Japan is reportedly preparing to hold a memorial ceremony for the Sado Mine on September 12, but South Korea is expected to be absent for the third consecutive year.
According to a report by NHK on September 3, an executive committee composed of local civic groups and officials from Niigata Prefecture, where the Sado Mine is located, is coordinating to hold the ceremony on the 12th.
However, sources indicate that while Japan's Foreign Ministry has been in discussions with South Korea regarding attendance, South Korea has decided to refrain from participating again this year.
The memorial ceremony was initially promised as part of Japan's efforts to gain South Korea's cooperation in its bid to have the Sado Mine designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in July 2024, which includes acknowledging the history of forced labor involving Koreans.
Despite this, significant differences in views between Japan and South Korea regarding the ceremony's name and memorial speeches were evident during the first ceremony held on November 24, 2024, in Sado City, resulting in a 'half-hearted' event without the presence of South Korean families and government officials.
Last year's second ceremony also saw South Korea abstain due to the Japanese memorial speech failing to adequately address the coercive nature of the mobilization of Korean laborers. Instead, the South Korean government held its own memorial ceremonies in both 2024 and last year.
The Sado Mine, known for its gold production during the Edo period (1603-1867), was repurposed during World War II to secure resources, where colonial Koreans were forcibly mobilized and worked under harsh conditions.
In July 2024, the 46th World Heritage Committee meeting in New Delhi decided to designate the Sado Mine as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Leading up to the designation, the South Korean government demanded that Japan reflect the 'entire history' of forced labor involving Koreans at the Sado Mine, a request that Japan accepted. However, concerns have been raised that the facts of forced labor were not sufficiently expressed.
A decision adopted at the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting in Busan last July acknowledged some progress by Japan in implementing recommendations to establish an interpretive and exhibition strategy that reflects the 'entire history' of the Sado Mine, but deemed it insufficient.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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