Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama visited the Seodaemun Prison History Hall in Seoul on Wednesday to mourn Koreans who were killed by Japanese forces during World War II. The museum is the same site where Korean independence activists were held captive, tortured, and executed by the Japanese imperial army. At a press conference, Hatoyama said: "I would like to sincerely apologize for the fact that many independence activists were placed in the prison, tortured and even lost their lives under Japan’s colonial rule”.