The shocking World War II history behind bones found in a Japan mine
Bones found by divers raise fresh attention on forgotten tragedy and Korea-Japan wartime history.
A set of bones recovered at a wartime mine in Japan have been confirmed as human remains by police. A group that assisted in the search believes they belong to laborers who perished in a mine accident more than 80 years ago.
Bones discovered by Korean divers
Three bones and a skull were found by Korean divers at the former site of the Chosei Mine in western Yamaguchi Prefecture. Police were unable to confirm whether the remains belonged to the same person or determine their age.
However, the Japanese group that helped with the discovery, known as Kizamu Kai, is convinced the remains are from those who lost their lives in an accident at the mine in February 1942.
183 killed in 1942 mine disaster
At the time, 136 Korean forced laborers and 47 Japanese workers were killed when part of the ceiling of a mine shaft collapsed. The collapse caused flooding that trapped and killed all 183 people inside.
Initial rescue efforts after the accident proved unsuccessful, and the disaster was largely forgotten until 1991. That year, a group of citizens began investigating again and preserved parts of the mining site as a memorial for the victims.
Before and during World War II, hundreds of thousands of laborers were forcibly taken from the Korean Peninsula to work in mines and factories in Japan. This was due to the majority of working-age Japanese men serving in the military at the time.
Renewed search efforts
Kizamu Kai began carrying out undersea searches for the victims’ remains on its own initiative last year. The group acted after Japan’s Health and Welfare Ministry, which oversees wartime remains, showed reluctance to provide funding.
Historical tensions between Japan and Korea
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has acknowledged his country’s wartime aggression and expressed sympathy for Asian victims.
Relations between Japan and Korea have historically been strained due to Japan’s colonial rule between 1910 and 1945, alternating between periods of tension and relative warmth in the decades since.
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