Kishida to meet with plaintiffs in forced sterilization trial on July 17

Tokyo, July 9 (Jiji Press) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday he hopes to meet on July 17 with plaintiffs in lawsuits seeking damages for forced sterilizations carried out under the now-defunct eugenics protection law.

The meeting will take place after Kishida expressed his intention on Wednesday to issue a direct apology to the plaintiffs.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled that the old law was unconstitutional and recognized the government’s responsibility to pay damages to victims of forced sterilization. “As an executor of the law, I sincerely regret this and apologize from the bottom of my heart,” Kishida said the same day. “I would like to hear their difficult experiences and thoughts, and convey words of remorse and apology directly to them.”

When he meets with the plaintiffs, Kishida is expected to receive compensation requests from them.

END

(Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.)