Leprosy compensation law revised
A law to provide ¥8 million in compensation to former Hansen's disease patients who were segregated in South Korea and Taiwan during Japan's colonial rule was enacted Feb. 3 by the Diet.
The bill to revise the Hansen's disease compensation law was compiled after the Tokyo District Court ruled in favor in October of 25 Taiwanese former Hansen's patients who filed a lawsuit seeking compensation from the Japanese government for segregation at a sanitarium in Taiwan while rejecting a similar suit filed by 117 former patients from South Korea.
Former patients in areas other than Taiwan and South Korea can receive compensation under the revised law as the government is conducting research on former sufferers in four other overseas territories during colonial rule, including Saipan and Palau, for reparations.
The Japan Times Weekly: Feb. 11, 2006 (C) All rights reserved
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