Q: It is reported that on November 20, the Sendai High Court of Japan issued a verdict over the compensation law suit of former Chinese forced labor at port Sakata, Yamagata prefecture. It rejected their appeal by claiming "China has given up war compensation claims by individuals against Japan in the Sino-Japanese Joint Statement". What position does China hold towards that?

A: The declaration of the Chinese Government to renounce war compensation against Japan in the 1972 Sino-Japan Joint Statement was a political decision to ensure the friendly co-existence of the two peoples. We express our strong opposition to the willful interpretation of this article by a local Japanese court. This interpretation is illegitimate and invalid.

The conscription and slavery of forced labor is one of the grave crimes committed by the Japanese militarism against the Chinese people during the aggression war, which is still a major human rights issue yet to be properly handled. China urges the Japanese Government to properly handle the issue in an attitude responsible for history.