Reflecting on the “Comfort Women” Issue Through the Framework of Women’s Human Rights

This article examines the Japanese military “comfort women” issue through the lens of women’s human rights, extending the discussion to structural violence against women, social exclusion, and economic inequality. It further calls for victim-centered social restructuring and redistribution.

• 2026-09-29
• Joohee Kim

The Japanese Military “Comfort Women” and the Multilayeredness of Coercion

How has our understanding of “coercion” in forced labor and the Japanese military “Comfort Women” system changed over time? This essay examines the multilayered nature of these issues, moving beyond nationalist narratives and historical denialism toward a broader understanding through the lens of universal human rights.

• 2026-10-13
• Jie-Hyun Lim

The supranational nature of the 'comfort women' issue and the ‘glocalization’ of memories, Part 1

Written by Shin Ki-young, Professor at Ochanomizu University, Japan

• 2019-03-19
• Shin Ki-young

“Comfort Girls”: The Forgotten Tragedy of Child Exploitation

The “Comfort Women” system was not only a violation of women’s rights, but also a grave infringement of children’s rights. In this article, Professor Ñusta Carranza Ko examines how imperial Japanese authorities systematically violated the rights of underage girls, in direct contravention of international conventions of the time, reframing the issue as a case of child rights violations.

• 2025-08-05
• Ñusta Carranza Ko

Second “‘Comfort Women’ Litigation” Ruling Becomes “Magna Carta” of International Human Rights Law

Attorney Sanghee Lee, the head of the Lawyers for the Democratic Society Task Force addressing the Japanese Military “Comfort Women” Issue

• 2024-04-23
• Sanghee Lee