South Korea had moved a proposal to review sites where Japan employed forced labor until World War II
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC) rejected on Monday a call for review of wartime-linked industrial sites of Japan.
South Korea had moved a proposal to review implementation of Tokyo's pledged measures regarding the sites, where Japan employed forced labor until World War II which ended in 1945.
Japan occupied the Korean Peninsula since 1910 until end of the war.
According to Yonhap news, the proposal was put to an unprecedented anonymous vote during the WHC session in Paris. It was turned down as Japan gained seven votes against only three which supported South Korea.
Seoul required a simple majority of six votes for consideration of review of the sites.
The vote was held after the committee was unable to reach a consensus on whether to include the UNESCO-listed Japanese industrial revolution sites as an agenda item for this year's meeting, which runs through next Wednesday.
Seoul's proposal came to review Tokyo's measures to reflect the "full history' of the site.”
The result casts doubt on whether the industrial sites will continue to be subject to any future evaluations at the UNESCO level, as a reassessment appears unlikely to be considered by the WHC, at least for now, Yonhap said.
