韓国被爆者に対する市民団体の援護活動 ―孫振斗裁判後の渡日治療を中心に―

Abstract

This paper examines the background and importance of the activities undertaken by Japanese citizens groups to implement supportive for Korean victims of the atomic bomb. These interventions were launched in large part as a response to the legal actions initiated by the Japanese government against Son Jindoo. Following Son Jindoo’s trial, during which he advocated on behalf of Korean victims of the atomic bomb, he was able to begin taking care of survivors in cooperation withsupportive Christian groups in Japan and Korea. Additionally, he promoted fundraising activities and public relations campaigns to aidvictims. In the years that followed, and in accordance with the final judgment rendered in Son Jindoo’s case, the Japanese government which had refused to support Korean victims of the atomic bomb decided to invite them to Japan for treatment. This represented the beginning of the Japanese government’s institutional change toward Korean victims of the atomic bomb. Meanwhile, groups of Japanese citizens had been treating the Korean victims for overnight. These measures were taken in advance of the Japanese government’s actions. Furthermore, the Japanese citizens groups treated Korean victims in the same manner as Japanese victims’s Nonetheless, this equitabletreatment was underscored by a new awareness of postwar Japan's responsibilities, and grounded in an understanding of contemporary discrimination.