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==Controversy== ==Controversy==
===Evidence of Forced Drafting Comfort Women: Seiji Yoshida’ s Book===
]'s memoirs were used as an evidence for the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea in a Congressional Report which was prepared for this resolution.<ref>{{cite web | title=Congressional Report Services Memorandum, "Japanese Military's Comfort Women" |date=April 10, 2006 |url=http://www.awf.or.jp/pdf/h0076.pdf |publisher=U. S. Congressional Research Service }}</ref> ]'s memoirs were used as an evidence for the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea in a Congressional Report which was prepared for this resolution.<ref>{{cite web | title=Congressional Report Services Memorandum, "Japanese Military's Comfort Women" |date=April 10, 2006 |url=http://www.awf.or.jp/pdf/h0076.pdf |publisher=U. S. Congressional Research Service }}</ref>


{{quote|An early detailed revelation came from Yoshida Seiji, a former Japanese military policeman, who wrote a book in 1983 entitled ''My War Crimes: The Forced Draft of Koreans'' in which he described his participation in the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea for service as "comfort women" to the Japanese military.}} {{quote|An early detailed revelation came from Yoshida Seiji, a former Japanese military policeman, who wrote a book in 1983 entitled ''My War Crimes: The Forced Draft of Koreans'' in which he described his participation in the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea for service as "comfort women" to the Japanese military.}}

=== Doubts about the basis of resolution ===
In addition to citing Seiji Yoshida's book, there are some doubts as to the veracity of the memorandum and testimony upon which this resolution was based.
==== 1. Misrecognition of facts in the Kono statement: Majority were Japanese ====
The memorandum's author, citing the Kono Statement,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.awf.or.jp/e6/statement-02.html |title=Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono on the Result of the Study on the Issue of "Comfort Women" |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= August 4, 1993 }}</ref> claimed that the majority of comfort women were Koreans (p.7,12). The Kono statement states,”'''excluding those from Japan''', those from the Korean Peninsula accounted for a large part.” This is a serious misrepresentation of fact. If the majority of comfort women were Japanese, the story of "sex slaves" would not hold.

==== 2. Absence of evidence to prove the credibility of Yuki Tanaka's book citation testimony ====
The author cited the testimony of Yuki Tanaka's book as evidence of "sex slaves," but in order to use the testimony as evidence, it is necessary to present documentary evidence to support its credibility. But the author had presented nothing. Radhika Coomaraswamy, author of the UN report,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/238264?ln=en| title=Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences|author= Radhika Coomaraswamy|date=December 10, 1996 }}</ref> presented G. Hicks' book, Seiji Yoshida's book and Japanese military brothel regulations as documentary evidence for their testimony.

Asian nations and the Western nations that colonized Asia punished those involved in the forced prostitution of Dutch women (Netherlands) and rape (Philippines) in post-war courts. An IWG investigation published in 2007 found no documents indicating violations of women's human rights.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.archives.gov/iwg/reports/final-report-2007.html |title=Final Report of the Nazi War Crimes and Japanese Imperial Government Records Interagency Working Group |author= |date= April 2007 |website= |publisher= }}</ref>

