South Korea holds memorial for forced laborers in Japan after boycotting Japanese event

Associated Press

SADO, Japan (AP) — South Korea has paid tribute to wartime Korean forced laborers at Japan’s Sado gold mines in a memorial ceremony. The event on Monday came a day after Seoul boycotted a similar event organized by Japan, as tensions over historical atrocities continue to strain relations between the two sides. Monday’s ceremony at a former dormitory near the 16th century Sado mines, which were listed this summer as a UNESCO World Heritage site, was organized by South Korea’s Foreign Ministry and attended by nine family members of Korean wartime laborers, the country’s ambassador to Japan and other officials. Japan on Sunday thanked Koreans for their contributions at the mines but did not acknowledge their forced labor or issue an apology.