COMMEMORATING THE 9th INTERNATIONAL MEMORIAL DAY FOR ’COMFORT WOMEN’
Honouring the Grandmas through Remembrance, Solidarity and Action
Sexual violence against women in war and armed conflict is a crime against humanity present throughout history and that unfortunately continues to this very day. One of the most heinous examples was the widespread Japanese Military Sexual Slavery (JMMS) system that occurred during World War II.
As we commemorate the 9th International Memorial Day for “Comfort Women” and honour the grandmas who lived through this unimaginable suffering, it is important that we see and remember them as more than just victims of JMSS. We should see them as more than just survivors and social activists, we can never forget the individuality and mere humanity of every single one of the grandmas and how they were someone’s daughter, sister, and loved one.
We should not only stand in solidarity with the grandmas, but actively pursue being an extension of everything that they are still fighting for. For example, Grandma Kim Bok-dong and Grandma Gil Won-ok promised to support women who still suffer from sexual violence in armed conflict with reparations they would receive from the Japanese government. We should follow in their footsteps by fighting for redress on the JMSS issue, while simultaneously helping those who suffer from contemporary forms of sexual violence.
It is incumbent on each and everyone one of us to ensure and create a peaceful future where the atrocities that the grandmas lived through never happen again.
Brandon Choi, Education Program Associate, ALPHA Education