Comfort women were girls and young women working as sexual slaves for the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. The term is a translation of the Japanese word ianfu, which means “prostitute(s).” [1] Usually the women employed were poor and non-Japanese, as the country wanted to preserve the purity of its own women. [2] Hence, the majority of comfort women were found in Japanese occupied countries — primarily, Korea, China, and the Philippines. [3]
The existence of atrocious systems such as comfort stations, exemplifies the weaponisation of female bodies in Japan. Even though this episode of forced prostitution ended, the idea behind it remains rooted in Japanese society as the country today continues to refuse to acknowledge their crimes. The topic of weaponisation of female bodies will be discussed deeply this month, as a series of articles will be published on the matter. This article will explore the topic of comfort women — particularly, the reasons behind its existence and the consequences of this phenomenon.
By Camilla Carlesi
FRAMING THE ISSUE
Even though the brothels started by employing solely voluntary prostitutes, many women ended up being forced to work there. Most of the women were abducted from their homes with promises of false job opportunities in restaurants or hospitals. At times, they were lured by propaganda supporting gender equality and female education. [4] Due to these false pretenses, the Japanese army — guided by the orders of the general office and the ministry of the army, in particular, of the supreme commander — managed to recruit and imprison an incredible number of sex workers. There is not an agreed number on the quantity of workers involved; however, the majority of historians estimate that there were around 200,000 women. [5] Among them, 80% came from Korea. [6]
The conditions of the brothels and the way in which these women were treated were horrendous. They were humiliated in multiple ways, deprived of their identity, culture and language. [7] If they were pregnant, they were forced to abort their children. If they refused to have sex, these women were raped, beaten, or even murdered. A survivor of these crimes, Jan Ruff O’Herne, witnesses:
‘I was systematically beaten and raped day and night. Even the Japanese doctor raped me each time he visited the brothel to examine us for venereal disease. And to humiliate us even more the doors and windows were left open, so the Japanese could watch us being examined.’ [8]
Today, these crimes are recognized by most countries in Asia and elsewhere, including the Philippines, Canada, Taiwan, Germany, and Australia. In 2007, the U.S. called for the historical recognition of Japanese sexual slavery and asked Japan to publicly apologize for their atrocious actions. Japan’s response to the American request has been extremely controversial. The former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe refused to abide by the U.S.’s demand and stated that the government already addressed the topic in the past by giving aid funds to former sex slaves, while part of the Japanese population denies the existence of evidence on the topic. [9] Even though the country devoted 1 billion yen ($8.3 million) to the cause, the money does not pay for the decades of atrocities experienced by these women, especially when Japan refuses to publicly acknowledge these mistakes.
THE RATIONALE BEHIND COMFORT STATIONS
The Japanese army justified the use of comfort women in many ways; among them, the decrease of rape and the prevention of secret-leakage, internal revolts, and the spread of diseases.
I) Reduce Rape Crimes
After the atrocities which took place in the past – when Japan expanded in Manchukuo, Nanjing, Shanghai and committed mass sexual violence – the country attempted to reduce sexual crimes by providing prostitutes to its personnel. [10] According to the Japanese government, decreasing rape crimes during occupation would help the colonized countries to better accept their invasion.
II) Prevent the Leak of Information from Soldiers
By confining the military sexual interactions with comfort women to specific controlled locations, the government was able to avoid the spread of information about the Japanese military plans. The comfort stations protected against the leakage of strategic information because if any incident would have ever occurred, it would have been almost impossible for the international press to know about it. What was said in these locations stayed in these locations. [11]
III) Avoid Internal Discontent
The Japanese government believed that comfort stations offered soldiers the opportunity to let out their stress and sexual impulses. By improving the conditions of their military personnel, the authorities decreased the likelihood of internal riots and enhanced their ability to fight. [12]
IV) Decrease Venereal Diseases
Because Japanese soldiers were highly exposed to sexually transmitted infections (STIs), the government implemented comfort stations to decrease such problem. Brothels had better sanitary conditions and were more controlled by doctors, which they thought would decrease transmission. [13]
CONSEQUENCES OF THE COMFORT WOMEN SYSTEM
I) Increase of Rape Crimes and Sexual Transmitted Infections
Even though the comfort stations originated from the need to decrease STDs and rape, they ended up worsening both issues. With time, the number of people infected by diseases rose incredibly, as these brothels allowed soldiers to have intercourse more often; thus, to get sick more often. In addition, the more frequent sexual interactions only increased the sexual appetite of the army. [14] Overall, the comfort women system did not bring the results that the Japanese government was expecting.
