The Comfort Women Issue, Again
by Richardson ~ March 2nd, 2007. Filed under: History, Human Rights, Japan-Korea Relations.This issue will never die, partly due to comments like this from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe:
“It is a fact that there was no evidence to support that there was coercion as it was defined at the time,’” Abe told reporters late yesterday in Tokyo. “We must take into account there have been great changes in definitions.”
The statement indicates Abe’s administration may repeal a 1993 government study that the military, both directly and indirectly, forced women in occupied areas to serve in brothels as “comfort women.” The majority came from Korea, which Japan occupied from 1910 to 1945, and China.
Aside from numerous well documented cases of Japan doing just that:
Abe’s remarks contradicted evidence in Japanese documents unearthed in 1992 that historians said showed military authorities had a direct role in working with contractors to forcibly procure women for the brothels.
Abe was originally misquoted in the English press due to an incorrect translation, but I don’t think that alters the negativity of the comment and its connotations.
Robert of the Marmot’s Hole notes that:
“. . .most comfort women have rejected compensation from the Asian Women’s Fund—which is funded by private, not government donations—in favor of continued demands for state compensation and an official apology. . .”
I think there is more than enough credible documentation to convince any reasonable person that Japan did indeed press many women into sexual service against their will.
Some have pointed to what is allegedly an advertisement in a colonial era Korean newspaper advertising for “comfort women” (or perhaps more correctly translated as “comfort wives”), and that, “people most likely knew what the job generally entailed.” The implication that everyone was sort of in the know. No doubt some did know very well, but how many didn’t? Large numbers of girls and women took what they thought were other jobs but were forced into sexual slavery – yes, it was slavery. The implicit denials from that side of the argument will continue to stoke the fires.
It should also be noted that probably any apology Japan does make will not be good enough. Koreans have a pretty good track record of taking apologies and asking for more, more, more. Perhaps if Abe went to Korea and committed ritual suicide at Seoul City Hall on live TV, Koreans may consider that a “sincere” apology. Maybe.
On one side the continued denials and qualified-but-not-full admissions by many in leadership position, on the other the inability to accept most apologies. This issue is not going to go away for a long, long time.
Also see this topic at ROK Drop, the Lost Nomad, and Japundit. OneFreeKorea notes that there is a modern type of “comfort woman” being exploited right now.
March 3rd, 2007 at 8:33 am
Hi Richardson,
The comfort woman issue is a very complex one. In fact, there is no doubt in my mind that many (probably not most) were in fact forced to become comfort women. Since the Japanese were in charge at the time, ultimately the buck stops with them, but I think that the current comfort women controversy is about attacking the current Japanese government while shifting all the blame to Japan, when Korean (and Japanese) societal attitudes towards women was a significant factor in what happened to the women.
While there are testimonies that claim they were abducted by the Japanese army, the Japanese government has not been able to find any documentary evidence anywhere to support that ever happening, even once. I suppose that does not mean that it never happened, but it certainly does indicate that it was not systematic, and that it was not the policy of the government.
There is also confusion about the meaning of “comfort women”, as many people include battlefield rape victims as among the comfort women.
What the documentary evidence does tell us, both Japanese and two US army reports on Koreans and comfort women, is that often the women were sold by their own families to serve a term of 6 to 12 months as prostitutes for the Japanese army.
Once the family had received and advance, a small fortune, and signed the contract, then the daughters fate was sealed. Of course many would not want to go to be prostitutes, but they would have been pressured by their families. The Japanese and Korean people of the day treated women like chattel, so their would have been no recourse to the police, either. The woman would have to go, and if she was not cooperative when she arrived, then it is quite possible that she would have been forced to have sex. I can imagine just such a girl being screamed at like “if you don’t want to work, then pay us back the 1000 yen we advanced your family!”. Of course, there is no way such a girl would have that money or she would not be a comfort woman in the first place.
From everything that I have read in the colonial era of Korea, I honestly believe that a girl that had been kidnapped would have recourse to the police and courts if they had not been sold by their families.
I think that is the real scandal about the comfort women issue, although it does not apply to every single one of them. The problem with considering the issue this way is that it can no longer be used as an issue to bash the current Japanese government with because it becomes a more generalized issue about the oppression of women. Koreans do not want to face their substantial role in what happened to some of the comfort women, so it is in their interest to try to frame the issue as a black and issue of supporting or denying the comfort women. The US Congress resolution being undertaken now does just that. It does not even allow for any nuance or details at all, and the resolution demands that the number of comfort women, 200,000, be accepted despite no methodology used to reach this number, along with accepting that every single one of them was forced, usually from their homes or villages at gun point by the Japanese army, to serve as sex slaves.
[posted for Matt
-R]
March 3rd, 2007 at 6:42 pm
“Some have pointed to what is allegedly an advertisement in a colonial era Korean newspaper advertising for “comfort women” (or perhaps more correctly translated as “comfort wives”), and that, “people most likely knew what the job generally entailed.” The implication that everyone was sort of in the know. No doubt some did know very well, but how many didn’t? Large numbers of girls and women took what they thought were other jobs but were forced into sexual slavery – yes, it was slavery. The implicit denials from that side of the argument will continue to stoke the fires.”
Hmm,
Years from now, when the human trafficking that South Korea has engaged in is being “investigated”, will the Koreans point to this type of argument to try to cleanse their conscience? Will they say most of the Russian and Phillipino women probably knew what they were being brought over to do?
What the Korean’s have going on here sure fits the definition.
