Sado gold and silver mine complex, fulfilling its pledge to hold such a ceremony as a condition for Seoul’s consent to the location’s designation as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Attention has been drawn to who will be attending the ceremony from the Japanese central government, as South Korea has regarded the level of the official attending the event as an indicator of Tokyo’s sincerity in honoring its promise to remember the victims.
This undated photo released by Japan’s Kyodo news agency shows Akiko Ikuina, shortly after she won her parliamentary seat at Japan’s upper house. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
Japan’s decision is expected to further fuel concerns in Seoul over Tokyo’s lukewarm commitment to fulfilling its promise to honor the wartime victims in a sincere manner, given the actions Ikuina has taken as a politician.
Ikuina, who won her seat in the House of Councillors — Japan’s upper house of parliament — in 2022, was appointed vice minister following the launch of the new government led by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Following her election, she visited the Yasukuni Shrine to pay tribute to Japan’s war dead. The shrine, regarded as a symbol of Japan’s militaristic past, has been a source of tension, with South Korea strongly opposing visits or offerings made by Japanese government officials.
Some observers say her attendance at the ceremony would upset the eleven family members of the Korean victims who are planning to attend the event.
Ikuina once responded to a newspaper survey on Japan’s relations with South Korea that she thinks the South Korean government “should make more concessions” on contentious issues, such as forced labor and sexual slavery.
On Friday, South Korea’ foreign ministry canceled a planned media background briefing on the ceremony at the last minute, without providing a clear reason.
In a message to reporters later, the Seoul ministry said Japan’s decision to send the vice minister came as a result of South Korea’s request for a senior official’s presence at the ceremony.
“We have consistently emphasized the importance of the attendance of a high-level official from the Japanese government to ensure a sincere memorial ceremony,” the ministry said.
“Japan has accepted this request, and the parliamentary vice minister will attend the ceremony,” it said.
The ministry added that Ikuina will be delivering a memorial address, representing the Japanese government.
South Korean Ambassador to Japan Park Cheol-hee and a director general from the foreign ministry in Seoul are expected to attend the ceremony, according to a diplomatic source.
Seoul has been consulting with Tokyo over the arrangements for the memorial ceremony, but its reluctance to disclose details about how the ceremony will unfold has stoked doubts about Japan’s sincerity.
The event has been organized by a regional committee led by the Sado city government.
The Sado mines are where many Koreans were forced into hard labor under Japan’s colonial rule of Korea.
This file photo shows an exit of the Sado gold and silver mine complex on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, Japan. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
elly@yna.co.kr
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Source: politics.einnews.com…
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