Oh, Comfort Woman--Embarrassing

One of the most embarrassing things for Japanese in foreign country is to hear about the discussion on “comfort woman,” which is dispute over the involvement of military in operating comfort stations, in another word brothels. As soon as new Prime Minister was chosen, this issue reappeared on politics in Japan. Pushed by revisionists in Japan, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is positive for reviewing Kono Statement in 1993, in which the government of Japan officially acknowledged the existence of comfort women and the coercion of the government in transferring women to the station. Actually, other nations are critical about this change of course. To what extent is this PM let us feel embarrassed?

The attitude of revisionism already accepts backlashes from foreign countries. The Foreign Minister of Australia, Bob Carr, cautioned Japanese government of reviewing Kono statement in the joint press conference with Japanese Foreign Minister, Fumio Kishida, on Sunday. Early this month, when the special envoy to South Korea, Nukaga Fukushiro, arrived at the airport of Seoul, a right wing activist protested his visit by injuring his belly with a knife, close to hara-kiri performance.

As well as then National Security Adviser, Condoleezza Rice, murmured at the time of September-eleven attack, one question is coming up: Why do they hate us so much? I heard the answer many times. “Even if the government of Japan apologize again and again, other leaders soon overturn that apology. We cannot understand which is the true voice of Japan,” told a man demanding a resolution for denouncing Japanese government on dealing with comfort woman issue in US Congress. The resolution passed in the House of Representatives in 2007.

The response of Abe administration is not to face with those criticisms, but to turn their back. Abe is preparing to deliver new statement, which is replacing Kono Statement. He is setting up new consultative council for new statement. Without any new study on the issue, he tries to prove the innocence of Japanese government. The purpose of the council must be reviewing Kono Statement from the beginning.

Long after the World War II, the Japanese made their mind to stand firm on the basis of pacifism, though someone falsely take it as an appeasement. The position of Japan in the world community is defined by that recognition by other countries. To change that basis may fundamentally undermine the efforts of the many who worked long for persuading other nations to believe in Japan getting rid of militarism. Revision of Kono Statement can break the basis up.

The current argument in the administration also shows his lack of leadership, leaving foreign voices and his embarrassed nations behind, and looking only to his fellow conservative allies around him. If Abe seriously think about the Japanese occupying “an honored place in an international society” just as the Constitution of Japan says, he needs to finally settle this dispute.