Watermelon comments

Posted in: Japan steps up claim to S Korea-held islets at 'Takeshima Day' event amid tensions See in context

In 1960, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Douglas MacArthur II sent a telegram to J. Graham Parsons, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and said:

“While Rhee regime violated most basic tenets of democracy in authoritarian police rule imposed on Korean people, it has also in past done violence to most fundamental principles of international conduct and morality by committing acts of piracy on high seas around Rhee Line and then imprisoning and holding as political hostages Japanese fishermen and by seizing and holding non-Korean territory by force. The uncivilized practice of hostage diplomacy is one of our serious charges against Communist China and if continued by ROK it will be a great liability to a new democratic ROK regime. 

I therefore recommend strongly that as soon as new regime is in control in Korea (whether or not it be of interim character) we use all influence to persuade it (1) to release and return to Japan all repeat all Japan fishermen hostages (including those who have not completed their sentences) who have suffered so cruelly from Rhee’s uncivilized and oppressive acts and(2) to cease practice of seizing Japanese fishing vessels on high seas. This would not only rid new ROK regime of liability of practicing hostage diplomacy but also more than anything else would lay foundation in Japan for really fruitful negotiations….. 

…..

In addition to seizing Japanese boats on high seas and practicing hostage diplomacy, Rhee regime also seized by force and is holding illegally Takeshima Island which has always been considered as Japanese territory. This is very serious and permanent irritant in Japan-ROK relations and there can be no over-all ROK-Japan settlement until this Japanese island is returned to Japan. Therefore we should also press new ROK regime to return Takeshima to Japan. If it is unwilling to do so pending satisfactory conclusion of over-all ROK-Japan negotiations, new regime should at least signify a willingness to withdraw from Takeshima as part of mutually satisfactory settlement of other outstanding issues between two countries. While we should press strongly for return of Takeshima to Japan, if by any chance new regime were unwilling to do so we should, as very* minimum, insist that they agree to submit matter to International Court of Justice for arbitration.”

3 ( +6 / -3 )

Posted in: Japan steps up claim to S Korea-held islets at 'Takeshima Day' event amid tensions See in context

In 1954, the Van Fleet mission to the Far East reported:

“When the Treaty of Peace with Japan was being drafted, the Republic of Korea asserted its claims to Dokto but the United States concluded that they remained under Japanese sovereignty and the Island was not included among the Islands that Japan released from its ownership under the Peace Treaty. The Republic of Korea has been confidentially informed of the United States position regarding the islands but our position has not been made public. Though the United States considers that the islands are Japanese territory, we have declined to interfere in the dispute. Our position has been that the dispute might properly be referred to the International Court of Justice and this suggestion has been informally conveyed to the Republic of Korea.”

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan steps up claim to S Korea-held islets at 'Takeshima Day' event amid tensions See in context

On August 10, 1951, Dean Rusk, the US Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs, sent a diplomatic correspondence to Yang You Chan, the South Korean ambassador to the U.S (kown as Rusk documents) and said:

"As regards the island of Dokdo, otherwise known as Takeshima or Liancourt Rocks, this normally uninhabited rock formation was according to our information never treated as part of Korea and, since about 1905, has been under the jurisdiction of the Oki Islands Branch Office of Shimane Prefecture of Japan. The island does not appear ever before to have been claimed by Korea."

3 ( +6 / -3 )

Posted in: Okinawa rally mourns governor, opposes U.S. base relocation See in context

Voice of Okinawa,

I got what you called "false figure" from this website: Onoyama Park Track and Field Ground capacity: 9,000

http://www.sports-commission.okinawa/archives/search/0278

From what I read on Ryukyu Shimpo (https://ryukyushimpo.jp/news/entry-780697.html), the rally was held at the track and field ground of Onoyama Park.

In protests like this, the turnout counted by the organizer is often much larger than the turnout counted by the police. Unlike this article, most Japanese news outlets, if not all, always mention the turnout "as counted by the organizer."

The following is the only photo I could find which shows a bird's eye view of the rally.

Photos of rally at Onoyama park (left: 70,000?) vs baseball stadium packed with 50,000 (right)

https://twitter.com/ps20xx/status/1028261602879987713

If you can show me a bird's eye view photo showing 70,000 or so people at the rally, I'm ready to accept the turnout you claim.