==== 3. Rebuttal to the interrogation report No.49 as evidence of deception : Evidence of licensed prostitutes ====
The net income of the comfort women (150-750 yen per month) was extremely high compared to the wages of the house-maids (6-15 yen per month by region) under the same payment terms (with meals, room and others) in 1942.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1454691 |title=Chōsensōtokufu Tōkei-nenpō Shōwa 17-nen |author= |date=March 1944 |language=ja |trans-title=Korean Governor's Office Statistical Annual Report 1942 }} p.157 </ref> It was common sense in society that the work of comfort women was a sex service. The licensed prostitution system was introduced in 1916 and, as shown in Table 1, <ref>{{cite web |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1454223 |title=Chōsensōtokufu Tōkei-nenpō Shōwa 14-nen |author= |date=1941 |language=ja |trans-title=Korean Governor's Office Statistical Annual Report 1939 }} p.366 </ref> <ref>{{cite web |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1454691 |title=Chōsensōtokufu Tōkei-nenpō Shōwa 17-nen |author= |date=March 1944 |language=ja |trans-title=Korean Governor's Office Statistical Annual Report 1942 }} p.262 </ref> was established in Korean society. The age of the comfort women was 17 years or older as stipulated by the licensed prostitution law, and the owner of the comfort station was Korean couple with Japanese names who were professionals in the licensed prostitution. The comfort women and their families signed contracts with the comfort station owner, and the families received an advance payment. The gross monthly income of comfort women was above 300 yen, which was consistent with newspaper advertisements for comfort women at the time.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://19historians.com/requesting-correction-of-factual-errors-in-mcgraw-hill-textbook/| title=Requesting Correction of Factual Errors in McGraw-Hill Textbook|author=19 Japanese Historians |date=March 17, 2015 }} Attachment 3 </ref> The fact that there was a difference in income is proof that the market principle was at work in the comfort women's work. No.49 proves that "comfort women were licensed prostitutes.”
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Table 1 Number of licensed restaurants, brothels and prostitutes in Korea (1939 and 1942)
|-
! rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" |Items !! colspan=4 scope="col"style="width:320px;" |1939!! colspan=4 scope="col"style="width:320px;" | 1942
|-
|scope="col"style="width: 80px;" style="text-align:center;"|Total ||scope="col"style="width:80px;""|Japanese||scope="col"style="width:80px;" |Koreans|| scope="col"style="width:60px;" |Others||scope="col"style="width:80px;" style="text-align:center;"|Total|| scope="col"style="width:80px;" |Japanese||scope="col"style="width:80px;" |Koreans||scope="col"style="width:60px;" |Others
|-
|Restaurants||style="text-align:right;" |1,833 ||style="text-align:right;" |597 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,154 ||style="text-align:right;" | 82 || style="text-align:right;" |1,616 ||style="text-align:right;" |515 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,007 ||style="text-align:right;" |94
|-
|Brothels ||style="text-align:right;" |539 ||style="text-align:right;" |235 || style="text-align:right;" |303 ||style="text-align:right;" |1 ||style="text-align:right;" | 469 ||style="text-align:right;" | 219 ||style="text-align:right;" | 250 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0
|-
|''Geigi'' ||style="text-align:right;" |8,348 ||style="text-align:right;" |2,226||style="text-align:right;" |6,122 ||style="text-align:right;" |0 || style="text-align:right;" |6,287 || style="text-align:right;" |1,797 || style="text-align:right;" |4,490 || style="text-align:right;" |0
|-
|''Syakufu''||style="text-align:right;" |1,796 ||style="text-align:right;" |351||style="text-align:right;" | 1,445 ||style="text-align:right;" |0 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,616 ||style="text-align:right;" |240 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,376 ||style="text-align:right;" |0
|-
|''Syōgi'' ||style="text-align:right;" | 3,712 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1,845 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,866 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1 ||style="text-align:right;" | 3,850 ||style="text-align:right;" |1,774 ||style="text-align:right;" |2,076 ||style="text-align:right;" |0
|-
|Intermediaries || style="text-align:right;" |3,577 ||style="text-align:right;" | 197 ||style="text-align:right;" | 3,380||style="text-align:right;" | 0 || style="text-align:right;" |3,732 ||style="text-align:right;" | 194 ||style="text-align:right;" | 3,537 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1
|}

