FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

Focus
Asia-PacificNewsletter of the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center (HURIGHTS OSAKA)

September 2009 Vol. 57

Contents
LIBERTY OSAKA: Promoting Human Rights
to AllPresentation of LIBERTY OSAKA, Japan’s
first human rights museum that was
initiated by the anti-discrimination
movement in Osaka- Nobutoyo Kojima
Page 2
Philippine Museum Honors Resistance toMartial Law
Discussion of the history and exhibits of
Bantayog ng mga Bayani, a human rights
museum in the Philippines- Bantayog ng mga Bayani Museum
Page 5Tuol SlengA brief yet critical review of Tuol Sleng, aKhmer Rouge torture center converted
into a museum, and its value toCambodia in dealing with its past
- John Lowrie
Page 8
WPHRE and Human Rights Education Law
in Japan: Implications for the Japanese
Local Governments
Update on the implementation of thenational human rights education action
plan in Japan, with a particular focus ona survey of local governments’ support
for the plan
- Kenzo Tomonaga
Page 11
Human Rights Events in the Asia-Pacific
Brief information on some important
human rights events in the region
Page 142009 Study Tour to Jeju, South Korea
A short report on the 2009 HURIGHTSOSAKA study tour to Korea- Nobuki Fujimoto
Page 15

Editorial

Never to Forget
Museums that exhibit the faces and forms of injustice have theheavy responsibility of facilitating not merely remembrance
but also empowerment.
The preservation of Tuol Sleng as the “crime scene” of the
Khmer Rouge is meant to prove that torture and execution
existed and to implant the idea that violators should be held
accountable.
The presentation of materials from the perspective of“oppressed people” by LIBERTY OSAKA aims to remind us
that human rights violations, as well as realization, occur inthe most ordinary situations in our lives.
The honor being given by Bantayog ng mga Bayani to people
who made great sacrifices in their struggle for human rights
celebrates the fact that their efforts helped make us see thedawn of freedom.
Human rights museums are repositories of memories that tell
us to “never again” suffer the injustices of the past. But thesemuseums need not be frozen in time.
Since the faces and forms of injustice change, these museums
may adapt to the present contexts, to the new interests of theyoung, to the new technologies of communication, to societal
changes.
Human rights museums are reminders of the injustices that
we have to confront now and in the future.

1

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

LIBERTY OSAKA: Promoting Human Rights to All
Nobutoyo Kojimagroup of concerned peopleA
in Osaka City met in August
1982 to discuss theestablishment of an “Osaka
Human Rights HistoricalMuseum.” They wanted aunique museum that would
present a “viewpoint on humanrights through the perspective of
the history of oppressedpeople.”1
The museum was eventually
established as the Osaka
Human Rights Museum andpopularly known as LIBERTYOSAKA, the first museum onhuman rights in Japan. It wasestablished in 1985 in Osaka
City with the financial supportof the governments of the Osaka
Prefecture and City, labor
unions, civil society
organizations, and private
c o r p o r a t i o n s . Th e l a r g e s tcontributor was the Buraku
Liberation League (BLL), thenational leveler's movement
established before World War IIthat played a leading role in the
post-War movement against thediscrimination of Japanese
known as burakumin (buraku
people).2

Museum Location
The original building andlocation of LIBERTY OSAKA are
significant in the history of theanti-discrimination movementin Osaka. LIBERTY OSAKA ispartly housed in one of thebuildings of Sakae Primary
School, the second oldest
school to have been establishedin Osaka prefecture in late 19th
century. The museum started ina school building built in 1928
with the financial support of theburaku people in the area.3
The school is located in an area,
created as Watanabe village(Watanabe mura) in 1706
during the Edo period(1603-1868), where buraku
people worked on the
traditional major industries ofleather tanning and drumm a n u f a c t u r i n g . Th e a r e a
produced drums that were usedin Shitennoji, the major temple
in Osaka, as well as in Osaka
Castle during the 18th century.
According to documents datingfrom around 1881, most of the
73,000 drums produced in
Osaka in a year were made in
Watanabe village. This area wasalso called Kawata village (kawameans leather, or skin) during
the Edo period, and later
renamed Naniwa ward
(Naniwa-ku). Drum-making
remains an industry in Naniwa
ward at present with four
manufacturers using the old
drum-making techniques. The
area had long been theresidence of buraku people,
who suffered social
discrimination from the time the
Watanabe village wasestablished till the present. BLL
has been very active in thisarea. LIBERTY OSAKA’s location
therefore is very historic in
relation to the struggle against
discrimination.

