South Korea boycotts Japan memorial event at mine in blow for ties

By Jack Kim

South Korea held a memorial event in Japan on Monday for its labourers forced to work at a controversial mine during World War Two, after boycotting one organised by Tokyo, highlighting lingering sensitivities in ties between the neighbours.

Both key U.S. regional allies, Seoul and Tokyo have seen ties generally improve in recent years, as they sought to put aside acrimonious diplomatic and trade disputes tied to Japan's 1910-45 colonisation of the Korean peninsula.

Seoul's decision not to attend Sunday's official event at the Sado mine followed reports that Japan's government would be represented by an official who had visited a shrine some neighbours see as a symbol of the nation's militarist past.

The governments could not resolve their differences in time, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said in a television interview on Saturday, but added the incident should not damage improved ties under President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Yoon has pushed to put behind years of animosity and boost three-way security efforts with Tokyo and Washington.

South Korea's ambassador to Japan led Sunday's memorial event, with the participation of nine descendents of the original labourers as well as some government officials.

In his remarks, Ambassador Park Cheol-hee expressed deep sorrow at the plight of the South Korean forced labourers, exhorting the neighbours to ensure the painful history of the Sado mine was not forgotten.

Japan's top government spokesman, Yoshimasa Hayashi, said it was not Tokyo's place to explain the reasons for South Korea's absence from the memorial ceremony held by Japan's government.

"But we do think it is regrettable that they did not participate," he told a daily briefing in the Japanese capital.

Hayashi added that Tokyo had explained to Seoul that Akiko Ikuina, the official who represented Japan at the ceremony, had not visited the Yasukuni Shrine that commemorates its war dead, including some war criminals, since becoming a lawmaker.

South Korea's foreign ministry did not have a comment, but on Saturday Cho had cited the planned attendance by Ikuina, a Japanese parliamentary secretary for foreign affairs, as one reason for staying away.

South Korea said this year it had negotiated a pact with Japan to hold events and exhibits explicitly mentioning use of South Korean forced labourers as a condition for backing Tokyo's bid to win listing of the Sado mines as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Yoon's government drew criticism for agreeing to Japan's pledge to properly recognise the darker aspects of the mine celebrated for its long history and contribution to the neighbour's industrial development.