"Why Is My Grandfather at Yasukuni?" Grandchildren Continue Legal Battle

[Anchor]

Yasukuni Shrine in Japan houses the spirits of over 20,000 Korean war dead, including World War II war criminals, without the consent of their bereaved families. It has been 20 years since families began filing lawsuits in Japan demanding the removal of these names. As the grandchildren of the victims now take up the cause, a Zainichi Korean (Korean resident in Japan) family member has joined the legal battle for the first time.

Our Tokyo correspondent, Mun Junmo, reports.

[Reporter]

Gil Hyung-min, whose maternal grandfather is enshrined at Yasukuni, enters the Tokyo District Court alongside South Korean and Japanese civic activists.

This marks his first appearance in court to present arguments since joining the lawsuit in September of last year.

[Gil Hyung-min / Grandson of the late Lee Hee-kyung: Personally, I feel both anger and a sense of responsibility. I want my grandfather, who was enshrined there, to be separated and removed as soon as possible.]

Gil's maternal grandfather, the late Lee Hee-kyung, was drafted into the Japanese military, leaving behind a pregnant wife, and was killed in action in Papua New Guinea in 1944.

Although his mother had previously joined other bereaved families in a lawsuit, they lost the case in January of last year. Now, his grandson, Gil, has initiated a new legal challenge.

Kim Ok-sun, the granddaughter of the late Jang Cheon-ok, who died in action on the Kamchatka Peninsula, has also joined the lawsuit, carrying a photograph of her grandfather.

[Kim Ok-sun / Granddaughter of the late Jang Cheon-ok: Why would they enshrine my grandfather there as they please? I am very angry.]

A third-generation Zainichi Korean, identified as A, has also expressed their intention to join the lawsuit through a lawyer. This is the first time a Zainichi Korean, who have historically lived quietly as a minority, has participated in such a legal action.

In 1956, Yasukuni Shrine received a list of the war dead from the Japanese government and enshrined 21,181 Koreans who had been forcibly mobilized.

It was a unilateral measure taken without consulting the bereaved families.

Young Japanese activists, who have recently been leading rallies against the revision of the Peace Constitution, also attended the court session today (July 17).

[Chiba Hanako / Activist: Japanese people need to better understand why people in Asia criticize Yasukuni.]

[Tashiro Reina / Activist: (Prime Minister Takaichi) must demonstrate a sense of responsibility as a leader of a nation with a Peace Constitution.]

The bereaved families and civic groups announced that they will hold a candlelight vigil in Tokyo on August 9, continuing the tradition they have maintained since 2006 to oppose the enshrinement at Yasukuni.

(Video coverage: Han Cheol-min, Video editing: Yu Mi-ra)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.