The return of remains of Korean forced laborers who died in Japan between 1940 and 1945 has been a major controversy for over half a century for Koreans. These deaths reveal the tragic consequences of Japan’s World War II forced labor system. Japan forcefully mobilized nearly 800,000 Koreans who were taken to at least 1,589 worksites in Japan and 381 worksites in Hokkaido. Over 10 percent of all Koreans forcefully mobilized throughout the empire are estimated to have died or disappeared, but the precise number of Korean forced laborers’ deaths inside Japan remains unknown. Until 1989, remains recovered from graves throughout Japan by local people were immediately cremated by Japanese Buddhist priests, making cause of death and precise identities forensically impossible. This account relates the first and only comprehensive effort to exhume Korean forced labor graves without immediate cremation, coordinated by Korean and Japanese activists and academics based in Hokkaido. This effort helped revive a neglected aspect of Korean forced labor history while focusing on the concerns of bereaved Koreans seeking the remains of their lost family members. Nevertheless, the project had serious limitations due to working in a difficult political environment and neglect of forensic science protocols in mass grave excavations and identification. This complex situation prevented identification of victims’ names and cause of death that could have held the Japanese government and companies involved accountable.

半个多世纪以来，归还1940年至1945年间在日本死亡的韩国强迫劳工遗骸一直是韩国人的一个重大争议。这些死亡事件揭示了日本二战强迫劳动制度的悲惨后果。日本强行动员了近80万名韩国人，他们被带到日本至少1589个工作地点和北海道381个工作地点。据估计，在整个帝国被强制动员的所有朝鲜人中，有超过 10% 已经死亡或失踪，但在日本境内强迫韩国劳工死亡的确切人数仍不清楚。直到 1989 年，当地人从日本各地的坟墓中发现的遗骸都立即被日本佛教僧侣火化，导致法医无法确定死因和准确身份。这篇报道讲述了在北海道的韩国和日本活动人士和学者的协调下，首次也是唯一一次在不立即火化的情况下挖掘韩国强迫劳动坟墓的全面努力。这项努力帮助重振了韩国强迫劳动历史中被忽视的一个方面，同时关注了失去亲人的韩国人寻找失去亲人遗体的担忧。然而，由于在困难的政治环境下工作以及在乱葬坑挖掘和鉴定方面忽视法医学协议，该项目存在严重局限性。这种复杂的情况导致无法查明受害者姓名和死因，而这本来可以追究日本政府和相关公司的责任。