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

Posted in: Okinawa rally mourns governor, opposes U.S. base relocation See in context

Anti-base signs in Okinawa are often written in Japanese, English and the language of a neighboring peninsula country.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Posted in: Okinawa rally mourns governor, opposes U.S. base relocation See in context

Onoyama park capacity: 9,000

-4 ( +1 / -5 )

Posted in: Wife of Japanese journalist held in Syria makes tearful plea for his release See in context

According to some Japanese journalists, Junpei Yasuda said he was Korean because he is Korean Japanese with both Japanese and Korean passports and he used his Korean passport when he entered Syria.

Yasuda has been detained or held hostage a total of five times in places like Iraq and Syria (in 2003, 2004, 2009 and 2015).

In 2004, after Yasuda and his fellow journalist Watanabe were released and flown back to Japan, Watanabe refused to pay back the airfare to the JP govt and sued the government for about $50,000 in compensation, claiming that they got kidnapped because the govt deployed the self defense force in Iraq for UN peacekeeping operation.

Given the number of Yasuda's detentions and hostage situations in the past, some say journalists like Yasuda should be responsible for his action, although many Japanese are praying for his safe return.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Posted in: Senior SDF officer rants against opposition lawmaker on street See in context

In 2015, Mr. Konishi tweeted, "The Japanese self defense force soldiers will be working to kill children of other countries" and later deleted his tweet.

https://twitter.com/WOM1965/status/986210652661280769

-2 ( +1 / -3 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

The plaque for the comfort women statue in San Francisco has no mention of these comfort women.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-southkorea-usa-military/former-korean-comfort-women-for-u-s-troops-sue-own-government-idUSKBN0FG0VV20140711

Former Korean 'comfort women' for U.S. troops sue own government

After she escaped home in the early 1960s, her pimp sold her to one of the brothels allowed by the government to serve American soldiers.

On June 25, sixty-four years after the Korean War broke out, Cho joined 122 surviving comfort women, as they were called, in a lawsuit against their government to reclaim, they say, human dignity and proper compensation.

The suit comes as an embarrassing distraction for the South Korean government, which has pushed Japan to properly atone for what it says were World War Two atrocities including forcing women, many of them Korean, to serve as sex slaves for its soldiers.

The women claim the South Korean government trained them and worked with pimps to run a sex trade through the 1960s and 1970s for U.S. troops, encouraged women to work as prostitutes and violated their human rights.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

Browny1

Thanks for the comment!

You are probably right about Osaka losing the public opinion battle, especially in the western mainstream media, not to mention Korea and China. Or, maybe it could be a chance to get the attention of open-minded people to know more about many sides of the comfort women issue.

I certainly don't support abandoning friendship and exchanges. But I wonder who is actually refusing discussions in this case although I understand the position of the SF mayor, who could lose constituents if he even tries to hear what Yoshimura san wants to say.

Explicitly defining what happened in history and refusing to study any new information, e.g. testimonies and written records that contradict the previous definition, by simply accusing such study as revisionism ---I was probably one of those people, especially when such information could discredit some victims. But going through the process of feeling horrible for the comfort women, questioning with anger the sincerity of the Japanese government's apologies, and finally delving further into this controversial issue has made me a more open-minded student of history.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

browny1Today 12:40 pm JST

"Anyone may well disagree with others opinions & ideas, but constant discussion, analysis and exchange is what most sensible people would believe to be the best way forward."

I totally agree. The Osaka mayor asked the SF mayor numerous times to give him a chance to meet him in person and discuss the issue. The SF mayor said he had no intention whatsoever of discussing anything about the comfort women issue.

In case you read Japanese, here's the source:

Source: http://www.sankei.com/west/news/171124/wst1711240036-n1.html

8 ( +10 / -2 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

browny1Today 12:40 pm JST

Anyone may well disagree with others opinions & ideas, but constant discussion, analysis and exchange is what most sensible people would believe to be the best way forward.

I totally agree. The Osaka mayor asked the SF mayor numerous times to give him a chance to meet him in person and discuss the issue. The SF mayor said he had no intention whatsoever of discussing anything about the comfort women issue.

