Lies Inscribed on the Glendale Monument andthe Comfort Women Controversy
Moteki Hiromichi, Secretary
Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact
What is inscribed on the stone monument in Glendale is as follows:“I was a sex slave of Japanesemilitary.”*Torn hair symbolizes the girlbeing snatched from her home by
the Imperial Japanese Army.
*Tight fists represent the girl’sfirm resolve for a deliverance ofjustice.
*Bare and unsettled feet represent
having been abandoned by the cold and unsympathetic world.
*Bird on the girl’s shoulder symbolizes a bond between us and the deceased victims.
*Empty chair symbolizes survivors who are dying of old age without having yetwitnessed justice.
*Shadow of the girl is that of an old grandma, symbolizing passage of time spent insilence.
*Butterfly in shadow represents hope that victims may resurrect one day to receive
their apology.
Peace Monument
In memory of more than 200,000 Asian and Dutch women who were removed fromtheir homes in Korea, China, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam,Malaysia, East Timor and Indonesia, to be coerced into sexual slavery by the Imperial
Armed Forces of Japan between 1932 and 1945.
And in celebration of proclamation of “Comfort Women Day” by the City of Glendale
on July 30, 2012, and of passing of House Resolution 121 by the United States
Congress on July 30, 2007, urging the Japanese Government to accept historicalresponsibility for these crimes.
It is our sincere hope that these unconscionable violations of human rights shallnever recur.
July 30, 20131

We can without doubt conclude that these words are 100% false: huge lies. Allow
me to explain why.
First, not a single woman was forcibly taken from her home by the Imperial
Japanese Army. Absolutely none. That is clear because the Japanese military had nosuch authority/legal right nor they were so carefree or ill-disciplined as to engage in thebusiness as pimps. If they had committed such an act, it would have become a big socialproblem, even in the prewar years. In fact, not a single Korean said that he/she actuallywitnessed such a scene. The monument says more than 200,000 women were removed
from their homes. How is it possible, for those who take this for granted, withoutanyone even wondering that there is not a single witness who has come out to say thathe or she actually saw this happen?
One may wonder about the testimonies of the former comfort women. None of them,
however, said they were forcibly taken to the war zone by the Japanese military orJapanese authorities. Some of them told vague stories which hinted that they wereenticed or taken by military-related persons. But these completely contradict thecircumstances as mentioned above. Not one testimony proves forced abduction. They
were not asked or forced to go to a military zone but rather they went there to earnmoney by prostitution, which was commonly practiced at that time.
The only cited proof of forced abduction has been My War Crime, which waswritten by Yoshida Seiji in 1983. The Asahi Newspaper and others extensively reported
on this issue based on the story within his book. However, the book turned out to be asheer lie. The fabrication was exposed and published in the August 14, 1989 issue of theJeju Ilbo (Newspaper) after a thorough and extensive investigation conducted by one of
the newspaper’s female reporters, together with a local historian on Jeju Island, whereauthor Yoshida said he had conducted comfort women hunts. Please refer to the copy of
the article from the Jeju Ilbo and its English translation on the following page.
The local newspaper, in the very island where Yoshida claimed he hunted comfort
women, investigated, in collaboration with a local historian, and reported that such hunt
never took place. Nevertheless, the Asahi Newspaper continued to report on the comfort
women issue for 25 years after the truth was revealed based on Yoshida’s story, as if itwere true, ignoring the article in the Jeju Newspaper and not renouncing Yoshida’s2

Jeju Ilbo completely contradicts Yoshida’ s comfort women kidnapping story
via an article on August 14, 1989

On the occasion of the 44th anniversary of our Liberation, people are utterly shocked at thepublication of a record that described that 205 women from Jeju Island were drafted as comfort
women during the Imperial Japanese regime. However, no witness is presented to back up theallegation, which invites various reactions. [The outline of Yoshida’s book is then introduced.]
Not one witnesses for stories described in the book, including one that fifteen to sixteen girls
were forcibly drafted as comfort women at a shell-button factory in Josanpo and other incidents of
comfort women hunts conducted at various villages such as Hokan-ri.
Islanders flatly denied the story as “nonsense” and strongly doubted the book’s credibility.
Chong Okutan (an eighty-five year old woman), who lives at Josanpo, said, “In a village of a little
over two hundred fifty households, if fifteen girls had been drafted, it would have been a big event,but at that time, nothing of the sort happened.”
Kim Pon-oku, a local historian, indignantly said, “After the Japanese-version book waspublished in 1983, I conducted follow-up research for several years and found out that it was not true.
This book seems to be a product of the insincere commercial spirit symbolizing Japanese people’svice.”( Jeju Ilbo Article of August 14, 1989 written by Ms. Heo Yeong-seon )3