2

Basic Philosophy of theMuseumLIBERTY OSAKA wasestablished to conduct studies
and research on human rights
including buraku issues, tocollect and preserve relatedmaterials and cultural goods,
and to publicly exhibit them, inorder to contribute to thepromotion of human rights andthe development of a“humanity-rich” culture.
It adheres to four basic
principles:(1) Comprehensive museum
focused on human rights
Out of the more than five
thousand museums in Japan,
few comprehensively coverhuman rights issues rooted in
the history and culture of theJapanese society (such as theburaku history), and aimed atcontributing to the promotionof human rights as well as thedevelopment of a “humanityrich” culture. LIBERTYOSAKA, therefore, can beseen as a comprehensive
museum on human rights.
While based in Osaka,
LIBERTY OSAKA sends out themessage of respect for humanrights across the country andthe world.
(2) Museum that responds to the
new human rights movement
LIBERTY OSAKA responds tothe need to eliminate
discrimination by heightening

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
h u m a n r i g h t s awa r e n e s sthrough its unique functions
as a museum. Its activities(including exhibitions,
meetings and other events, aswell as educational programs)
provide possible methods anddirections for new humanrights movements, such as
those on human rights
learning and awarenessraising.
(3) Museum that promotes theimportance of human rights
history and culture
In light of the advancementand diversification of thecultural needs of people,
LIBERTY OSAKA has taken
the new challenge ofintroducing intangible cultural
assets such as performing artsand music that museums haven o t d o n e b e f o r e . Th i s
approach likewise reflects theuse of songs and dances bypeople suffering fromdiscrimination in expressing
anger against, and yearningfor liberation from, it.
Exhibiting and publicizingthese songs and dances areimportant for the promotion ofhuman rights.
(4) Creative and participatory
museum that promotes
voluntary activities
L I B E RT Y O S A K A a d o p t s
participatory management aswell as creates new ideas,awareness and values that
help realize human rights anddevelop culture using thecreativity coming from thegrassroots activities of thepeople. LIBERTY OSAKA aims
to gain greater capacity forfurther development throughthe combined strengths of thee f f o r t s o f m a n y p r i va t e

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
organizations, the cooperationof the local governments, andits status as a foundation.

Exhibits and Projects
Initially, the exhibits of LIBERTYOSAKA were structured aroundthe buraku issue. During the
1995-2005 period, however,
LIBERTY OSAKA undertook a
substantial renewal of its
exhibits by including various
forms of discrimination andhuman rights issues arising fromthe current complex social
conditions in Japan.
The current general exhibition
section is based on the theme"How we face discriminationand human rights in Japan," andfocuses on the discriminationand human rights issues fromthe start of the modern period(1868 onward) in Japan, when
the structure of discriminationof the feudal ages was
reorganized, until today. Thissection clarifies, from a humanrights perspective, the social
structure in Japan that createddiscrimination, the efforts of thediscriminated people
themselves
againstdiscrimination, and thediscrimination and humanrights situation today. Apartfrom the general exhibition, two
special exhibitions as well asother exhibition projects areorganized each year.
The general exhibition section
consists of four units. Below is abrief introduction of each ofthese units.
Unit 1: Human Rights Today
Human rights are rights that
all human beings are bornwith. Yet there are humanrights that are violated, and3people have to struggle toenjoy them. What roles do thevarious human rights have in
our lives? Using multiple
screens, this Unit shows visualmaterials on human rights inJapan and the world, as wellas materials on the right towork (focusing on karoshi[death from overwork]), andthe right to education(focusing on the phenomenonof children refusing to go toschool).
U n i t 2 : O u r Va l u e s a n d
Discrimination
Each person has a different
sense of values. These values
provide an important basis inpeople’s lives. But there aretimes when these values may
provide a basis fordiscrimination. This Unit
presents an opportunity forvisitors to examine how
values give people thestrength to live, as well as
how they relate todiscrimination.
This Unit examines issues
related to economic, socialand physical statuses bylooking at ten values, such as"the desire for good academic
achievement" and "desire forgood job."
Unit 3: The Activism of People
who are Discriminatedagainst
People who suffer
discrimination have diverse
opinions and claims. This Unit
shows their economic
industries, the cultures they
developed, their diverse
views, and their movements
against discrimination. The
visitors can learn the meaningof these views and activities.

