According to the foundation on the 14th, Mr. Lee donated 100 million won the day before, saying, “I think it is our duty to take care of as many people as possible who were victims of forced mobilization during the Japanese colonial period while they are still alive.”
It is reported that Mr. Lee also expressed his hope that more people would take interest in the suffering of victims of forced mobilization and embrace it.
Mr. Lee, whose father is a veteran of the Korean War, has been carrying out various volunteer activities. In June of this year, he donated 50 million won to the Cheonan Foundation to mark the month of national defense, and in June of last year, he donated 100 million won to the Army Non-Commissioned Officer Development Fund Foundation.
He also donated money to the children of soldiers who died in the K-9 self-propelled howitzer explosion accident in 2017, children of veterans of the Korean War in 2016, and soldiers injured in the North Korean wooden box mine provocation in 2015.
Last March, the government proposed a “third-party payment proposal” solution to pay compensation and interest on late payment to victims of forced labor who had won a final ruling from the Supreme Court against a Japanese defendant company through a foundation under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.
In 2018, the foundation paid compensation to 11 of the 15 forced labor victims who won lawsuits against Japanese companies in the Supreme Court through third-party payment.
For the remaining four who refused the third-party solution, a deposit was requested, but the court did not accept it, and the foundation filed an objection, so the related trial is in progress.
The lawsuits for damages related to forced mobilization are divided into the ‘first lawsuit’ that was finally won in 2018, the ‘second lawsuit’ filed by the victims after the 2012 remand, and the ‘third lawsuit’ filed after the 2018 ruling.
As the number of additional winners increases, the foundation currently needs about 12 billion won more to pay the judgment and interest, but it is known that the funds are severely lacking.
The foundation’s finances are raised through voluntary contributions from the private sector. Immediately after the government announced its solution, POSCO, a beneficiary of the 1965 Korea-Japan Claims Settlement Agreement, donated 4 billion won to the foundation. However, no other companies have made donations to date.
The Japanese government is known to have expressed its position that it will ‘not block’ Japanese companies from voluntarily contributing to the process of raising funds for Korean foundations, but as of now, no Japanese companies have participated.
Reporter Kim Kyung-eun Photo News 1
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2024-08-15 03:07:17