II) Rise of Mental Illnesses
The comfort women system also fueled high levels of mental illnesses. The physical abuse which these women experienced greatly impacted their psychological health. Some of the main symptoms were anger, emotional stress, and distorted perceptions. [15] Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was also a very common problem. Forced sexual labor in WWII brought acute consequences to the lives of these women, but also long-term ones. Thus, a study found that even 60 years beyond the end of the war, the women were still prone to mental illnesses. [16]
III) Stigmatization of Survivors
Other than psychological diseases, there are many additional long-term implications that followed the end of Japanese forced prostitution. For instance, women who were employed as sexual workers were rejected and abandoned by their families and communities. As a consequence of this marginalization, multiple survivors committed suicide. Today, former comfort women are still stigmatized by some of their communities for their past. [17]
IV) Negative International Response
Lastly, the legalization of forced prostitution and the mishandling of the issue by the Japanese government caused a severing of ties with the rest of the world. The issue fueled tensions with South Korea, as Japan refused to engage in an historical debate in regards to the issue. Moreover, the humanitarian crimes committed by the Japanese army shed a bad light on the country in front of the global community.
CONCLUSION
The comfort women system was a barbaric program implemented by the Japanese government. Women were forced into prostitution, beaten, and obliged to live in terrible conditions. According to the Japanese government, comfort stations appeared to be an efficient way to reduce rape, ensure secrecy, improve soldiers’ wellbeing and decrease venereal diseases. Although, this forced prostitution structure only brought a boost of STDs, rape crimes, and mental illnessess. Today, the traces of this program are still visible in Japan, where survivors are neglected and marginalized. Issues continue outside Japan as well, as the comfort women atrocities have negatively impacted the global community’s view of Japan.
This analysis of the case of comfort women is one example of the lack of an adequate response to sexual violence in the context of global gender security. The lack of a sufficient apology from the Japanese authorities damages the state’s global image and is detrimental to the fight for women’s rights and equity. The next articles of this series will further explore the topic of women as a weapon of war through other case studies and will emphasize the need for a stronger international fight for women security.
SOURCES
[1] Soh, CS (2009). ‘The Comfort Women: Sexual Violence and Postcolonial Memory in Korea and Japan. University of Chicago Press.
[2] Yoshimi, Y (2002). ‘Comfort Women: Sexual Slavery in the Japanese Military during WWII.’ Columbia University Press, pp. 155.
[3] (2013). ‘Women and World War II – Comfort Women.’ Womenshistory.about.com.
[4] Yoshimi, 2002.
[5] (2007). ‘Japanese opposition calls on prime minister to acknowledge WWII sex slaves, International Herald Tribune.’
[6] Gamble, A, Watanabe, T (2004). ‘A Public Betrayed.’ Regnery Publishing.
[7] Watanabe, K (1999). ‘Trafficking in Women's Bodies, Then and Now: The Issue of Military "Comfort Women".‘ Women's Studies Quarterly, pp. 19-31, available from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40003395.
[8] O'Herne, JR (February 15, 2007). ‘Statement of Jan Ruff O'Herne AO, Subcommittee on Asia, Pacific and the Global Environment.’ Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives.
[9] Constante, A (2019). ‘Who Are the 'Comfort Women,' and Why Are U.S.-Based Memorials for Them Controversial?’ NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, available from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/who-are-comfort-women-why-are-u-s-based-memorials-n997656.
[10] Tanaka, Y (2002). ‘Japan’s Comfort Women: Sexual Slavery and Prostitution during World War II and the US Occupation,’ Routledge, pp. 45, 60.
[11] Asian Women's Fund (2007). ‘The "Comfort Women" Issue and the Asian Women's Fund.’ Asian Women's Fund.
[12] Korea Times (2007). ‘Comfort women used to prevent military revolt during war.’
[13] ‘Why Did the Japanese Military Establish the ‘Comfort Women’ System?’ Fight for Justice, available from http://fightforjustice.info/?page_id=2762.
[14] Korea Times, 2007.
[15] Min SK, Lee CH, Kim JY, Shim EJ (November 2004). ‘Posttraumatic Stress Disorder of Former Comfort Women for Japanese Army during World War II’. Journal of Korean Neuropsychiatric Association (in Korean), pp. 740–748.
[16] Ibid.
[17] Watanabe, 1999.