[Editorial] U.S. Companies Should Accept Defoliant Decision

The Seoul High Court has ordered the American manufacturers Dow Chemical and Monsanto to compensate 6,795 Koreans who were exposed to their defoliants during the Vietnam War to the tune of W63 billion. Close to 100,000 individuals in Korea are suffering from the effects of exposure, and given that among them 20,061 were party to the lawsuit that asked for W5 trillion, the court's decision does not meet with expectations. But it is nevertheless significant for being the world's first legal decision that keeps the defoliant manufacturers legally responsible for compensation.

Should the Supreme Court uphold the decision, the two American manufacturing companies should respect the decision of our judicial system. We call on them to immediately take action on the stipulation of the judgment, which says they should pay half of the compensation amount at once, even if they appeal. If they refuse to give compensation, saying that American precedents are different, that would be disregarding international practice and the principle of reciprocity. As multinational corporations, they would be hurting themselves as well. American courts have rejected compensation lawsuits by American veterans based on the "government contractor defense," which argues that they cannot be penalized for filling legal orders from the government in time of war. That is domestic American law, however, and the American situation.

If a writ of execution becomes inevitable victims' lawyers will have to work as much as possible to obtain the approval of a federal American court. But the Korean government, for its part, needs to think of it as protecting the rights and interests of its citizens and fully support the effort. Just as Korean companies do not reject American court decisions, American courts need to recognize this decision from Korea's judicial system based on reciprocity.

The Hankyoreh, 28 January 2006.

[Translations by Seoul Selection]