In case you read Japanese, here's the source:

Source: http://www.sankei.com/west/news/171124/wst1711240036-n1.html

6 ( +9 / -3 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

Fascinating diary of a comfort woman who did the best she could to survive a difficult situation

Former Korean comfort woman Mun Oku-chu's memoir: 

“After two or three months, the troop unit to which Yamada belonged returned from the front. Yamada returned in good health. He immediately came to the comfort station. He said "I, private first class soldier Yamada, have just come back from the front." Yamada gave a salute to me. We hugged in full of joy. Such a day was so special that the comfort station owner Matsumoto (a Korean from Daegu [Note: Many Koreans chose to use Japanese names]) closed business for the day. The comfort station was full of excitement, and we, comfort women, contributed 1 yen per woman to hold a big party for them.”

“I often went to see Japanese movies and Kabuki plays in which players came from the mainland Japan. I enjoyed watching players change costumes many times and male players portray women’s roles. I became a popular woman in Rangoon. There were a lot more officers in Rangoon than near the frontlines, so I was invited to many parties. I sang songs at parties and received lots of tips.”

“I could go out once a week or twice a month with permission from the Korean owner. It was fun to go shopping by rickshaw. I can't forget the experience of shopping in a market in Rangoon. There were lots of jewelry shops because many jewels were produced in Burma, and ruby and jade were not expensive. One of my friends collected many jewels. I thought I should have a jewel myself, so I went and bought a diamond.”

“I put on a pair of high heels, a green coat and carried an alligator leather handbag. I swaggered about in a fashionable dress. No one could guess that I was a comfort woman. I felt so happy and proud.”

 

“I saved a considerable amount of money from tips. ----- so I decided to put my money in the saving account.---- I got my savings passbook and found 500 yen written on the passbook. I became the owner of the savings passbook for the first time in my life. I worked in Daegu as a nanny and a street seller from the childhood but I remained poor no matter how hard I worked. I could not believe that I could have so much money in my saving account. A house in Daegu cost 1,000 yen at the time. I could let my mother have an easy life. I felt very happy and proud. The savings passbook became my treasure.”

“I withdrew 5,000 yen from my saving account and sent it to my mother.”

 

http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/former-korean-comfort-woman-mun-oku.html

6 ( +10 / -4 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

English translation of Professor Jun BongGwan's review of the book "Comfort Women of the Empire." (Professor at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) published on July 20, 2014 in ChosunIlbo (Korean newspaper)

After reading the book, I was a little bit disappointed because there was nothing in the book that I didn't know. We all knew that Korean comfort women were not coercively taken away by the Japanese military. Korean comfort station owners recruited women in the Korean Peninsula and operated comfort stations in the battlefields. The Japanese military was busy fighting all over Asia, and it certainly didn't have time to be in Korea recruiting women.

Although Professor Park Yuha recognizes that Japan's imperialism was the root cause of women's suffering, she claims that Korean comfort station owners were legally responsible as well. I disagree with her logic because the Japanese military did allow Korean owners to recruit women. So the Japanese military was the one legally responsible in my opinion.

Korean fathers and brothers who sold their daughters and sisters, Korean comfort station owners who deceived women, Korean town chiefs who encouraged those acts. They all should be held accountable someday. But now is not the time. We must make Japan apologize and compensate again before we admit our responsibility.

If one reads the book carefully, it is clear that Professor Park had no intent to defame former comfort women. But it was not smart for her to suggest that Korea and Japan should both admit responsibility.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/comfort-women-of-empire-reviewed-by.html

6 ( +10 / -4 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

Korean Newspaper Reports from 1930's

--1939.03.28 동아일보 50여 처녀가 조선인 인신매매단에 걸려서 북지, 만주에 창기로 팔림. 일본경찰이 구해줌.

March 28, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 50 women were deceived by a Korean trafficker (Bae Jang-eon 배장언) and sent to Northern China & Manchuria. He was arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

-- 1939.08.31 동아일보 악덕소개업자가 발호, 이들이 유괴한 농촌부녀자의 수가 무려 100명 이상. 모두 일본경찰님들이 구출해내심.

 August 31, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 100 women from farming villages were deceived by Korean traffickers (Kim Ok-man 김옥만 & his family) They were arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

--1935.03.07 동아일보 중국 상해 암흑굴에 조선여성 2천여명. 이들 원정녀들 때문에 조선인의 체면이 손상됨. 그녀들의 참담한 생활에도 불구하고 대책이 막연. 왜냐하면 경제적 문제로 인한 자발적인 근로라서 대책을 세울 수 없음을 안타까워하는 내용.

