By Jun Ji-hye
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Friday that the 1 billion yen ($8.55 million) fund, which Japan promised to pay in reparation to Korean “comfort women,” will be given directly to the victims.
The money will be given in the form of compensation and medical expenses, instead of being used to build a memorial hall or conduct other commemorative projects, the ministry said.
“The fund provided by the Japanese government will be fully used to support the victims and heal their pain,” said a ministry official on condition of anonymity. “The benefit will be given to each of the victims.”
Under the Dec. 28 agreement, the Japanese government agreed to fund 1 billion yen for a foundation to be established by the Korean government when Seoul and Tokyo reached the accord on “finally and irreversibly” resolving the issue of Japan’s sexual enslavement of Korean women during World War II.
The deal also called for an indirect apology by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Korea agreed to end the age-old dispute once and for all if Japan fully implements the deal.
It was the first time since the deal was reached that the government unveiled its detailed plan for the fund.
The ministry said its vice ministers have had one-on-one talks with 14 survivors living in the House of Sharing, a shelter in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, and other 21 others living on their own both in Korea and abroad.
The ministry said out of the victims it consulted, 16 expressed their willingness to accept the Seoul-Tokyo deal.
The advocates of the deal mostly said the government should benefit the victims directly rather than conducting unnecessary public projects, the official noted, adding that a considerable number of the former sex slaves have gone through financial difficulties.
There are 46 surviving victims in Korea with their average age standing at nearly 90.
Further details, including whether the government will include the former sex slaves who already passed away in the list of those who will receive the reparation payment, will be determined after the government sets up the foundation, the official said.
The official added that the Korean government will also invest in establishing the foundation, saying “Detailed discussion regarding this is also under way.”
The ministry’s plan, however, is expected to provoke controversy, given that some of the victims still accuse the government of failing to obtain Japan’s acknowledgment of legal responsibility and rashly reaching the deal without consulting them.
They said they do not want to receive the money from Japan unless the country acknowledges its legal responsibility.
When Japan established the Asian Women’s Fund in 1995 with private contributions and attempted to compensate the victims, a schism between the victims was also deepened.
The Korean Council for Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, a non-government organization for the victims, immediately criticized the ministry, saying, “It is disappointing to see the government trying to push forward with its plan by inciting conflict between the victims.”
Criticisms have also been raised regarding the government’s plan to use its own budget in establishing the foundation, as it can be seen as the two governments taking joint responsibility for the wartime sex slavery.
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