Japan’s Gunma Prefecture is set to remove a monument dedicated to Korean wartime forced laborers despite strong opposition from civic groups.

According to civic groups and local media, the prefectural government plans to start the removal on Monday and complete it by February 11.

The monument was erected in a park in 2004 to memorialize Koreans who were mobilized for labor during the Pacific War and died in the prefecture.

The phrase “Remembrance, Reflection, and Friendship” is written in Korean on the front of the monument, while the back contains the statement "We deeply reflect on the historical fact that caused great damage and suffering to the Korean people, and express our determination not to repeat the mistake again.”

Prefecture authorities refused to renew the installation permit after a participant at a memorial ceremony held in front of the monument in 2012 used the expression “forced mobilization,” contending that it constituted a political demonstration in violation of the original permit. 

In June 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the prefecture in a lawsuit challenging the legality of the prefectural government's decision not to grant the permit.

About 150 people including officials from the civic groups laid flowers at the monument in protest of the demolition on Sunday.