Japan considers memorial service at UNESCO World Heritage mine site from September

A former gold mine on Sado Island, Japan / Courtesy of Northeast Asian History Foundation

Japan is considering holding a memorial service for wartime forced laborers as early as September at a former gold mine recently added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List, diplomatic sources said on Monday.

The move is part of an agreement between Japan and Korea as the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC) decided to register the mine on Sado Island during its meeting in New Delhi on Saturday. The mine was the world’s largest producer of gold in the 17th century.

Korea had initially protested Tokyo’s bid to list the mine, saying it wanted to leave out the part of history in which thousands of Koreans were forced to work there during World War II, when Korea was under Japanese colonial rule from 1910 to 1945.

It is estimated that more than 2,000 Koreans were forced to work in the Sado Mine under harsh conditions.

Korea later agreed to list the mine on the condition that Japan would strictly implement recommendations of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), an advisory body to the UNESCO WHC, and take other measures, a ministry press release said.

Several locations are being considered for the memorial ceremony, including the temple at the Aikawa Local Museum, which features an exhibit about Korean workers at the Sado Mine.

The temple, located about a five-minute drive from the museum, has a memorial tower in honor of the miners, including Korean workers. In the past, small-scale memorial services were held at the temple, organized by private groups. (Yonhap)