Unexplored aspects of the “comfort women” discussion

Isabelle Lenton is a second year International Relations and Dutch student. She currently writes for The Diplomacy Review and The Rendezvous. (zclmile@ucl.ac.uk)

Introduction

During World War II, the Japanese military forced around 200,000 women into sexual slavery in brothels near battlefields. There have been numerous testimonies, historical documentation and particularly memorials (over a hundred around the world) concerning this affair. The committed atrocities, having created deep historical wounds, have transformed political dynamics between Japan, South Korea and other implicated countries. In this article, I will provide an outline of features concerning this discussion which have not been sufficiently attended to. 

Historical Background

Seoul, 1991. The first South Korean former ‘comfort woman’ victim stepped forward - leading to an outbreak of testimonies from other victims. In 1993, Shinzō Abe publicly apologised on behalf of Japan, and the government pledged “never to repeat the same mistake by forever engraving such an issue in our memories” [3]. However, in 2015, a controversial agreement was made between Japan and South Korea. The deal required Japan to compensate $8.3 million to victims and “issue a statement of regret”. South Korea would in exchange remove the first memorial from 2011 in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul [2]. Furthermore, a 2019 UN Report from the Commission of Human Rights highlighted that “some of the women were willing, others were lured with the offer of paid work as cooks or cleaners and many were forced”. 

The unexplored topics

Previous studies on this topic have not dealt, in enough detail, with the experiences of victims from different backgrounds, such as Filipina, Dutch, Pacific Islander and Southeast Asian. Also, an intersectional perspective is required to assess how factors such as age, social status and ethnicity impacted the post-war treatment and recovery of the victims. The scholar Yōko particularly highlights the women who have stepped up to share their experiences and those who “have filed lawsuits against the Japanese government in Japanese courts” [9], though only one court decision has supplied reparations. 

In addition, the issue of economic reparations and its impact on the lives of survivors has received increasing attention. Questions such as how sufficient the financial and symbolic reparations have been for victims and whether it truly has a hand in advancing justice. The Korean council called on the Japanese government to “take legal action against any surviving Japanese officials who helped to organise and implement the comfort women system”, as well as official compensation [7].

Long-term psychological and societal impacts are fundamental to the dialogue. It is not sufficient to only focus on symbolic reparations and memorials, but to concentrate on the solutions in supporting survivors and their families. For example, there does not exist a lot of literature on support systems available to aid with the long-term psychological trauma and mental health challenges as a consequence of their experiences. Furthermore, the impact of said trauma extends to future generations of families, communities and collective memory.

An increasingly important area of discourse is comparing the different practices surrounding memorialisation of the “comfort women” issue. I believe it is important to assess the ways in which different countries have commemorated them through statues and educational materials. Moreover, there is a need to include the context of each country in relation to this historical event as this affects not only their respective World War II memory, but also public policy with involved nations.

The gendered media representation is a key issue as documentaries, films and books often support or challenge gender stereotypes. This is of interest as public perceptions of “comfort women” are affected by media, such as over-simplified portrayals, sensationalism and biases. Also, an interesting aspect of public forms of remembrance is increasingly coming from the digital world such as digital archives of documentaries and interviews, as well as social media campaigns. This strategy particularly reaches younger audiences. For example, in 2018, some schools in Massachusetts, USA, formed an association which led to a screening of the film “I can speak” (based on a comfort woman’s story) and donated $6,000 to a nursing home for survivors in South Korea [1]. What’s more, the issue of “comfort women” must become more extensive in history curricula - especially concerning World War II, human rights and global history.

The role of memory

The concepts of collective memory and symbolism in “comfort women” memorials are also central to representation and education. How the event is integrated into public memory through iconography and symbolism within the memorials. For example, many copy the 2011 Peace Statue in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. Since January 8th 1992, the Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan (the Korean Council) has led demonstrations every Wednesday in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul. They erected this memorial on December 14th 2011, on the 1000th Wednesday demonstration [7].

“The small bronze figure depicts a girl sitting in a chair, staring straight ahead with a look of determination. She has cropped hair and wears a hanbok - a traditional Korean dress. She’s barefoot. Her fist is clenched. Next to her is an empty chair.” [2]

In San Francisco, the statue consists of three young women from Korea, China and the Philippines, holding hands and standing in a circle. There is a fourth figure of Kim Hak-Sun, the first woman to speak out about her experiences, standing near the girls.

Furthermore, the “comfort women” issue is a major contributor to international law and human rights policy. It has heavily influenced policies with respect to wartime sexual violence, accountability mechanisms and reparative justice. Feminist organisations and transnational activism, such as the Korean American Forum of California, play an important role in this discourse. This is evident through collaborations on how to handle certain political challenges, particularly from the Japanese government, and supporting survivors’ needs and wants. Yōko concludes her study of issues surrounding the wartime “comfort women” with the fact that the 1993 lawsuit by Filipina women has led to developments within the international community such as the charter of the International Criminal Court (ICC) adopted at the 1998 Rome Diplomatic Conference, “under which rape is defined as a war crime for which perpetrators can be prosecuted beyond national borders” [9].

Conclusion

This article set out to assess what topics must be researched in order to better comprehend the event itself, but also public forms of remembrance, reparations, human rights and international law. In the future, there must be greater dialogue between organisations representing victims and involved governments to reach a consensus on sufficient reparations and commemoration. Within academia, the causes and impacts of this atrocity must be studied deeper, and greater analysis should be done on other under-researched related cases of wartime and historical sexual violence.

Works Cited

[1] Constante, A. (2019). Who are the ‘comfort women,’ and why are U.S.-based memorials for them controversial? [online] NBC News. Available at: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/who-are-comfort-women-why-are-u-s-based-memorials-n997656.

[2] Hu, E. (2017). ‘Comfort Woman’ Memorial Statues, A Thorn In Japan’s Side, Now Sit On Korean Buses. [online] NPR.org. Available at: https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/11/13/563838610/comfort-woman-memorial-statues-a-thorn-in-japans-side-now-sit-on-korean-buses.

[3] Kim, M. (2024). Japan’s campaign against memorials to ‘comfort women’ comes to Germany. [online] Los Angeles Times. Available at: https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2024-09-16/japans-campaign-against-memorials-to-comfort-women-comes-to-an-unlikely-place.

[4] Lay, T.J.W. and W.D. (2019). The Comfort Women Controversy in the American Public Square. [online] E-International Relations. Available at: https://www.e-ir.info/2019/03/10/the-comfort-women-controversy-in-the-american-public-square/#google_vignette.

[5] San Francisco accepts ‘comfort women’ statue. (2017). BBC News. [online] 23 Nov. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-42092477.

[6] Umn.edu. (2019). UN Commission on Human Rights - Report on mission to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (Jan 96). [online] Available at: http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/commission/country52/53-add1.htm.

[7] Ward, T.J. (2018). The Pros and Cons of Comfort Women Park Statues. [online] E-International Relations. Available at: https://www.e-ir.info/2018/12/07/the-pros-and-cons-of-comfort-women-park-statues/#google_vignette [Accessed 9 Nov. 2024].

[8] Ward, T.J. (2019). Establishing a Comfort Women Memorial in the US or Europe. [online] E-International Relations. Available at: https://www.e-ir.info/2019/01/30/the-implications-of-establishing-a-comfort-women-memorial-in-the-us-or-europe/#google_vignette [Accessed 9 Nov. 2024].

[9] Yōko, H. (1999). Issues Surrounding the Wartime ‘Comfort Women’. Review of Japanese Culture and Society, [online] 11/12, pp.54–65. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/42800182.