NEW YORK WORLD-TELEGRAM AND SUN, SATURDAY, OCT. 10, 1959 Korea Hurls a Challenge
Says Fate of 600,000 Nationals in Japan Is Our Concern,Too
The announced intention of Japan to deport many of her 600,000 Korean residents to Communist North Korea represents a challenge to the United States and the rest of the Free World, says Dr. Chung W. Cho, foreign minister of the Republic of Korea.
The deportation "would tip the balance of power irrevocably in favor of the Communist camp," Dr. Cho said in an interview here.
2. Million Originally.
The Case of the 600,000 Koreans is unique, Dr. Cho said, because:
They are among the two million Koreans who were taken forcibly to Japan before and during World War II, although they still remain citizens of the Republic of Korea.
They were forced to work in the war plants that were producing weapon used against the United States or were unwillingly conscripted into the Japanese armed forces. None of them were ever paid for their years of forced labor, although Japan had promised wagen when they were drafted,Dr. Cho declared.
With the end of the war, all who could be repatriated were returned. The 600,000 left in Japan have no legal status and are subjected to prejudice and prosecution, Dr. Cho said, Most of them are unable to find work of any kind; simple survival is a daily problem.
Demands Compensation.
The position of the Republic of Korea is that, as the only legally recognized government on the Korean peninsula, it is willing and anxious to accept a mass voluntary repatriation of its nationals. However, it maintains that these people should be compensated for their years of "slave labor for the Japanese. "
On Jan. 30, during a recese in the negotiations then going on, Japan announced the decision to deport the Koreans to Communist North Korea.
To understand the enormity of the deception that Japan intends to perpetrate on the Free World," said Dr. Cho, "it must be remembered that many of the Koreans are skilled laborers and technicians.
The Communists are in desperate need of manpower, especially skilled manpower. The Japanese action is tantamount by a fantastic potential.
No 'Free' Choice.
This is the reason that the United States and her allies should be vitally concerned. Once the balance of power in Asia is tipped in favor of the Communists, the Free World will suffer a loss from which there will be no recovery.
The combined Japanese-Communist propaganda campaign which attempts to create the impression that the Koreans have 'freely' chosen deportation to North Korea is a fabric of lies, asserted Dr. Cho.
The consents to deportation were obtained, in many cases, through deceit, bribery and coercion, he said.
The free choice given my countrymen by the Japanese government was simply the choice between accepting deportation or starving. And once they are shipped to Communist North Korea, they will have no choice at all in any phase of their lives. "
New Talks Begun
Despite the threat of deportation, the Republic of Korea has initiated new talks with Japan.
From a simple humanitarian point of view the Free World must be moved to protest, Dr. Cho said "Here are thousands of souls who have already been misused by the Japanese, now threatened with a lifetime of virtual slavery,
Legally, Japan has no right to deport Korean nationals without the consent of my government. She certainly has no right to negotiate with North Korea.
Morally, the condemnations by decent people must be forthcoming. Japan, in order to avoid her just financial responsibility to these people, is willing to aid and abet the cause of world communism.