Forty-five war orphans who were abandoned in China after World War II and later resettled in Japan filed a suit Thursday with the Kochi District Court against the central government, claiming they did not get sufficient support.

The plaintiffs, men and women aged between 57 and 71 and living in Kochi Prefecture, are seeking a total of 1.485 billion yen, or 33 million yen each.

After the end of World War II, according to the plaintiffs' complaint, the central government did nothing to ensure that war orphans were quickly brought to Japan, and that when they arrived, it failed to provide them with sufficient support in areas such as acquiring Japanese language skills and finding employment.

They accused the government of making their lives difficult and infringing on their rights to live as Japanese nationals.

More than 1,200 such people have already filed similar lawsuits in courts across the country.