Some of the South Korean plaintiffs in wartime labor cases have filed a new lawsuit to seek damages from a Japanese business. They oppose the South Korean government's plan to settle the issue of compensation.
The plaintiffs' lawyers say the suit was filed with a court in Seoul on Wednesday. The plaintiffs are seeking to collect assets held in South Korea by an affiliate of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
In 2018, South Korea's Supreme Court ordered two Japanese companies, including Mitsubishi, to pay compensation to those who say they or their relatives were forced to work for the firms during World War Two.
Seoul last week announced a plan to have a government-affiliated foundation pay compensation in place of the Japanese businesses.
The plaintiffs in the new suit include Yang Geum-deok, who was also a plaintiff in the case against Mitsubishi.
The lawyers say the plaintiffs in the new case reject the government's plan and want damages paid by Mitsubishi, not the foundation.
The lawyers say they will help the plaintiffs get paid the way they want by swiftly liquidating the assets of the Japanese company.
The Japanese government says any right to claims was settled completely and finally in 1965, when Japan and South Korea normalized ties.