The family members of Korean War abductees won the first trial after filing a lawsuit against the North Korean regime and its leader Kim Jong-un. However, it is unclear whether they will be able to receive actual compensation from the North.
The Seoul Central District Court ruled on May 20 that North Korea and Chairman Kim Jong-un should pay up to 30 million won ($23,640) per person to 12 family members of South Korean citizens abducted by the North during the Korean War.
The group Lawyers for Human Rights and Unification of Korea filed a lawsuit seeking compensation for human rights violations committed by North Korea on behalf of the family members of the abductees. The association filed the lawsuit on June 25, 2020 – the 70th anniversary of the Korean War.
The plaintiffs include the bereaved families of Jeong In-bo, the first chief auditor of the South Korean government; Lee Gil-yong, a former Dong-A Ilbo reporter; Hong Jae-ki, the nation’s first lawyer; and former court judge Kim Yoon-chan.
At the time of filing, the lawyers’ association explained, “Even after the war, the victims are still suffering damage, as North Korea refuses to admit to the abduction itself or provide information on the abductees.”
North Korea and Chairman Kim did not respond to the lawsuit, but the Seoul court made the ruling through the “conveyance by public announcement” system, in which court hearings proceed without the presence of defendants.
Koo Choong-seo, a lawyer for J&C, who represented the bereaved families in their lawsuit, said, “We have realized justice through a ruling that holds North Korea accountable for illegal activities committed by itself and its leader.”
Koo added that “We will seek a court order to have the Foundation of Inter-Korea Cooperation, which collects royalties from its copyright contract with the North Korean cabinet, pay the victims instead of sending the money collected back to North Korea.”
Since 2005, the Foundation of Inter-Korea Cooperation has collected royalties from South Korean companies using copyrighted North Korean materials. The foundation, which collects royalties on behalf of North Korean state television service KCTV, is managed by Im Jong-seok, the former chief of staff to the former president Moon Jae-in and a notorious student activist during the 1980s.
Despite the ruling, however, it will be difficult for plaintiffs to receive actual compensation because there is no way to force the North to comply, when considering the previous court ruling that dismissed an appeal by former prisoners-of-war (POWs) who asked the foundation for compensation on behalf of the North Korean government.
In July 2020, the Seoul court ordered Kim and Pyongyang to pay 21 million won ($16,548) each to two former POWs over forced labor in the North. They sought to receive compensation through the Foundation of Inter-Korea Cooperation, but the court ruled in favor of the foundation after first ordering it to pay compensation.
The court said that the foundation and North Korea’s copyright management office were middlemen whose only role was delivering products to South Korean customers. The court argued that this is why the foundation is not obligated to pay on behalf of the North Korean government.
The court argued that there cannot be an obligation to seize compensation from North Korea. “We cannot consider North Korea as an independent country that is similar to us,” the ruling said. The court also argued that under Article 3 of the South Korean Constitution, the entire Korean peninsula is South Korean territory and that North Korea’s product copyrights are protected as South Korean products.
