(Source)
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee has registered Japan’s Sado Gold Mine as a cultural heritage site after Japan agreed to include the dark history of the mistreatment of Korean workers during World War II in the exhibition. The mine, which was in operation for almost 400 years was the world’s largest gold producer until its closure in 1989 and was linked to wartime abuses.
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The decision: The unanimous decision by the commission, which included support from South Korea, came after Japan provided additional information and consulted with South Korea about the history of the mine – a move that could signal an improvement in relations between Japan and South Korea. Japan new exhibitions installed explaining the harsh conditions of Korean workers, including annual memorial services. Japan’s foreign minister celebrated the designation and its “outstanding value as an outstanding cultural heritage.”
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Dark history: During Japan’s 1910-1945 colonization of the Korean Peninsula, hundreds of thousands of Korean laborers were forced to work in Japanese mines and factories, including the Sado Gold Mine, to help alleviate labor shortages during World War II, historians say. But Japan previously concealed its connection to the abuses, straining bilateral relations. Japan has long been criticized for its reluctance to acknowledge war crimes at other UNESCO sites, such as the sexual abuse of “comfort women” and forced laborers.
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