Key facts
- South Korean Ambassador to Japan Lee Hyuk made the call during a ceremony at a hotel on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture.
- Nine family members of the victims attended the separate memorial ceremony.
- More than 1,500 Koreans were mobilized to work at the Sado mine during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule, according to historical records and officials.
- The two countries agreed to hold annual memorial ceremonies at the site when Japan sought South Korea's cooperation for the Sado mine complex's UNESCO World Heritage inscription in 2024.
- UNESCO's World Heritage Committee in July 2026 called on Japan to further clarify how the Sado mine's interpretation reflects its whole history, including forced mobilization of Korean workers.
- The committee urged Japan to submit a follow-up implementation report by December 2027.
South Korea on November 13, 2026 called on Japan to fully acknowledge the history of wartime forced labor at the Sado mine complex, holding a separate memorial ceremony for Korean victims for the third consecutive year. South Korean Ambassador to Japan Lee Hyuk made the call during the ceremony at a hotel on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, with nine family members of the victims attending.
"Many Korean workers had been mobilized against their will and forced to work at the mine through government-arranged labor placement and conscription under the involvement of the Japanese colonial government-general," Lee said in his memorial address. "Remembering the pain of the past and sharing our condolences here today will deepen our sense of empathy and healing, and provide an opportunity for everyone to fully understand the entire history of the Sado mine as a World Heritage site," he added.
More than 1,500 Koreans were mobilized to work at the Sado mine during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea, according to historical records and officials. Many were assigned to dangerous underground tasks, and some lost their lives in underground accidents.
The two countries agreed to hold annual memorial ceremonies at the site when Japan sought South Korea's cooperation for the Sado mine complex's inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2024. Seoul had called on Tokyo to acknowledge the site's entire history, including the forced labor of Koreans. Tokyo, however, has declined to acknowledge the coercive nature of the mobilization of Korean workers since preparations for the first ceremony in 2024, prompting South Korea to hold its own separate ceremony each year.