==== 4. Credibility of former comfort women's testimony ====
Three former comfort women (one Dutch and two Koreans) testified. The Dutch woman's testimony indicates a violation of military regulations by army unit. Two months after the comfort station where she had been forced into prostitution opened, the high-ranking officer who came to inspect the internment camp learned of this fact and immediately closed the comfort station and released the Dutch women. The fact that the Japanese military closed the comfort station shows that the discipline of the Japanese military was functioning. After the war, this incident was tried by the Dutch East Indies government. The officer responsible for opening the comfort station was sentenced to death, and his subordinates, the doctor responsible for conducting the examinations, and the civilians involved in the employment were sentenced to imprisonment, and executed. <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.awf.or.jp/pdf/0205.pdf| title=Report of a Study of Dutch Government Documents on the Forced Prostitution of Dutch Women in the Dutch East Indies during the Japanese Occupation (unofficial translation) |author=Bart van Poelgeest|date=January 24, 1994 }} </ref>

The testimonies of the two Koreans indicate that they were unlicensed prostitutes and they worked in unlicensed brothels, not comfort stations. This is a case of violation of domestic law and military regulations. Domestic law prohibited unlicensed prostitution,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1454223 |title=Kashizashiki shōgitorishimarikisoku |author= |date=1916 |language=ja |trans-title=Regulations for the Control of Brothels and Prostitutes }}</ref> and military regulations prohibited the working of the unlicensed prostitutes, violence in the stations, and non-use of sacks.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wikisource.org/Collection_of_Imperial_Japanese_Military_Comfort_Station_Regulation#Regulations_Governing_the_Use_of_the_Special_Brothel_in_the_South_Sector_Billet| title=Regulations Governing the Use of the Special Brothel in the South Sector Billet|author=|date=July 20, 1942 }} </ref> The military checked the balance sheets between the comfort station operators and comfort women reported monthly by the operators, and confirmed payment to the comfort women.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wikisource.org/Collection_of_Imperial_Japanese_Military_Comfort_Station_Regulation#Regulations_for_Governing_the_Comfort_Facilities_and_Ryokan_Business_(Excerpts_of_matters_related_to_comfort_station)| title=Regulations for Governing the Comfort Facilities and Ryokan Business|author=|date=November 11, 1943 }}, Appendix Table No.7 Income and Expenditure Statement </ref> Discipline in the comfort station was enforced by the military police, and venereal disease examinations were conducted by military doctors. Records of the military police show that rape and injury crimes by the China Expeditionary Army were rare, <ref> {{cite web |url=https://wikisource.org/Collection_of_Imperial_Japanese_Military_Comfort_Station_Regulation#A.1.1_Attached_Table_1_Number_of_Crime_by_Military_Personnel_and_Civilian_Employees_(June_1945)| title=Number of crime by military personnel and civilian employees|author=|date= 1945 }} A.1.1, A.1.2 and A.2.1 </ref> and violations of rules in comfort stations were mainly caused by drunkenness, and violators were punished, and the number of incidents was extremely small. <ref>{{cite web |url=https://wikisource.org/Collection_of_Imperial_Japanese_Military_Comfort_Station_Regulation#A.2.4_Attached_Table_2_Misconduct_related_to_Comfort_Station_(Nov.1941)| title=Misconduct related to Comfort Station|date=1941 }}, A.2.4 to A.2.7 </ref> Kidnapping, rape, and injury were violations of the criminal law. The arrest rate for kidnapping and rape was almost 100% as shown in Table 2. <ref>{{cite web |url=https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1454223 |title=Chōsensōtokufu Tōkei-nenpō Shōwa 14-nen |author= |date=1941 |language=ja |trans-title=Korean Governor's Office Statistical Annual Report 1939 }} p.352 to 355 </ref> Their testimonies prove that they were not comfort women.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Table 2 Crimes related to comfort women in Korea (1939)
|-
! rowspan=2 style="text-align:center;" |Name of crimes !! rowspan=2 scope="col"style="width:80px;" |Number of crimes !! rowspan=2 scope="col"style="width:80px;" | Number of arrests !! colspan=4 scope="col"style="width:320px;" |Number of persons arrested
|-
|scope="col"style="width:80px;" style="text-align:center;"|Total ||scope="col"style="width:80px;" |Japanese||scope="col"style="width:80px;" style="text-align:center;"|Koreans|| scope="col"style="width:80px;" style="text-align:center;"|Others
|-
|Murder||style="text-align:right;" |240 ||style="text-align:right;" |231 ||style="text-align:right;" |303 ||style="text-align:right;" | 7 || style="text-align:right;" |296 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0
|-
|Injury: fatal ||style="text-align:right;" |325 ||style="text-align:right;" |326 || style="text-align:right;" |464 ||style="text-align:right;" | 3 ||style="text-align:right;" | 443 ||style="text-align:right;" | 18
|-
|Injury: injury ||style="text-align:right;" |11,893 ||style="text-align:right;" |11,851 ||style="text-align:right;" |21,775 ||style="text-align:right;" |236 || style="text-align:right;" |21,516 ||style="text-align:right;" |23
|-
|Injury: simple assault ||style="text-align:right;" |912 ||style="text-align:right;" | 911||style="text-align:right;" | 1,048 ||style="text-align:right;" |6 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1,042 ||style="text-align:right;" |0
|-
|Intimidation ||style="text-align:right;" | 412 ||style="text-align:right;" | 413 ||style="text-align:right;" | 405 ||style="text-align:right;" | 7 ||style="text-align:right;" | 398 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0
|-
|Kidnapping and abduction|| style="text-align:right;" |1,191 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1,188 ||style="text-align:right;" | 1,865||style="text-align:right;" | 16 || style="text-align:right;" |1,849 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0
|-
|Robbery and rape ||style="text-align:right;" | 19 ||style="text-align:right;" | 19 || style="text-align:right;" |19 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0 ||style="text-align:right;" | 19 ||style="text-align:right;" | 0
|-
|Fraud || style="text-align:right;" |18,870 || style="text-align:right;" |18,948 || style="text-align:right;" |20,847 || style="text-align:right;" |861 ||style="text-align:right;" | 19,978 || style="text-align:right;" |8
|-
|Blackmail ||style="text-align:right;" |616 || style="text-align:right;" |624 || style="text-align:right;" |732 || style="text-align:right;" |12 || style="text-align:right;" |720 || style="text-align:right;" |0
|}
As explained above, this resolution was passed on the basis of misquotation of Kono statement and baseless memorandum, as well as testimony of cases in violation of domestic law and military regulations.


