“Comfort Women” Merit Remembrance

When Su started his research on “comfort women” in the 1990s, he was advised by relevant departments to steer clear of the issue for the good of China-Japan friendship. They told Su it would be wise not to publish his findings if he went on with the study. However, Su personally believes that the “comfort women” issue must be clarified, precisely for that reason – for the good of China-Japan friendship.

Japan persistently denies history and the conscription of “comfort women” as a state action. Japan refuses to apologize to and compensate the surviving “comfort women” in Asia, whose number is believed to exceed 400,000.

Don’t Forget Us, the first textbook published in South Korea on the issue of “comfort women,” has been put into use among middle and primary school students to remind people never to forget these victims.

On July 25, 2014, Japan again rejected the demand from the U.S. and the UN to acknowledge its guilt. Su feels indignant about that: “Japan seems to be adopting the ostrich policy. It thinks others will stop pursuing its crimes if it just buries its head in the sand. That is not an appropriate attitude for a national government.”

“I sincerely hope the Japanese government and its people, especially the government, can learn from Germany. To exercise deep introspection on the war it waged is a precondition, or a political foundation, for Japan to eliminate its conflicts with other Asian countries. Without this, Japan’s future looks bleak. It must re-examine itself over the war crimes it committed,” said Su.

Su believes the “comfort women” issue is a scar left by WWII that affects Japan’s relations with China, South Korea and other countries, which is why research on “comfort women” is so important. The victims’ grievances have not been addressed, nor have they received any compensation. In order to honor the memories of victims who are no longer here to see justice done and ensure such a heinous crime never happens again we must confront Japan. Today, Abe’s cabinet is becoming more and more dangerous. For example, it allows the country to exercise collective self-defense and has revised its constitution to turn Japan into a warlike country by various means. That is a dangerous signal.    

“If Japan truly wants to live together in peace with other Asian countries it must first redress the problems of its history,” Su concluded.