March 7, 1935 Donga Ilbo About 2,000 Korean women work in the Shanghai slum. These prostitutes tarnish our reputation. But we can't stop them because they voluntarily stay there for economic reasons.

 

The copies of the original newspaper articles are posted here.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/korean-newspaper-articles-from-1930s.html

7 ( +12 / -5 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

Why did some former comfort women have to lie?

The Korean American author of a book “Comfort Women” visited Pak Pok-sun (1921-2005) in April 2000. Pak was extremely critical of the way the Korean Council has conducted the redress movement. She stated that in addition to hate calls and death threats, she had also received offensive mail from irate supports of the Korean Council’s publication series. Pak asserted with anger and disgust that some of the victims are “imposters” and that they are telling “lies” about life at comfort stations.

 

“Pak Pok-sun (1921-2005) became the target of death threats and hate calls for going against the Korean Council’s adamant opposition to the AWF atonement project. For eight years until her death, she led a bitter life of social isolation from fellow Koreans. She was fortunate, however, to find a sympathetic confidante in Usuki Keiko. A representative of the Japanese non-governmental organization Hakkirikai (Association to Clarify Japan’s War Responsibility)”

“When Pak died in 2005, Usuki flew from Japan to attend her funeral. Political leaders in Seoul and Tokyo expressed their condolences by sending huge wreaths with their names inscribed on them, but no one from Pak’s family was in attendance. It was Usuki who carried the urn holding Pak’s ashes at the crematory.”

https://books.google.com/books?hl=fr&id=GIHcaFVxXf0C&lpg=PP1&pg=PA97#v=onepage&q&f=false

5 ( +9 / -4 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

– In an interview with Professor Chunghee Sarah Soh of San Francisco State University, a former Korean comfort woman Kim Sun-ok said that she was sold by her parents four times.

Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

– In an interview with Professor Park Yuha of Sejong University in South Korea, a former Korean comfort woman Bae Chun-hee said she hated her father who sold her. She said that men who recruited Korean women and operated comfort stations were all Korean, and that Korean women who testified before UN Special Rapporteur lied on behalf of Chong Dae Hyup, (Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery, an organization co-founded by the wife of a man arrested as a North Korean spy in South Korea]. 

– In 1993 a former Korean comfort woman Kim Gun-ja told Professor Ahn Byong Jik of Seoul University, “I was sold by my foster father.”

Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-comfort-women-by-chunghee-sarah-soh.html

5 ( +9 / -4 )

Posted in: San Francisco mayor accepts 'comfort women' statue; Osaka to end sister-city ties See in context

San Francisco is free to erect a statue. Isn't Osaka also free to inform the SF mayor that the plaque contains false information and ask him not to make it a part of SF's public property?

For nearly 30 years after Asahi Newspaper launched a huge campaign harshly criticizing Japan for the so-called "abduction of Korean women" for use as "sex slaves" before and during WWII, Most Japanese totally believed Asahi's reports and the words of poor comfort women, and felt truly sorry for them. Most of the former Japanese soldiers openly admitted that they bought their sex service, but swore to their God or Buddha they DIDN’T ABDUCT any women in Korea. Literally no Japanese believed the words of these “evil” soldiers.

During these 30 years, more and more testimonies were made and records were discovered. Some brave Koreans spoke out at the risk of legal prosecutions in Korea and despite death threats and hate mails from fellow Koreans. Their testimonies coincide with many written records from the 1930’s and 1940’s. Today, many Japanese are finally starting to realize that their “evil” grandfathers might have been telling the truth.

4 ( +9 / -5 )

Posted in: Japan to scrutinize U.N. recommendation on 'comfort women' See in context

English translation of excerpts from a former Korean comfort woman Mun Oku-chu's memoir: http://www.kyobobook.co.kr/product/detailViewKor.laf?ejkGb=KOR&mallGb=KOR&barcode=9788991066106&orderClick=LAA

“I saved a considerable amount of money from tips. ----- so I decided to put my money in the saving account.---- I got my savings passbook and found 500 yen written on the passbook. I became the owner of the savings passbook for the first time in my life. I worked in Daegu as a nanny and a street seller from the childhood but I remained poor no matter how hard I worked. I could not believe that I could have so much money in my saving account. A house in Daegu cost 1,000 yen at the time. I could let my mother have an easy life. I felt very happy and proud. The savings passbook became my treasure.”

