The Government of the Republic of Korea takes with utmost seriousness the statement just made by the Government of Japan before this Committee, in which it stated that “there were a large number of Koreans and others who were brought against their will and forced to work under harsh conditions in the 1940s at some of the sites,” and that it “is prepared to incorporate appropriate measures into the interpretive strategy to remember the victims such as the establishment of information center.” The Government of the Republic of Korea has decided to join the Committee’s consensus decision on this matter, as it has full confidence in the authority of the Committee and trusts that the Government of Japan will implement in good faith the measures it has announced before this august body today.
Today’s decision was made possible because not only the Republic of Korea and Japan, but also all other Members of the Committee, including the Federal Republic of Germany as the Chair, worked together to uphold the spirit of the World Heritage Convention that World Heritage is for all the peoples of the world.
The Government of the Republic of Korea would like to draw the Committee’s attention to Paragraph 6 of the decision which recommends Japan “to consider inviting ICOMOS to offer advice on the implementation of [its] recommendations.” We also believe that this Committee will continue to follow up on the Japanese government’s full implementation of its measures and the recommendations until its 42nd session in 2018 when the Committee is scheduled to examine a progress report which Japan is requested to submit to the World Heritage Centre by December 1, 2017. Such an all-encompassing process will ensure an understanding of the full history of each site, as was recommended by ICOMOS and the Committee.
Today’s decision marks another important step toward remembering the pain and suffering of the victims, healing the painful wounds of history, and reaffirming that the historical truth of the unfortunate past should also be reflected in an objective manner.
In closing, I would like to express my deep appreciation to you, Madame Chair, for your leadership and all Members of the Committee for their cooperation and support. Thank you.
이 누리집은 대한민국 공식 전자정부 누리집입니다.
