Koreans, Japanese poles apart over 'comfort women'
Protesters gather each week in front of the old Japanese Embassy in Jongno-gu, Seoul in support of Korean victims of Japanese military sexual slavery during World War II. The demonstrators on May 28 hold pictures of comfort women who have died in the past year. The 1,263rd such gathering demanded that the 2015 Korea-Japan agreement on the comfort woman issue be abolished. / Courtesy of Hankook Ilbo
By Ko Dong-hwan
Contrary views of Koreans and Japanese on Korean sex slaves during World War II have drifted further apart, indicating the nations share lesser common ground than ever.
Korean daily newspaper Hankook Ilbo and Japanese counterpart Yomiuri Shimbun carried out a joint survey earlier this year.
The survey asked random citizens in each country whether they agreed with the 2015 agreement between the two nations on the so-called comfort women issue ― a promise that as of December 28, the Japanese government would “sincerely” apologize for its war crime, compensate surviving Korean victims, and both countries would no longer discuss the issue.
According to the survey, 75.9 percent of Korean respondents said the 2015 agreement was a mistake, up 2.5 percentage points from last year. Those who respected the agreement dropped from 21.2 percent to 17.1 percent.
In Japan, 56 percent of respondents respected the agreement, up from last year’s 49 percent. Those against it were down from 38 percent to 35 percent.
Most Koreans said the agreement should be renegotiated because it did not take into account enough the surviving victims’ demands. Other Koreans said the Japanese government’s apology was not sincere enough and that Japan had tried to wrap up the issue with money.
Japanese who supported renegotiation said it would improve the bilateral relationship and was necessary with the administration shift from Park Geun-hye to Moon Jae-in in May.
Most Japanese who opposed to renegotiation said that the agreement was “final and irreversible.” Others said the Japanese government had shown enough sincerity, that it was “difficult to satisfy Koreans,” and that the victims had already taken the money.
Most Koreans who supported the agreement also pointed out its irreversibility, while others said its revocation would not help strengthen bilateral ties.
As for comfort woman statues in front of Japanese embassies in Seoul and Busan that commemorate the victims, 84.2 percent of Korean respondents said the statues must remain.
But 71 percent of Japanese respondents, up from 62 percent last year, said the statues must be taken down.
“An Increasing number of Japanese must have realized that the statues, erected in Korea, Japan, the U.S., China, Canada and Australia, damage the country’s reputation,” Hankook Ilbo said.
“Japan’s ultra-nationalists warn that the statues will be very harmful to Japan.”