fabrication. The Korean Government took no heed of its own country’s local
newspaper’s clear denial of Yoshida’s story either, blindly believing what the Asahi
Newspaper, Japan’s media “authority”, said and continued in criticizing Japan, based ona false report. Now that we know what the Asahi Newspaper reported turned out to befalse, wouldn’t it be the right thing for the Korean Government to sincerely reflect on its
conduct and apologize to Japan for their mistake?
Secondly, as “A Guide to Understanding the Comfort-Women Controversy”(http://www.sdh-fact.com/CL02_1/113_S4.pdf) reads;
Before World War II, in Japan (and in almost all countries as well at that time),
prostitution was legal and there were many facilities, such as houses of prostitution,
throughout Japan. Similar facilities were established in war zones and there was noparticular illegal involvement on the part of the military. At that time, while within
Japan proper these facilities were freely available, there were no such facilities available
in overseas war zones, which could be considered discriminatory treatment against
soldiers. Therefore, the establishment of comfort stations was based on the principles offairness and impartiality. It is well beside the point to criticize this practice.
Thirdly, prostitution was not, in general, favorably considered at that time, as it wascalled an ugly profession. On the other hand, the profession was by far more highly
rewarded than ordinary jobs. (This is the same as it is today.) So, prostitution was agood means for poor and not particularly resourceful women by which to obtain a highincome. Again, the situation is the same as it is today. Therefore, to condemn thisprofession from the perspective of an infringement of women’s rights is one line ofthinking, but this hardly leads to equal, universal justice. In fact, there was a big rally by
prostitutes in Seoul, South Korea, on May 17, 2011.
This was a protest to save their profession, their claim being “Are we to be robbed
of our right to engage in prostitution?” (Refer to the photo from Time Photo on the next
page.) How do people who believe prostitution is an issue of women’s rights respond tothe cries of these protesting women? Even today, when prostitution is legally prohibited,
prostitutes are demanding their right to be prostitutes. Seventy years back, prostitution
was legally accepted and yet the Japanese Army is accused for having wartime comfort
stations from the viewpoint that this infringes on women’s rights. I wonder how on earth

4this abnormality emerged.

The Japanese human rights advocates who criticized the use of comfort women anddeplored its criminality never protested against the abductions of many Japanesecitizens by North Korea nor took positive action to rescue them and bring them backhome to Japan. It is easily seen that the true “abnormality” lies here. I must conclude
that they are not earnestly trying to stand up for “human rights,” but rather, they are
only criticizing Japan in the name of “human right”, based on the theory that theJapanese are villainous. President Obama, Mrs. Hillary Clinton and other American
human rights advocates must be made aware of this “abnormality” sooner or later.
Fourthly, since it was a job that was engaged within dangerous war zones, thecomfort women could expect higher income than that of an ordinary prostitution facility.
As“AGuidetoUnderstanding

theComfort-Women

Controversy”((http://www.sdh-fact.com/CL02_1/113_S4.pdf) indicates, the monthly payment of 300
yen was nearly the general rate cited in newspaper advertisements. However, the actual5income seemed to be much higher. According to Report No. 49, compiled by the US
Office of War Information, their average monthly income was 750 yen. Moreover, aformer comfort woman named Mun Ok-ju put her money in a postal savings account in
Burma while she worked as a comfort woman. Later, she filed a lawsuit, claiming that
she could not get her money back. It was not that Japanese Army refused to pay hermoney back but that she could not receive her money because she had lost her savings
account passbook. Through investigation, it was found out that the original record bookwas kept at Shimonoseki Post Office and that her remaining postal savings account was26,115 yen. She saved this much money over two and half years, which meant that she
earned at least 1,000 yen per month. The salary of a private first class was 10 yen permonth. So, her income was a hundred times higher than that of Japanese soldiers. Thiswas extremely huge amount of money. Naturally, there were many women who wanted
this lucrative job, and there was no need at all to forcibly abduct women and make them
comfort women.
Fifthly, reflecting the common sense at that time as described above, Report No. 49
of the US Office of War Information, based on interviews with 20 Korean comfort
women who had become prisoners of war in Myitkyina, Burma, clearly recorded, “A
comfort girl is nothing more than a prostitute or professional camp follower.” (See thephoto on the next page.)This was nothing unusual.

