Measures have been adopted to ensure the smooth handling of the first compensation case for Chinese laborers imprisoned in Japanese-run labor camps during World War II, sources with the China Red Cross Society (CRCS) said in Beijing Thursday.

On June 30, 1945, more than 700 Chinese laborers imprisoned in the Japanese-run labor camps in China staged an uprising that was eventually suppressed by Japanese troops. More than 130 laborers were killed in what is now called the "Hanaoka Incident."

In 2000, following a long process of negotiations and judicial proceedings, the Chinese laborers and the Japanese side reached an agreement requiring the Japanese side to pay 500 million Japanese yen (about US$4 million) to the laborers, and entrust the CRCS to establish the Hanaoka Foundation for Peace and Friendship (HFPF).

According to the HFPF, the Hanaoka lawsuit filed by the Chinese labor camp victims is the only one which resulted in a written apology and substantive compensation from the Japanese side. The HFPF is also the first fund established for wartime compensation and memorial services in Asia.

An official with the CRCS said the outbreak of SARS had generated unexpected difficulties with regard to the payment of the compensation, which involves locating the laborers or the family members of deceased laborers. An on-site payment ceremony has been canceled to ensure the health of the war victims.

The CRCS said that the timely payment of compensation to the war victims is key to protecting their dignity and educating the young generation. Since most of the camp inmates are now in their eighties, the CRCS and the HFPF had to take measures to ensure the distribution. The compensation is now paid through banks and post offices, and the search for and confirmation of laborers continues.

The foundation has also set up an e-mail address, huagangzixun2003@yahoo.com.cn, to handle queries from the media and from residents.

The foundation says a special fund will also be established to aid the offsprings of the laborers.

(Xinhua News Agency May 29, 2003)