ed ’Comfort women’

Japan should make urgent effort for victims

President Lee Myung-bak’s call for Japan to resolve the wartime sexual slavery issue reflects the urgent nature of the matter. Tokyo should make a sincere effort to heal the wounds of surviving Korean victims before they die. This effort could serve as a starting point for the two countries to overcome a colonial legacy, foster reconciliation and bring a better future.

Marking the 93rd anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement on Thursday, Lee stressed genuine courage and wisdom are needed for the two nations to become genuine partners. Japan should show courage to admit and apologize for its forced mobilization of innocent women as sexual slaves for its frontline soldiers during World War II.

Most surviving victims will probably die sooner rather than later as they are well over 80. That’s why the issue must be settled as quickly as possible. The former sex slaves, euphemistically called “comfort women,” have lived with deep, painful scars in their hearts for their entire lives. Any further delay will only add fuel to their grievances.

As President Lee pointed out, Japan might forever lose a chance of relieving the victims of their untold sufferings. Its continued denial of the forced servitude is tantamount to negating the truth about its misdeeds and brutalities arising from its militarism and colonialism.

Regrettably, Japan has ignored the truth of history. It has kept shirking both moral and legal responsibilities for its heinous crimes against humanity during the war. To the dismay of Asians and other people across the world, the country has only tried to whitewash its disgraced history.

Japanese leaders should figure out why Lee and the Korean people have repeatedly called for the urgent resolution of the comfort women issue. The President first raised the issue during a summit with Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda in December. He has even run the risk of brewing tension in relations with the neighboring country.

The move came after the Constitutional Court of Korea ruled last August that it is the government’s duty to settle the dispute over Japan’s compensation for ex-comfort women. Tokyo has maintained the compensation for all individual victims including forced laborers was already addressed with the signing of the 1965 Treaty of Basic Relations between the two countries.

Japan offered $800 million in grants and soft loans to Korea. However, it is still not clear if the reparations covered the individual victims. Thus, Seoul has proposed discussions with Japan to check whether the treaty concluded the compensation issue not only for the Korean government but for the individuals at the same time.

We urge Japan to accept the proposal to fix the dispute through diplomatic efforts. Seoul and Tokyo cannot forge a future-oriented partnership without solving many history-related matters. Japan should stop making a claim over Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo and approving textbooks with distorted facts. Then it should genuinely reflect on its shameful past and find a means of reconciliation with its neighbors.