Certainly, the inscription on the monument includes Japan as origins of comfort
women. However, there was not a case of forcible abduction by the Imperial JapaneseArmy. It is too absurd to mention whether there is any record left about this or not. In
the first place, any forcible abduction by the Army is impossible in principle. It is thesame with other countries. The fact that such a thing could have never happened inJapan will clearly show what a big lie the monument tells.
As I wrote in “A Guide to Understanding the Comfort Women Controversy”((http://www.sdh-fact.com/CL02_1/113_S4.pdf), prostitution was the oldest profession
in human history, and it was not the matter of decades ago. As you all well know, theprofession is popularly performed still today. As I mentioned previously, prostitutes in
Korea held a big rally in May, 2011, lest their right to prostitute be taken away. It isknown that prostitutes of Korean nationality working in the United States outnumber
those from any other country. Many Korean prostitutes also have come to Japan to do

6their business. They may
have come for various
domesticor

personal

reasons to work in Japan.
After they worked as
prostitutes under such
hard conditions, would it
be possible for them toask for an apology andcompensation for such ahardtimeJapanese
AtfromtheGovernment?

present,

former

comfort women and theKorean Government are
askingtheGovernment

Japanese
forapology

anandcompensation.
TheJapanese

Government

has

apologized,

althoughthey maintain that there
was no forcibility involved. Whether those women suffered during harsh times or not,responsibility should have mostly rested on the individual women or their parents.
Neither the Japanese Government nor the military are to be blamed for their hardships.
Under these circumstances, why does Japan have to “apologize”?

Since Japanapologized, everyone in the world supposes that Japan must have done something
wrong or unjust. If some of us expect some countries to consider Japan conscionable,that is totally beside the mark. The mere fact that Japan did in fact apologize misses theessence of the matter and becomes a fundamental point of disgrace to Japan, putting her
into a miserable plight.

7

The “comfort women issue,” which was entirely based on fabrication, basicallycollapsed when the Asahi Newspaper finally admitted that their report was false.
Essentially, Yoshida Seiji’s lie was the only evidence of forced abduction of comfortwomen. The local Jeju Ilbo (Jeju Daily Newspaper) clearly reported, after a thoroughinvestigation, that Yoshida’s story was fabricated in 1989. Even since then, the Asahi
Newspaper has continued to maintain that comfort women were forcibly abducted, notpublicly admitting to Yoshida’s fabrication. Their reporting should not be calledmisreporting or a false report, but nothing more than fabrication and distortion.
Since the Asahi Newspaper has held overwhelming authority among the Japanesepress and intellectuals, this fabricated report by the Asahi Newspaper heavily influenced
the Japanese Government and politicians, so tremendously that they were obliged tomake quite an off-of-the-point “apology” as well as the Kohno Statement, studded itselfwith lies. Not only that, the Korean Government criticized Japan on the basis of theAsahi report. Although their local Jeju Ilbo clearly concluded that Yoshida’s story was
100% false, the Korean Government shamefully, its own country’s very paper on point
concerning the issue, continues to ride on the false report of Japanese Asahi Newspaper.
Based on this 100% false information, the Koreans established a statue of a comfort
woman in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul and put up another comfort woman
statue, together with a totally false inscription, in the City of Glendale, California, USA.
This is the real truth of the matter. It is the Koreans who spread such enormous lies in
the United States that should apologize and abolish this statue. At the same time, theCity of Glendale is equally responsible, which not conducting proper research andturning a deaf ear to many conscientious Japanese and some of their Assembly members,
which approved the establishment of this statue. The City of Glendale should apologize
for this error and immediately remove the statue.

8