Former South Korean prisoners of war(POWs) have again won a damages suit filed against North Korea and its leader Kim Jong-un for their forced labor during captivity.

The Seoul Central District Court on Monday ordered North Korea and Kim to pay 50 million won, or over 37-thousand dollars, each to three former prisoners, who escaped from the North in the early 2000s after being taken prisoner during the Korean War.

The three, including Kim Seong-tae aged 91, launched their litigation in 2020, arguing that they were taken to the communist state during the war and were forced to work in a coal mine for about 33 months in the 1950s. 

Although it seems difficult for the plaintiffs to actually receive compensation from the North, it has a symbolic meaning that the judiciary has held the regime accountable.

The same court issued a similar verdict in July 2020, in which the North and leader Kim were ordered to compensate two former POWs.