200,000 Forced Into Sexual Slavery
Abe Tries to Deny/Rewrite History

Korean Americans React:
Survivors Deserve
Truth and Apology

An Open Letter to:
Mr. Shinzo Abe
Prime Minister, Japan

Your recent negative response to the US Congressional Resolution urging Japan
to formally and unequivocally admit responsibility over the “Comfort Women”
issue, and offer apologies to the surviving victims of this hideous crime against
humanity committed by Japan during the Pacific War was received with uniform
outrage by the 1.2 million Korean Americans.
Your statement illuminates the mindset of the current right wing Japanese
leadership who tend to bury their heads in the sand and deny all the past wrong
doings by your country.

Mr. Abe, you may be part of the Japanese postwar generation, lacking any direct
personal knowledge of these terrible crimes. However surely you must know that
there are still large numbers of Koreans alive and well in both South and North
Koreas, who remember vividly how many young Korean women were forcibly
taken from the streets and their homes by the Japanese authority to be shipped
to Japan and then overseas, forced to serve as military prostitutes- “Sex-Slaves”.
No euphemism referring to them as “Comfort Women” at brothels can change the
fact that they were forced to daily “service” Japanese soldiers and that those who
resisted were bound, tortured and raped.

Mr. Abe, your assertion that those kidnapped women, numbering 200,000 mostly
Koreans but also some Chinese, Filipino, Thai and even Dutch were not coerced
into servitude and that this crime was not committed by the Japanese authority,
but rather by some civilian entities, makes us nauseous! It is precisely this kind of
unrepentant, arrogant mentality that can and will abrogate Japan’s current standing
and potential leadership role in the Asia.

Mr. Abe, we want you to remember also that these 200,000 young women,
degraded physically and mentally, were never repatriated by the Japanese
authority at the end of the war; rather they were left where they were, while
Japanese soldiers and civilians were properly returned to their homeland.
Mr. Abe, many Korean Americans felt sympathy over the 17 Japanese citizens
allegedly kidnapped by North Korean intelligence agents nearly fifteen years ago.
We felt the families should be compensated and a pledge should be made by the
North Korean government to punish the perpetrators in their government (which
was done!).

However, Mr. Abe, in view of your arrogant posture with regard to the 200,000
Korean “Ex-Sex Slaves”, many of us no longer respond with misgivings about the
unfortunate fate of those 17 Japanese citizens!

Mr. Abe, on last February 13, the Six-Party Talks that had been going on in
the past three years have finally produced an agreement that would eventually
lead to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and improved relationship
between all the involved countries, including Japan and North Korea. However,
we are outraged to learn that the Japanese government is using the kidnap issue to
stand between the Agreement and their participation in and cooperation with the
Agreement!!

Finally, Mr. Abe, it is the prevalent perception of the 1.2 million Korean
Americans that the countries of Northeast Asia in the past half century have made
a tremendous advancement in all areas of human endeavor; economy, culture,
science, technology, politics, industry, and above all have developed a broad sense
of common destiny and partnership among its people. Furthermore, there is no
doubt in our minds at all that the country of Japan and its people have played an
essential role in this development. At this point in time however, it is our great
concern that the attitude and direction espoused by you and current leadership of
Japan will gravely damage this perception and sense of common destiny among
the people in this region.

http://www.kancc.org/

http://www.koreapeacenetwork.info/

==============================
As a Korean American Organization,
the KANCC expresses its deepest regret over the horrible Virginia Tech. masssacre and offers sincere sympathy to the families of the victims.
===========================