Civic groups on Thursday criticized President Lee Jae Myung after he told a Japanese newspaper that Seoul should honor the 2015 accord with Tokyo on wartime sexual slavery victims. 

The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance said the government was “repeating the mistakes of past administrations,” stressing that “true historical justice” requires Japan’s official apology and legal compensation, not clinging to a flawed agreement. 

A coalition of 693 civic groups also declared that crimes against humanity cannot be erased by “political deals,” urging Japan to accept legal responsibility. 

Park Seok-woon, the group's co-representative, argued that the agreement regarding women forced into military sexual slavery was never ratified by the National Assembly or confirmed by the Supreme Court, dismissing claims that it was a binding national promise. 

Other groups, including the Center for Historical Truth and Justice, voiced concern that Lee’s stance echoed the “humiliating diplomacy” of his predecessor and undermined solidarity with Japanese civic movements seeking redress. 

In the interview with Yomiuri Shimbun, Lee said it is not desirable to rescind the 2015 Seoul-Tokyo agreement, as it is an intergovernmental commitment.