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Statues of women who were forced into sex slavery for Japanese troops during World War II stand in the House of Sharing in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province. The home for living "comfort women" includes the world's first museum dedicated to the issue. / Korea Times file |
HoS offers English tour of House of Sharing Sunday
By John Redmond
Volunteers of the HoS International Outreach Team will conduct an English tour of the House of Sharing in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, Sunday.
The House of Sharing, built in 1995, is home to women who were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during WWII. Their fate was shared by some 200,000 girls and young women from all across Asia.
The "comfort station" system was set up and run by the Japanese Imperial Army from the 1930s until the end of WWII in 1945, where mostly Asian women from ages 12-32 were kidnapped, trafficked, raped, and forced into sexual slavery for the military.
The museum documents the origins, chronology, and human toll of this system, and is the first and most substantive one dedicated to the issue, showcasing key evidence, testimonies, artifacts, photographs, videos, and original paintings by the survivors.
"The purpose of the visit to the House of Sharing is to learn the history of former ‘comfort women' (a euphemism for the wartime sex slaves). The House of Sharing was created as a home for some of the surviving elderly "halmoni" (grandmothers) comfort women," the tour organizer said in a press release.
"We, the HoS International Outreach Team, have been offering English-language museum tours on a monthly basis since 2006, and we invite you to join us on our next one," it added.
"The tour, subsequent discussions, and meeting with the survivors will be an informative and rewarding experience, and it will give you a historical perspective on current Korea-Japan relations and further insight on the many forms that violence against women can take."
The Museum of Sexual Slavery by Japanese Military is the world's first museum that has the main subject of sex slaves. It was established on Aug. 14 in 1998 with the purpose of showing people what the Japanese military did during the war, and vindication of comfort women and educating the next generation.
The group will meet at exit 2 of Gangbyeon Station at midday and take a private bus to the House of Sharing. At the venue there will be an introduction and video presentation, followed by the museum tour.
Following a discussion and Q&A session, the group will depart at 5 p.m.
To make a reservation please email nanum365@gmail.com with your full name, mobile phone number, number of guests you will be bringing (not including yourself) and if you will be meeting the tour at Gangbyeon Station or going directly to the House of Sharing.
If you realize you cannot attend the tour after signing up, please cancel your reservation by email at nanum365@gmail.com 24 hours before the event. You will receive a phone call very early in the morning on the day of the tour.
The entrance fee is 5,000 won for adults and 3,000 won for children. Visitors with disabilities and seniors enter free.
Bring 10,000 won in cash for the private bus to and from the venue plus extra money if you wish to make a donation or buy souvenirs from the gift shop.
For more information on The House of Sharing visit http://nanum.org/eng/index.html.
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