Last night on NPR, I caught the last part of a segment from the "As It Happens" CBC radio show. U.S. Representative Mike Honda was being interviewed about the resolution he introduced in Congress that calls on the "government of Japan to formally and unambiguously apologize for and acknowledge the tragedy that comfort women endured at the hands of its Imperial Army during World War II."
I did a search online and found he introduced the resolution on January 31. Here's a press release with the full text of Rep. Honda's statement.
"These women ... endured gang rape, forced abortions, humiliation, and sexual violence resulting in mutilation, death, or eventual suicide—and to this date, they have still not received justice from this tragedy."
Honda addresses the issue that Japan has already apologized to these women:
"Some question whether this resolution is necessary and warn that it could affect our nation's strong friendship and alliance with Japan. Some even argue that Japan has already apologized, and this resolution fails to recognize that. It is true that Japan's previous Prime Ministers have issued statements related to comfort women. However, it is clear that these statements are not viewed by the government of Japan with unequivocal respect, and the comfort women themselves do not consider them formal apologies. Japan has equivocated in its stance on this issue, which is made clear in their recent attempts to alter previous public statements and their school textbooks.
"For example, in 1993, Japan's then Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono issued an encouraging statement regarding Japan's comfort women, which expressed the Government's sincere apologies and remorse for their ordeal. Today, some members of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party strive to review and even possibly rescind Secretary Kono's statement.
"Further, the Japanese government continues to seek to downplay the comfort women system in its textbooks. We must ask ourselves, if Japan has truly come to terms with its past in acknowledging what its Imperial Army forced upon these women, why are they suppressing the knowledge of this through education? Education on this tragedy is important to ensure that future violence against women, especially in conflicts, should not be tolerated or repeated. Textbook suppression, coupled with efforts to revise Secretary Kono's 1993 statement, is disheartening and indicates that Japan wavers in its apology to these women."
Honda stated that only a few hundred of the comfort women are still alive. In his statement he said:
"Madam Speaker, to put it frankly, the few surviving comfort women in the world who live with this burden are dying. We must help them achieve some peace of mind by moving this resolution forward. For the women who survived this brutality, this resolution demonstrates that our nation supports them and hears their voices calling for justice."
At the end of the radio show, what really upset me was the final comment by the radio announcer that Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has stated that there is no evidence that these women were coerced into sexual slavery.
I find it interesting how the different news organizations handle this subject, leaving out certain information or focusing on certain aspects.
Just check out the following headlines and articles (Reuters especially):
"WWII Sex Slaves Testify Against Japan" (AP on sfgate.com)
"Jan Ruff O'Herne, 'Comfort Woman' Survivor, to Testify Before Congress February 15" (PR Newswire)
"As the first Caucasian 'Comfort Women' survivor to speak out, O'Herne's presence will contribute to maintaining the focus as a women's human rights issue, rather than an Asian regional politics issue."
"At U.S. hearing, WW2 sex slaves spurn Japan apologies" (Reuters)
"WWII sex slaves in Japan seek U.S. help" (AP on msnbc.com)
"Rep. Honda asking Japan for apology to sex slaves" (San Jose Mercury News)
"Japan's WWII sex slaves testify" (cnn.com)
Updated (3/5/07):
"Japan Resists Call to Apologize for War Practice"
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