Jennifer Chang
Press TV, Seoul
Citizens’ Action to Denounce Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a coalition of civic groups, held its 8th so-called ‘candlelight cultural festival’ in the South Korean capital, Seoul.
Protesters gathered outside Japan's Embassy and slammed Tokyo’s export curbs on South Korea. Right after the previous ‘candlelight cultural festival,’ some of the protesters even did a head-shaving ceremony to show iron resolve.
Early in July, Tokyo imposed tighter controls on exports of three materials to South Korea used to make smartphone chips or displays following a diplomatic dispute over compensation for forced laborers during Japan's occupation of Korea during World War II.
Bilateral relations deteriorated after South Korea's Supreme Court last year ordered two Japanese companies to compensate the wartime workers in a ruling that Tokyo said violated international law.
Experts warn that if Japan and South Korea do not end their escalating trade war, which poses a growing threat to the world’s tech supply chain, the likelihood of global recession will increase.