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Japanese Asking Government for Comfort Women Probe

Posted April. 11, 2007 07:57,   

한국어

The former president of the Japan Bar Association criticized Japanese politicians including Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for denying the Japanese government’s involvement in coercing women into sexual slavery during World War II. He called for a thorough investigation into the Japanese government’s involvement. The former president of the Association pointed out, “There were many cases where not just private soldiers but the Japanese military abducted women to force them to serve Japanese soldiers.”

In a column he wrote for Asahi Shimbun, he said, “Though Japanese politicians are calling for a reinvestigation, it would be meaningless unless it is based on meticulous research. It is far-fetched that they believe the victims were not coerced only because official records don’t say the word ‘coerce.’”

He argued, “In the wake of the war, many documents were burned, but there are still a great deal of documents that haven’t been studied in archives of each ministry. Since bills proposing to build a bureau in the parliament library dedicated to examine documents regarding so-called comfort women have been presented to the parliament, a law relating this issue should be considered.”

He further stressed, “The UN Commission on Human Rights and the International Labor Organization (ILO) have repeatedly recommended that Japan adequately address this issue, which means international organizations think the issue remains unresolved.”

He pointed out, “Both Prime Minister Abe and Foreign Minister Taro Aso claim there was no coercion, but their claim seems unconvincing. I myself met with victims who told me that many of them were abducted, beaten and locked up by the Japanese military. Vagueness in the Kono Statement released in 1993 is attributed to the recent commotion. But there are some people exploiting the vagueness in order to tone down the statement itself. The government should provide a thorough investigation that will show whether the victims were forced to become sex slaves during WW II.”

He concluded, “Some worry that the U.S. resolution regarding the comfort women could hurt the U.S.-Japan alliance, but it is attempts to stop the resolution that will result in less confidence between the two countries. It is time for Japan to think about what is in their real national interest.”



sya@donga.com