South Korea's MBC TV reported on the 29th that the South Korean Grand Court (i.e., the Supreme Court) ruled on the same day that asked the South Korean government to pay compensation ranging from 3 million to 7 million won (1,000 won is about 5 yuan) to 95 people including Li, who once provided sexual services to the US military in the "base village" near the US military base in South Korea.
Local time on December 11, 2020, the gate of the Camp Kim in the Yongsan base in South Korea. Source: People's Vision
Report said that in 2014, Li and others filed a compensation lawsuit against the South Korean government, believing that the government had built and managed a "base village", encouraged women to provide sexual services to the US military stationed in South Korea, and asked the government to pay 10 million won of compensation to each victim. At that time, relevant Korean departments conducted physical examinations on women who were engaged in prostitution here, and if they were diagnosed with STDs, they would be forced to contain them. In the first instance judgment, the court asked the government to compensate 5 million won each of the 57 people who were forcibly contained, but also emphasized that the government's establishment of a "base village" cannot be regarded as forcibly requiring individuals to conduct sexual transactions, so it cannot be determined that the government had committed illegal acts at the time.
However, in the second instance, the court held that the government established and managed "base villages", encouraged and legitimized prostitution, and the amount of compensation for victims should be increased. The second-instance judge pointed out that the South Korean government encouraged women to provide sexual services to the US military stationed in South Korea at that time, which erased women's sexual autonomy from a national perspective. The judge also believed that forcibly hosting victims of STD and using antibiotics indiscriminately is illegal. In the final judgment, the South Korean Grand Court determined the government's liability for compensation and stated that "the government's creation of a 'base village' and legalizing sexual transactions not only violates the South Korean Constitution, but also violates the human rights of the victims."
South Korea's "Jingxiang News" reported that during the existence of the "base village", the South Korean government not only encouraged women to provide sexual services to the US military, but also called them "patriots who earn foreign exchange." Associated Press has reported that related victims have been living in poverty. The South Korean government has not provided any other assistance except to give them minimum living security.
Source: Global Times-Global Network
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