More than 70 years after the end of the Second World War, Japan and South Korea have reached a historic agreement over the ‘comfort women’ -- Korean women forced to work as sex slaves for Japan’s Imperial army.
Japan is issuing a long-sought for apology and is agreeing to pay $8.3 million in compensation to help deal with the psychological and physical needs of the 46 surviving South Korean victims.
For decades Japan has been accused of both whitewashing and outright denying its military atrocities.
“Officially, because so many middle men were involved, the government of Japan was able to say we didn’t do it directly,†said Yves Tiberghien, a senior fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation in an interview with Â鶹´«Ã½. “But documents were found later to show that the military establishment had planned it, and was behind it.â€
The exact number of “comfort women†-- a Japanese euphemism for ‘prostitute.’ – is still under debate, but the widely believed number is 200,000. The majority, about 60 per cent, were from South Korea. Others were from ooccupied territories including the Philippines and China, as well as Indonesia, Taiwan and the Netherlands. “Comfort stations†were also located in Thailand, Burma, New Guinea and French Indonesia. Ten percent of the women were Japanese.
Tiberghien says members of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party have long been opposed to addressing the issue of comfort women because they feel it brings shame to Japan and want the past to be left behind.
“They were afraid of this issue coming up again,†says Tiberghien, “which is why there is a clause in the agreement which say this settles the issue finally, and irreversibly, forever.â€
A TIMELINE OF JAPAN – KOREA RELATIONS
Japan and Korea have been linked by common interests for more than 1,000 years . They share the Sea of Japan and are major trading and cultural partners, they share a threatening neighour (North Korea) and there has always been migration between the two countries.
1910 – Colonial Rule
After three years of fighting, the Korean monarchy came to an end Japan annexed Korea, beginning 35 years of colonial rule. The annexation of the Korean Peninsula was considered illegal because it was believed to have been signed under duress. Around the same time (1914) Japan joined the First World War on the side of Britain and her allies
1937 – War expands in Asia
A Japan vs. China war (1931-37) expands to include the Soviet Union. In 1940 Japan invades French Indochina (Vietnam). In late 1941 Japan invades Malay and attacks Pearl Harbour, starting Japan's larger involvement in the Second World War.
Between 1937-1945 it’s believed as many as five million Koreans were forced to work in Japanese factories or sent as soldiers to the front. It was during this time that Japan began drafting women to work as ‘comfort women’ – sexual slaves for the Japanese Imperial Army.
1939 – Life under Japanese rule
Koreans living under occupation were pressured by colonial authorities to change their names to Japanese names. More than 80 percent of Koreans complied.
1945 - Defeat
Japan is defeated in the Second World War, surrenders to Allied forces and relinquishes control over Korean territory. U.S. Army Forces proclaim the occupation and administration of Korea in the south while Soviet troops occupy the north.
1950 – Divide and conquer
South declares independence sparking a North Korean invasion, ultimately leading to the three-year-long Korean War.
1965 – Diplomatic relations resume
After more than a decade of bilateral talks, Japan and Korea sign the ‘Treaty on Basic Relations’ restoring diplomatic ties between the two countries. Japan makes reparations of “economic cooperation†to Korea to the tune of $800 million. Most of the money was used for economic development and did not go to the relatives of the more than 8,550 victims believed to have died in forced labour camps.
1991 – Lawsuit filed
Around the December anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbour, three Korean women filed a suit against Japan demanding compensation for forced prostitution. Seven years later, Japan’s government was ordered to grant them each $2,453 USD each.
1995 – An apology and compensation
After decades of denial, Japan acknowledges and apologizes for forcing Asian and European women to work in army-run brothels during the Second World War. Japan agrees to pay compensation but is criticized for using private instead of government funds, saying those claims were covered as part of the 1965 agreement. Compensation was paid to women in the Philippines, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Netherlands. Only 61 out of a total of 237 South Korean victims accepted Japan’s offer of “atonement money.â€
1997 – More denials
Shinzo Abe, then a member of the House of Representatives issued a statement calling the comfort women’s accusation lies and saying many willing worked as prostitutes.
2001 – Compensation denied
A Japanese court overturns the only ruling ordering compensation for Korean women forced to work as sex slaves during the Second World War.
2007 – Apology demanded
After a group of surviving sex slaves demanded an apology from the Japanese government, Shinzo Abe publicly stated there was no evidence that the Japanese government kept sex slaves, despite his government’s earlier admissions about the use of brothels fourteen years earlier.
November 2015 – Talks resume
After a three and a half year freeze, the leaders of Japan and South Korea resume formal talks to resolve the decades old issue comfort women.
December 2015 – Final agreement reached
South Korean President Park Geun-hye (pictured above) and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reached a formal agreement regarding the wartime use of comfort women. Japan agrees to pay $8.3 million to a fund supporting victims. South Koreas agrees to stop criticizing Japan over the issue and to remove a statue from in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul memorializing the victims.
