Returning Korean War POWs who attended the opening ceremony of the 'Korean War POW Exhibition Hall' held at the War Memorial of Korea in Yongsan-gu in June 2024. [Yonhap News photo]

Five surviving Korean War prisoners of war who were taken to North Korea during the Korean War and later defected have filed a lawsuit against North Korea seeking compensation for damages from forced labor.

According to the Korean War POW Family Association on the 29th, five surviving POWs, including Ko Kwang-myeon (95), Kim Jong-soo (95), Lee Seon-woo (96), Lee Dae-bong (95), and Choi Ki-ho (98), recently submitted a complaint to the Seoul Central District Court demanding 105 million won in damages, with each individual seeking 21 million won, against North Korea and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

The plaintiffs, including Mr. Ko, argued that they were not repatriated to South Korea even after the armistice in July 1953 and were assigned to the Ministry of Interior's construction unit, where they endured forced labor in coal mines. They are seeking this amount as compensation for the physical and mental damages incurred.

After years of forced labor, they were integrated into North Korean society before defecting in the early 2000s.

This is the third time that Korean War POWs have filed a lawsuit seeking damages against North Korea.

In 2020, two individuals, including the late Han Jae-bok, won their cases, and in 2023, three individuals, including the late Kim Seong-tae and Yoo Young-bok (96), also won their respective lawsuits against North Korea.

Currently, there are six surviving North Korean defectors who are Korean War POWs in South Korea: the five plaintiffs in this lawsuit and Yoo Young-bok.

On the 12th anniversary of the publication of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in North Korea (COI) report, they issued a statement in February demanding the establishment of a committee to investigate the truth about Korean War POWs and the designation of a "Korean War POW Remembrance Day."

Son Myung-hwa, representative of the Korean War POW Family Association, stated, "We hope the court will make a wise decision while these elders are still alive."