== ''Washington Post'' advertisements == == ''Washington Post'' advertisements ==

Revision as of 16:24, 30 November 2022

United States resolution condemning Japan's comfort women

United States House of Representatives House Resolution 121 (H.Res. 121) is a resolution about comfort women which Japanese-American Congressman Mike Honda of California's 15th congressional district introduced to the American House of Representatives in 2007. It asks that the Japanese government apologize to former comfort women and include curriculum about them in Japanese schools, citing the 1921 International Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children that Japan has ratified and United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. This resolution was passed on July 30, 2007.

Controversy

Seiji Yoshida's memoirs were used as an evidence for the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea in a Congressional Report which was prepared for this resolution.

An early detailed revelation came from Yoshida Seiji, a former Japanese military policeman, who wrote a book in 1983 entitled My War Crimes: The Forced Draft of Koreans in which he described his participation in the roundup of over 1,000 women in Korea for service as "comfort women" to the Japanese military.

Washington Post advertisements

On June 14, 2007, a group of conservative Japanese politicians, academics, and others ran an advertisement in The Washington Post critical of the resolution. The ad was in response to a previous advertisement by a group of Korean comfort women survivors that ran in The Washington Post in support of the resolution, titled The Truth about Comfort Women.

See also

References

  1. Tokudome, Kinue. "Passage of H.Res. 121 on "Comfort Women"". Asia-Pacific Journal.
  2. "Congressional Report Services Memorandum, "Japanese Military's Comfort Women"" (PDF). U. S. Congressional Research Service. April 10, 2006.

External links


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