This paper examines the absurdity of the ‘Korean B and C class war criminals’ who served as guards in POW camps during World War II as young Korean men in a colony. The ‘Korean B and C class war criminals’ can be called ‘trans~national subalterns’ in that they were forced to work as low~level Japanese soldiers against their will due to colonial situation. With Japan’s defeat in World War II, some of these subalterns were forcibly returned to Korea. The Allies executed or imprisoned them as war criminals but received no economic compensation from Japan. On the other hand, they were also unwelcome in the newly liberated Korea, creating an absurd situation that raised issues of punishment, equity, and compensation. This study proposes that safeguards to prevent excessive punishment are needed to prevent the occurrence of other ‘Korean Class B and C war criminals’ in future international conflicts. The punishment for a subordinate who carries out an unjustified order should be no more than 50% of the sentence of the superior who gave the unjustified order. In addition, there should be no additional punishment based on nationality or citizenship. Reflection and lessons on the issue of the fairness of punishment for ‘Korean Class B and C war criminals’ are necessary to establish preventive measures, ensuring that similar unjust incidents do not recur. This is indeed the first step toward communication and mutual prosperity with East Asian transnational counterparts in the future.