In the second round of conversation with young scholars, we met with young researchers and activists Lee Eunjin, Lee Jaeim, and Choi Sung Yong, and asked what the issue of the “Comfort Women” in the Japanese military means to their lives, and how it motivates them.

Editorial Team of Webzine

The right-wingers in Japan deny any direct involvement of the Japanese government, citing that the documents proving that the Japanese Army or Japanese government had directly ordered the establishment of the “comfort stations” have never been found. They also claim that neither the Japanese army nor the Japanese government were involved in mobilizing “comfort women”, and that private businesses simply recruited “comfort women” by illegal means. Having accepted these claims, the Abe administration is contradicting what the previous Japanese government had admitted.

Choi Jong-gil

She is an Emeritus Professor of Aoyama Gakuin University. As a Korean in Japan (a Zainichi Korean) and a researcher who laid the foundation for the studies of colonial history and women's history in Japan, she has been playing an important role in investigating the truth about the ‘Comfort Women’ issue. Her main publications include 『Military and Sexual Violence』, 『A Study on the East Asia Japanese military sexual slavery (co-authorship)』, 『A Study of 70 Years of Women's History in Korea (co-authorship)』, 『Colonialism, War, ‘Comfort Women’ for the Military (co-authorship)』, 『War and Social Affairs in East Asia(co-authorship)』, and so on.

Editorial Team of Webzine