Seoul to stick with ‘comfort women’ deal
SEOUL — The Republic of Korea’s top diplomat said on Tuesday that the country will set aside its own funds to support the victims of Japan’s wartime sex slavery, reiterating Seoul’s stance that the 2015 agreement with Japan cannot resolve the wartime crime against humanity.
Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha told a nationally televised news conference that the 2015 agreement, which failed to reflect opinions of the victims, cannot become a real resolution to the comfort women issue.
Kang, however, noted that her country will not demand renegotiation with the Japanese government over the deal as the 2015 agreement was an official deal between the governments of the two countries, despite new President Moon Jae-in saying on the campaign trail he “could not accept” the agreement.
The previous ROK government reached a final and irreversible agreement with the Japanese government, led by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, on Dec 28, 2015, over the issue on comfort women victims.
“Considering that, our government will not demand renegotiation of the deal,” Kang told reporters.
In return, Japan offered 1 billion yen (about $8.8 million) to a foundation supporting the victims who were kidnapped, coerced or duped into sexual servitude in Japanese military brothels during World War II.
But Seoul will not use any more of Tokyo’s money for the survivors, replacing the funds from its own budget, Kang said, urging Tokyo to offer a “voluntary and sincere apology”.
Historians say up to 200,000 girls and young womin en, mostly from the Korean Peninsula, served as sex slaves for Imperial Japan.
Japan has urged the ROK to stick with the 2015 deal, saying any attempt by Seoul to revise it “cannot be acceptable whatsoever” and would leave bilateral ties “unmanageable”.
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on Tuesday renewed a call for Seoul to “firmly implement the agreement as a final and irreversible one”, saying Tokyo could not accept Seoul’s demands after Kang’s remarks.
The new ROK government under Moon, who took office May, reviewed the 2015 agreement as the victims protested against it, revealing secret deals with Japan.
Under the those deals, which were not made known to the general public as well as the victims, Seoul accepted Tokyo’s demand for persuading the victims to accept the deal and not using the expression “sexual slavery”.
Following the review result announcement, Moon said the 2015 deal cannot resolve the comfort women issue.
Last month, Moon slammed the agreement as “seriously flawed” and told officials to re-examine it.
The victims demanded the Japanese government’s sincere apology and legal responsibility for the wartime sexual enslavement, declining to receive the funds from Japan.