Hankook Ilbo: State lacks funds for compensation; unpaid claims exceed 200 billion KRW, including victims of past state abuses.
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Paperslip Note:
This article relates to state compensation claims which those who receive a decision from TRC 2 (or TRC 3) can choose to file in S. Korea in attempt to obtain some restorative payment from the Korean Government. It should be understood that there were many victims groups represented in TRC 2 — Korean Adoptees’ cases are not discussed specifically in the article below, but any Korean Adoptees who filed a state compensation claim following a TRC 2 decision would be impacted by what is discussed in the article below.
It should be noted that only a handful of the 56 Korean Adoptees who received a decision from TRC 2 have pursued state compensation claims — to our knowledge, none of these have been resolved as of this date.
The article below sheds partial light as to why this may be the case.
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Hankook Ilbo Article (via Naver):
[Exclusive] State compensation can’t be paid due to lack of funds… unpaid amount exceeds 200 billion KRW, including victims of past state abuses
Original article posted in Korea on May 1st, 2026.
ChatGPT English translation posted to Paperslip on May 2nd, 2026.
Thank you to a Paperslip Contributor for the link.
BOLDS and blue highlighting ours.
Please see original article for photos.
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Korea Times (Hankook Ilbo)
“[Exclusive] State compensation can’t be paid due to lack of funds… unpaid amount exceeds 200 billion KRW, including victims of past state abuses
By Wi Yong-seong
Published: May 1, 2026, 4:31 AM
This year’s budget: 144.8 billion KRW… exhausted in about two months
Last year, about 300 billion KRW was covered with reserve funds
Frustrated victims: “Recovery in our lifetime seems unlikely”
It has been found that the amount of state compensation not yet paid to victims of past state violence exceeds 200 billion KRW. As the government adopted a policy of actively waiving or withdrawing appeals in such cases, demand surged, quickly depleting the roughly 150 billion KRW budget that had been set aside. As a result, victims in human rights violation cases such as the Seongam Academy and Brothers Home incidents, as well as the victim of the recent “Busan roundhouse kick” case whose state compensation was confirmed, have yet to receive payments.
According to the Ministry of Justice on April 30, as of the end of March this year, there were 655 state compensation cases where applications had been filed but payments had not been made, totaling 206.9 billion KRW. This includes an additional 8.3 billion KRW in delayed interest accrued due to late payment of court-awarded compensation.
The main reason for the unpaid compensation is a budget far short of demand.This year’s allocated budget for state compensation is 144.8 billion KRW, but by the end of February (2026), about 131.7 billion KRW had already been paid out—effectively exhausting the budget in just two months. Last year was no different. The allocated budget was even smaller, at 131.8 billion KRW, while actual payouts reached 437.3 billion KRW. The shortfall of about 305 billion KRW had to be covered by reserve funds. A Ministry of Justice official said, “We are currently consulting with the budget authorities to secure reserve funds quickly this year as well.”
The surge in compensation demand is described as a kind of “balloon effect.” As the Ministry of Justice adopted a policy of actively waiving or withdrawing appeals in cases involving victims of past state violence, the number of finalized compensation rulings naturally increased. In fact, since the second half of last year, Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho instructed the withdrawal or waiver of appeals en masse in state compensation lawsuits involving victims of human rights violations in cases such as Brothers Home, Seongam Academy, and the Samcheong reeducation camp. As a result, compensation for 2,202 victims was confirmed at once. About 46.1 billion KRW has been paid to these victims as of the end of March this year, but only some have received payments so far, and the total compensation amount is expected to grow further.
Among the cases where payment has been delayed is the “Busan roundhouse kick” case. The victim, Kim Jin-ju (pseudonym), was assaulted by a man in his 30s in an officetel in Seomyeon, Busan, in May 2022, and filed a state compensation lawsuit citing poor initial police investigation. During the trial, additional evidence of sexual assault that had been missed during the investigation was revealed, and the court acknowledged investigative negligence, ruling in February that 15 million KRW be paid in compensation.
The Ministry of Justice views the situation as a “temporary overload.” It explains that by waiving or withdrawing appeals, rulings are being finalized earlier, bringing forward the timing of payments. It also argues that this could reduce overall costs by avoiding prolonged litigation and the accumulation of further legal fees and delay interest through appeals.
Nevertheless, victims who must immediately cover litigation costs are growing increasingly distressed. Compensation is paid in the order applications are received, and as of last year, 45.6 billion KRW remained unpaid.Applicants this year have no clear timeline for when they will receive their money. As of last year, the average time from application to payment was 114 days, with some cases taking up to 141 days.
Attorney Choi Jung-gyu (Law Firm Wongok), who has represented many victims in past state abuse cases, said, “Some victims in the Brothers Home case are in poor health or facing financial hardship, making it unlikely they will see recovery within their lifetime,” adding, “Delaying payment of court-awarded compensation to victims of state violence is unacceptable.”’
Reporter Wi Yong-seong (up@hankookilbo.com)