KB News Desk
South Korea said Wednesday that a draft UNESCO decision on Japan’s implementation of follow-up measures for the Sado Gold Mines concludes the site’s history is insufficiently presented, reinforcing Seoul’s call for continued international scrutiny.
The assessment came during a background briefing by a foreign ministry official, requesting anonymity, ahead of next week’s meeting of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee.
According to the official, the draft decision acknowledges Japan’s additional efforts to improve its interpretation and exhibition strategy for the World Heritage site but says “there is still a need to clarify more clearly” how the site’s exhibits comprehensively present “the entire history” of the Sado Gold Mines.
The draft also requests that Japan regularly report progress to the UNESCO World Heritage Center and recommends that it “closely consult with the concerned parties” to improve its interpretation and exhibition strategy so that the site’s full history is comprehensively addressed, the official said.
While recognizing Japan’s progress, the draft views those efforts as insufficient, the official said, adding that it calls on Japan to submit another State of Conservation report by Dec. 1, 2027, for review at the 50th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2028.
“We understand the current draft as reflecting the view that, although Japan has made some progress in improving its interpretation and exhibition strategy and facilities related to the site’s entire history since the inscription of the Sado Gold Mines, those efforts remain insufficient, and therefore the issue should be reviewed again at the next session of the committee,” the official explained.
The official added that Seoul also takes note of the draft’s call for Japan to consult closely with relevant parties in improving the site’s interpretation and exhibition strategy.
“We believe this reflects South Korea’s consistent position that, given Japan’s insufficient implementation of the committee’s recommendations, the matter should continue to be reviewed at the World Heritage Committee level,” the official said.
The Sado Gold Mines were inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List at the committee’s 46th session in July 2024 after Japan pledged to develop an interpretation and exhibition strategy covering the site’s “entire history” throughout the full period of mining operations. Japan subsequently submitted its State of Conservation report to UNESCO in December 2025, which was reviewed by UNESCO’s advisory body, the International Council on Monuments and Sites, and the World Heritage Center.
Asked whether the draft explicitly refers to forced labor, the official declined to comment on specific wording, saying only that the committee’s repeated reference to the site’s “whole history” encompasses the history of Korean laborers who worked at the mines during Japan’s colonial rule.
“The decision itself uses the term ‘whole history,'” the official said. “That naturally includes the history of Korean victims of forced mobilization who worked at the mine.”
The official acknowledged that Japan has introduced additional measures since the site’s inscription, including installing signposts directing visitors to the remains of dormitories and communal kitchens once used by Korean workers. However, the official said those steps did not address the core issue.
“The key elements have not changed,” the official said, noting that Seoul continues to regard Japan’s implementation of UNESCO’s recommendations as insufficient.
The state of conservation agenda item is expected to be discussed during the World Heritage Committee’s meeting from July 22 to 24, with the draft decision likely to be adopted during that period unless member states propose amendments.
The issue remains a point of contention between Seoul and Tokyo following the site’s World Heritage inscription.
In November, South Korea held its own memorial ceremony on Sado Island for Korean victims of forced labor. It also boycotted Japan’s official event, arguing that Tokyo had failed to adequately acknowledge the suffering of Korean workers or the coercive nature of their labor. Japan had pledged to hold an annual memorial ceremony as part of commitments made during the World Heritage inscription process.
The Sado Gold Mines, located on Sado Island in Japan’s Niigata Prefecture, were among the country’s most productive gold and silver mines from the early 17th century until their closure in 1989. Japan successfully secured the site’s inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in July 2024, highlighting its history during the Edo period (1603–1868).
South Korea opposed the nomination unless Japan acknowledged the mine’s broader history, noting that more than 1,500 Koreans were mobilized to work at the site between 1940 and 1945 during Japan’s colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. As part of the inscription, UNESCO called on Japan to develop an interpretation and exhibition strategy that presents the site’s “entire history” over the full period of mining operations.
