Japan's Prime Minister has apologised to the Korean women used by soldiers as sex slaves during the Second World War, pledging more than £5.37m to help the victims.
Shinzo Abe apologised for the "incurable physical and psychological wounds" suffered by the euphemistically named "comfort women", who were taken from Korea to work in military-run brothels.
The women and the South Korean government have fought a decades-long battle for an adequate apology for the treatment of the sex slaves.
Mr Abe hopes the deal will mark an end to the demands and said the agreement to apologise and pledge money was based on his commitment to stop future generations from having to repeatedly apologise.
He said: "Japan and South Korea are now entering a new era, We should not drag this problem into the next generation."
A statement by both countries' foreign ministers said Mr Abe "expresses anew his most sincere apologies and remorse to all the women who underwent immeasurable and painful experiences and suffered incurable physical and psychological wounds as comfort women".
Historians estimate there were as many as 200,000 comfort women taken from around Asia, including the Korean peninsula, China, the Philippines and what is now Indonesia
There are 46 surviving Korean "comfort women", many of whom have actively campaigned for an apology.
It wasn't immediately clear if Mr Abe would be issuing a separate written statement or if it would be directly delivered to the surviving women, who are now in their 80s and 90s.
South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se said the agreement was "final and irreversible".
South Korean President Park Geun-hye said: "Most of victims are at an advanced age and nine died this year alone. I hope the mental pains of the elderly comfort women will be eased.”
The initial reaction of former sex slaves was mixed. One woman said she would follow the government's lead, while another vowed to ignore the accord because Tokyo didn't consider the money to be formal compensation.
"Isn't it natural to make legal compensation if they commit a crime?" 88-year-old Lee Yong-su told South Korea's Yonhap news agency.
No comments:
Post a Comment