When Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe makes his historic address Wednesday before a joint session of Congress, most in the audience will be watching him. But some will focused on Yong Soo Lee.
Ms. Lee, 86, is among the last of the surviving “comfort women,” tens of thousands of Koreans and Chinese who as girls were kidnapped and forced into farm labor and sexual servitude for Japanese soldiers during World War II.
As such, Ms. Lee is a living testament to a disgraceful and contentious episode in Japanese history, one that Mr. Abe has been accused of trying to downplay.
Ms. Lee plans to attend a rally outside the Capitol and then watch Mr. Abe’s speech from the gallery as the guest of Rep. Michael M. Honda, California Democrat, a Japanese-American and advocate for the comfort women.
“I’m a victim, survivor and witness of what the Japanese army did,” Ms. Lee said in a translated statement via email.
Advocates want Mr. Abe to acknowledge fully and atone for Japan’s treatment of the women, but he gave little ground at a White House press briefing Tuesday. His speech Wednesday is the first by a Japanese prime minister before a joint session of Congress since World War II.
Asked whether he would apologize, Mr. Abe said he was “deeply pained” by the women’s treatment but has no plans to revisit the stance known as the Kono Statement.
“I am deeply pained to think about the comfort women who experience immeasurable pain and suffering as a result of victimization due to human trafficking,” Mr. Abe said through a translator. “This is a feeling that I share equally with my predecessors.”
Under the 1993 Kono Statement, Japan agreed that the military was “directly or indirectly” involved in creating the comfort stations, and that “in many cases” the women were recruited against their will, but Mr. Abe has been accused of trying to placate Japanese nationalists by likening the stations to brothels.
“The Abe [administration] upholds the Kono Statement and has no intention to revise it,” Mr. Abe said. “Based on this position, Japan has made various efforts to provide realistic relief for the comfort women.”
He said Japan has committed to spending $22 million this year on international relief efforts aimed at preventing sexual violence against women during conflicts after spending $12 million last year.
“Throughout the history of the 20th century, women’s dignity and basic human rights have often been infringed upon during wars,” Mr. Abe said. “We intend to make the 21st century a world with no human rights violations against women.”
Jungsil Lee, president of the Washington Coalition for Comfort Women Issues, said Mr. Abe’s comments Tuesday were no different from what he has said in the past. But she hopes he will use the joint session as an opportunity break new ground on the issue.
“I really hope that he will use this opportunity to say more during his speech,” said Ms. Lee, an art history professor. “Because we want to move on. I’m kind of sick and tired of [making] the same request. I really want to move on.”
Yong Soo Lee said Mr. Abe’s comments Tuesday sound “as though he is a third person not related to the issues at all. I don’t believe that he is sincere.”