-girls who have had their passports taken away
-girls being controlled by the bar
-girls staying together in one hotel with a “guard”
-girls who can have a “night off” bought from the bar
-girls given very little money and very little time off (if any)
Some argue that the Korean government is doing “all it can” because it has enacted laws that “strongly address” human trafficking. However, there seems to be ZERO enforcement of these laws. Just like there’s ZERO enforcement of the anti-discrimination laws that should protect US Soldiers from being discriminated against.
You’d think that a society that had such a traumatic experience at the hands of the Japanese (that they seemingly will never forget) would not turn around and do the same thing to the women of the less financially successful countries in Asia. I would argue that what the Koreans are doing is much worse today, put into the context of modern times and modern definitions of acceptable behavior.
Really, I don’t know why I bother. I’m sure this will just somehow be blamed on USFK and the evil American Soldiers who “occupied” Korea.
March 4th, 2007 at 5:34 am
It’s funny because it’s true.
The situation that the Korean girls were in during those times is strongly paralleled by the situation that Filipino and Russian girls have found themselves in here in Korea during the past 10 years or so.
Although some are tricked into coming here to “model” or other naive bullshit, the majority, be that 51% or 99%, know exactly what they are about to be involved in and are in it for the money. This is evident by the number of juicy girls who continue to make return trips to Korea once their initial “tour of duty” is complete. Something tells me that in the future, the governments of Russia and the Phillipines will not make as much a fuss about it as the Coreans have.
The whole comfort women thing is just the manifestation of the following elements of the Corean male and female psyches:
1. Hands off our women. (Corean male)
2. Give us more money. (Corean female)
March 5th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
I’ve read a bit about the 1993 apology and the documents that lead to it. It’s clear that many women were indeed forced into this, either by being misled into the type of “job” they’d be doing (or volunteered for in some cases), or by being outright kidnapped. That’s why Japan apologized in 1993 after all.
I see the parallel and Korea’s hypocrisy you’re getting at with foreign juicy girls in Korea, but still see Abe’s comments as both factually incorrect and unnecessary.
[added] Aside from being completely unnecessary, Abe’s comments probably weren’t the smartest thing to say when heading into negotiations on Japan’s abductees, either. If he felt compelled to make the comments, he should have at least waited.
March 11th, 2007 at 1:27 am
Mr. Richardson
“That’s why Japan apologized in 1993 after all. ”
It is not correct. There was no evidence Japanese Government orderded soldiers to kidnap Korean women. It just apologized for the hard situation which parents were forced to sell daughters because of poorness or pimps deceived women under Japanese rule.
Now, Korean comfort women are insisting that all 200,000 women (This number itself does not have any evidences) were kidnapped by Japanese soldiers.
It is not true.
If Abe apologize again, many people would believe like you that “Japanese was criminal. That’s why Japan apologized. ”
Then Korean will use the apology as evidence and ask Japanese emperor to kneel down next time.
March 11th, 2007 at 10:23 am
You’re very mistaken, jjion. There was a solid reason for apology, and not the one you mention.
In 1992 the Japanese government issued a report, “Results of the Investigation of the Question of ‘Military Comfort Women’ Originating from the Korean Peninsula.”
Thanks to Google books, you can go read about it.
March 11th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Mr. Richardoson
“There was a solid reason for apology”
I recommend you no to have such a conviction after reading one or two reports.
There is no solid evidence in the history.
I know not only the above report but also the back-story about the situation Kono apologized in 1993.
Have you ever read this US Army report?
http://www.exordio.com/1939-1945/codex/Documentos/report-49-USA-orig.html
“Report No. 49: Japanese POW Interrogation on Prostitution.”
This was written by Japanese American translator who belonged to Military Intelligence Service of US Army.
He interviewed some comfort women in Burma.
You would know how they were recruited and paid well.
This report was written badly because Japanese Americans were not so educated in those days.
Anyhow, if Japan admits that it kidnapped 200,000 of Korean women, it would be a shame for Korean men who did not resist at all against Japanese to protect their daughters and sisters.
[edited - combined two related comments]
If 200,000 of Korean women were kidnapped, there must be about a million family members of them.
Why they had kept silence until now.
There were no articles or pictures which show Korean families protest for their missing daughters in 1940s, 50s, 60s, and 70s.
Even now, no family member participates to the demonstrations with comfort women.
This is another question.
Mr. Richardson
Could you please answer to this question for mysterious Koreans?
March 11th, 2007 at 3:55 pm
A few things;
1.) No solid evidence in history? This takes the tone of Koreans for whom no apology is ever enough. If as you say, Japan “just apologized for the hard situation,” in 1993, then why not before? Why suddenly after the 1992 report and the information it exposed?
2.) You refer to a report of an interrogation of 20 women. The scope of the issue is far greater – in the hundreds of thousands – and I will note that if you will try to extrapolate that report to the greater, then there equal, if not more, compelling testimony to the contrary.
3.) On, “200,000” – the exact number of girls and women Japan kidnapped and otherwise forced into sexual slavery is something that will never be known for sure. I don’t argue a specific number. If someone else does, I suggest you ask them, as I will not argue points I did not make.
4.) I’m sure you already know the answers to your questions, such as the extremes shame and humiliation that caused these women to keep quiet for decades – those that survived the Korean War that is – and the fact that many, if not most, of them are now dead. Those that aren’t are elderly.
Thanks.
[Edit, 14 March; I won’t allow apologist diatribes that simply create facts.]