Lives of Korean Peninsula Workers at Japan’s Sado Gold Mine in Japan Featured at Exhibition; Gold Mine Registered as UNESCO Heritage Site

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:35 JST, July 29, 2024

SADO, Niigata — A permanent exhibition displaying the harsh conditions of miners, including those from the Korean Peninsula, at the gold mining complex in Sado, Niigata Prefecture, opened Sunday.

The exhibition opened at the city’s Aikawa History Museum following the UNESCO World Heritage Committee’s decision on Saturday to register the gold mines on Sado Island to its World Heritage list.

The Japanese and South Korean governments made concessions for the registration, agreeing to omit terms related to “forced labor” at the exhibition but to include explanations about miners’ lives at the time.

About 1,500 people from the Korean Peninsula worked at the mines during World War II. The exhibition displays 29 panels with photos depicting dormitory life and working conditions. It also introduces records that show 80% of the rock drillers, a job considered to be dangerous, were from the peninsula at one time.

Visitors came to see the exhibition starting from the morning on opening day.

“I didn’t know people from the Korean Peninsula worked here,” said a 38-year-old office worker from Tokyo.

Museum director Tetsuo Ikeda said, “I hope the exhibition promotes understanding between Japan and Korea.”