Long-delayed, first hearing on 'comfort women' lawsuit to be held in S. Korea on Wednesday

After a long and tiring wait,... especially considering the age of the victims,... the first hearing in a lawsuit filed against Japanese government by former South Korean comfort women will take place in Seoul this afternoon.
It comes three whole years after it was put on ice due to Tokyo's refusal to participate.
Kim Hyo-sun reports.
The first hearing in a lawsuit seeking damages from Japan for wartime sex slavery is scheduled to be held in Seoul on Wednesday afternoon.
The suit was filed in 2016, but the start of the trial was postponed until now.
This was because the Japanese government refused to participate in the case, returning the petition to the South Korean district court.
As a result, the court had to take the procedure of conveyance by public announcement.
This means uploading the related documents on its bulletin board for a set period of time so it's considered that the documents have been delivered even if they haven't been acknowledged by the other party.
Over the course of the past three years,... five former comfort women, including the outspoken activist Kim Bok-dong, have passed away.
"Unless the Japanese government apologizes and compensates on legal terms, we will refuse their money, even if it's tens or hundreds of billions of won."
It's unclear whether the Japanese government will take part in the hearing.
Two elderly victims are expected to be there.
The Lawyers for a Democratic Society in Korea aim to criticize the Japanese government, saying its actions are infringing on the individual rights of the elderly victims.
They also plan to ask the judicial branch to make a righteous decision given that this lawsuit may be the last chance for the women to get justice.
Kim Hyo-sun, Arirang News.