“I withdrew 5,000 yen from my saving account and sent it to my mother.”

“After two or three months, the troop unit to which Yamada belonged returned from the front. Yamada returned in good health. He immediately came to the comfort station. He said "I, private first class soldier Yamada, have just come back from the front." Yamada gave a salute to me. We hugged in full of joy. Such a day was so special that the comfort station owner Matsumoto (a Korean from Daegu [Note: Some Koreans chose to use Japanese names when Korea was part of Japan]) closed business for the day. The comfort station was full of excitement, and we, comfort women, contributed 1 yen per woman to hold a big party for them.”

“I could go out once a week or twice a month with permission from the Korean owner. It was fun to go shopping by rickshaw. I can't forget the experience of shopping in a market in Rangoon. There were lots of jewelry shops because many jewels were produced in Burma, and ruby and jade were not expensive. One of my friends collected many jewels. I thought I should have a jewel myself, so I went and bought a diamond.”

“I put on a pair of high heels, a green coat and carried an alligator leather handbag. I swaggered about in a fashionable dress. No one could guess that I was a comfort woman. I felt so happy and proud.”

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/former-korean-comfort-woman-mun-oku.html

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Posted in: Japan to scrutinize U.N. recommendation on 'comfort women' See in context

Korean Newspaper Reports from 1930's

--1939.03.28 동아일보 50여 처녀가 조선인 인신매매단에 걸려서 북지, 만주에 창기로 팔림. 일본경찰이 구해줌.

March 28, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 50 women were deceived by a Korean trafficker (Bae Jang-eon 배장언) and sent to Northern China & Manchuria. He was arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

-- 1939.08.31 동아일보 악덕소개업자가 발호, 이들이 유괴한 농촌부녀자의 수가 무려 100명 이상. 모두 일본경찰님들이 구출해내심.

 August 31, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 100 women from farming villages were deceived by Korean traffickers (Kim Ok-man 김옥만 & his family) They were arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

--1935.03.07 동아일보 중국 상해 암흑굴에 조선여성 2천여명. 이들 원정녀들 때문에 조선인의 체면이 손상됨. 그녀들의 참담한 생활에도 불구하고 대책이 막연. 왜냐하면 경제적 문제로 인한 자발적인 근로라서 대책을 세울 수 없음을 안타까워하는 내용.

March 7, 1935 Donga Ilbo About 2,000 Korean women work in the Shanghai slum. These prostitutes tarnish our reputation. But we can't stop them because they voluntarily stay there for economic reasons.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/korean-newspaper-articles-from-1930s.html (The copies of the original newspaper articles are posted here.)

6 ( +8 / -2 )

Posted in: Japan to scrutinize U.N. recommendation on 'comfort women' See in context

Comment by Professor Jun BongGwan (professor of Korean Literature at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology) on July 20, 2014 ChosunIlbo

"We all knew that Korean comfort women were not coercively taken away by the Japanese military. Korean comfort station owners recruited women in the Korean Peninsula and operated comfort stations in the battlefields. The Japanese military was busy fighting all over Asia, and it certainly didn't have time to be in Korea recruiting women.

Although Professor Park Yuha recognizes that Japan's imperialism was the root cause of women's suffering, she claims that Korean comfort station owners were legally responsible as well. I disagree with her logic because the Japanese military did allow Korean owners to recruit women. So the Japanese military was the one legally responsible in my opinion.

Korean fathers and brothers who sold their daughters and sisters, Korean comfort station owners who deceived women, Korean town chiefs who encouraged those acts. They all should be held accountable someday. But now is not the time. We must make Japan apologize and compensate again before we admit our responsibility."

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/comfort-women-of-empire-reviewed-by.html

2 ( +5 / -3 )

Posted in: Japan to scrutinize U.N. recommendation on 'comfort women' See in context

Testimonies by former comfort women

– In an interview with Professor Chunghee Sarah Soh of San Francisco State University, a former Korean comfort woman Kim Sun-ok said that she was sold by her parents four times.

Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

– In an interview with Professor Park Yuha of Sejong University in South Korea, a former Korean comfort woman Bae Chun-hee said she hated her father who sold her. She said that men who recruited Korean women and operated comfort stations were all Korean, and that Korean women who testified before UN Special Rapporteur lied on behalf of Chong Dae Hyup. 

– In 1993 a former Korean comfort woman Kim Gun-ja told Professor Ahn Byong Jik of Seoul University, “I was sold by my foster father.”

Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-comfort-women-by-chunghee-sarah-soh.html

5 ( +9 / -4 )

Posted in: S Korean academic convicted of defaming 'comfort women' See in context

Korean Newspaper Reports from 1930's

--1939.03.28 동아일보 50여 처녀가 조선인 인신매매단에 걸려서 북지, 만주에 창기로 팔림. 일본경찰이 구해줌.

March 28, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 50 women were deceived by a Korean trafficker (Bae Jang-eon 배장언) and sent to Northern China & Manchuria. He was arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

-- 1939.08.31 동아일보 악덕소개업자가 발호, 이들이 유괴한 농촌부녀자의 수가 무려 100명 이상. 모두 일본경찰님들이 구출해내심.

 August 31, 1939 Donga Ilbo Over 100 women from farming villages were deceived by Korean traffickers (Kim Ok-man 김옥만 & his family) They were arrested and the women were rescued by Japanese policemen.

--1935.03.07 동아일보 중국 상해 암흑굴에 조선여성 2천여명. 이들 원정녀들 때문에 조선인의 체면이 손상됨. 그녀들의 참담한 생활에도 불구하고 대책이 막연. 왜냐하면 경제적 문제로 인한 자발적인 근로라서 대책을 세울 수 없음을 안타까워하는 내용.

March 7, 1935 Donga Ilbo About 2,000 Korean women work in the Shanghai slum. These prostitutes tarnish our reputation. But we can't stop them because they voluntarily stay there for economic reasons.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/korean-newspaper-articles-from-1930s.html (The copies of the original newspaper articles are posted here.)

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Posted in: S Korean academic convicted of defaming 'comfort women' See in context

– In an interview with Professor Chunghee Sarah Soh of San Francisco State University, a former Korean comfort woman Kim Sun-ok said that she was sold by her parents four times. Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

– In an interview with Professor Park Yuha of Sejong University in South Korea, a former Korean comfort woman Bae Chun-hee said she hated her father who sold her. She said that men who recruited Korean women and operated comfort stations were all Korean, and that Korean women who testified before UN Special Rapporteur lied on behalf of Chong Dae Hyup. 

– In 1993 a former Korean comfort woman Kim Gun-ja told Professor Ahn Byong Jik of Seoul University, “I was sold by my foster father.” Yet she testified before UN Special Rapporteur Radhika Coomaraswamy that she was abducted by the Japanese military.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.bl...

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Posted in: S Korean academic convicted of defaming 'comfort women' See in context

Professor Jun BongGwan's review of the book "Comfort Women of the Empire." (Professor of Korean Literature at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. The review was published on July 20, 2014 in ChosunIlbo.)

After reading the book, I was a little bit disappointed because there was nothing in the book that I didn't know. We all knew that Korean comfort women were not coercively taken away by the Japanese military. Korean comfort station owners recruited women in the Korean Peninsula and operated comfort stations in the battlefields. The Japanese military was busy fighting all over Asia, and it certainly didn't have time to be in Korea recruiting women.

Although Professor Park Yuha recognizes that Japan's imperialism was the root cause of women's suffering, she claims that Korean comfort station owners were legally responsible as well. I disagree with her logic because the Japanese military did allow Korean owners to recruit women. So the Japanese military was the one legally responsible in my opinion.

Korean fathers and brothers who sold their daughters and sisters, Korean comfort station owners who deceived women, Korean town chiefs who encouraged those acts. They all should be held accountable someday. But now is not the time. We must make Japan apologize and compensate again before we admit our responsibility.

If one reads the book carefully, it is clear that Professor Park had no intent to defame former comfort women. But it was not smart for her to suggest that Korea and Japan should both admit responsibility.

Source: http://scholarsinenglish.blogspot.com/2014/10/comfort-women-of-empire-reviewed-by.html

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