Forced labor survivor's medal reinstated three years after Yoon Suk Yeol took it away
Published: 03 Aug. 2025, 18:08
![Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NEWS1]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/08/03/44e8da21-6e61-49d5-a0f3-fa8eec73e633.jpg)
Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NEWS1]
GWANGJU — Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, was awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, three years after opposition from the former conservative administration.
The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said Sunday that it had delivered the medal to Yang at a nursing hospital in Dong District, Gwangju, the previous day.
The award had been previously canceled in 2022 under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, reportedly due to opposition from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The honor was reinstated this year under the Lee Jae Myung administration.
The medal was delivered without a formal ceremony due to Yang’s health, but around 30 Gwangju city officials and residents gathered to celebrate the occasion.
Yook Seong-cheol, director of the commission's Gwangju Regional Human Rights Office, presented the medal on behalf of Commission Chairperson Ahn Chang-ho.
“The Moran Medal, whose delivery had been stalled since 2022, was finally awarded under the Lee administration,” he said. “It’s regrettable that Japan has never apologized for what happened, and I thank you for your long struggle.”
![Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, sheds tears as she is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NEWS1]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/08/03/b77dc42b-2e33-4a4d-a8a9-dffb2f0505ba.jpg)
Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, sheds tears as she is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NEWS1]
In response, Yang said, “Thanks to President Lee, I received the Moran Medal. I am grateful and support a president who works hard.”
Born in Naju, South Jeolla, Yang was in sixth grade when she was deceived by her Japanese principal in May 1944. The principal told her she could earn good money and attend middle school if she went to Japan.
Instead, she was forcibly taken to work at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ Nagoya Aircraft Works.
Yang filed her first lawsuit against the Japanese government in 1992 and has since spent more than 30 years advocating for survivors of forced labor during Japanese rule. She was selected to receive the Korea Human Rights Award in 2022, but the decoration was blocked by the Foreign Ministry at the time.
On Tuesday, the current administration approved the reinstatement of her award during a Cabinet meeting. The human rights commission presented the medal as soon as it was received.
“It is deeply regrettable that due recognition for Yang’s contributions was not given sooner,” Ahn said in a statement. “But I wholeheartedly welcome that her decades of work for human rights has finally been acknowledged.”
![Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/08/03/9c5ef822-3501-4d9c-928a-9cfec6787734.jpg)
Yang Geum-deok, a survivor of forced labor under the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945) and a longtime advocate for the rights of other survivors, is awarded the Moran Medal, the second-highest rank of the Order of Civil Merit, on Aug. 2 in Gwangju. [NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA]
However, a civic group supporting survivors of forced labor, which has long supported Yang and others, did not attend the ceremony. Instead, the group released a statement urging the Lee administration to withdraw its “third-party compensation plan” for forced labor survivors.
The plan, which allows Korean companies to pay compensation on behalf of the Japanese government and wartime companies, has faced harsh criticism from survivors and advocacy groups.
“This award may be an attempt to correct the wrongs of the Yoon administration, but the government is still clinging to one of the most regressive policies of the previous era,” the group said, referencing the third-party payment model. “They claim policy consistency is important in international affairs, making it clear they have no intention to reverse course.
“This is a half-justice — a selective justice that picks only what’s convenient,” the statement continued. “It’s a betrayal of those who lit up the square every night in the bitter cold, demanding not just an end to injustice but the foundation of a proper nation.”
Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY HWANG HEE-GYU [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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