OSAKA -- Refusing a state pension to Korean residents of Japan simply because they are not Japanese nationals might run counter to the constitutional principle of equality under the law, the Osaka High Court said Friday.
The high court, however, still upheld a lower court's decision and dismissed the appeal of a South Korean resident of Shiga Prefecture who has been seeking pension payments for injuries sustained during service with the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Presiding Judge Masayuki Matsuo said that not providing pensions to Korean residents of Japan may violate Article 14 of the Constitution. Koreans have not been eligible for compensation for wartime service since 1965, when it became clear that they would not receive payments from either the Japanese government or its South Korean counterpart.