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
Th i s U n i t e x a m i n e s t h e
structure of discrimination incontemporary Japan focusing
on twelve issues, including
i s s u e s r e g a r d i n g Ko r e a n
residents, Ainu people andburaku people.
Unit 4: Discrimination, Human
Rights and You
Pe o p l e s u f f e r i n g f r o m
discrimination are not the
only ones affected bydiscrimination and humanrights. Each person is involved
in discrimination or humanrights issues relating to
education, work and daily
life. Through narrations ofdifferent persons, this Unit
shows how people can facediscrimination and humanrights issues. In this Unit,
visitors can watch videos of
victims of discrimination, or
those who are involved inanti-discrimination andh u m a n r i g h t s a c t iv i t i e s ,narrating their experiences.

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
programs for students (from allschool levels and universities)
who visit as part of humanrights education. LIBERTYOSAKA staffs also visit schools
for human rights education
using the learning processes
derived from program
implementation experiences
and on topics relating to objects
and materials from the museum.
More and more students showinterest in LIBERTY OSAKA
through these educationala c t iv i t i e s . Th e r e a r e a l s ovolunteer guides who provide
explanations to the generalvisitors, another educational
activity that leads to a deeper
understanding of the exhibitionmaterials.

ImpactL I B E RT Y O S A K A’s r e g u l a r
museum activities and its workin schools are mutuallystimulating and deepen theunderstanding of how humanrights education can be done
systematically.
It has collected a significant
amount of historical materials,
as well as materials on buraku
arts, crafts and movements.

Involvement in School
Education
The activities of LIBERTYOSAKA place particularimportance on working witheducational institutions.
LIBERTY OSAKA’s specialist
curators provide information,
explain the exhibitions, as wellas give advice and guidance on
the preparation of visitation

I n t h e t w e n t y - f o u r- y e a r
operation of LIBERTY OSAKA, it
has received 1.22 million
visitors. Many students learned
about the buraku discrimination
for the first time through
LIBERTY OSAKA. Some evenbegan to aspire to becometeachers after the experience ofviewing original objects andmaterials on display in LIBERTYOSAKA. They realized that theywould not have come acrossthis experience in conventional
school education.

4

Future Direction
LIBERTY OSAKA looks forward
to welcoming more visitorsfrom other parts of Asia. To
achieve this, it is launching in2010 a continuing renewal
program of the general
exhibition. It plans to use
multiple languages in its exhibit
and activity explanations, alongwith the use of digital
information network.
It also plans to introduce
exhibitions and workshops
using experiential methods thatenable children to effectively
learn human rights.
N o b u t oyo Ko j i m a i s t h e
Program Manager of LIBERTYOSAKA, and member of theAdvisory Committee of
HURIGHTS OSAKA.
For further information, pleasecontact: LIBERTY OSAKA,
3-6-36 Naniwanishi, Naniwak u , O s a k a C i t y, J a p a n556-0028; ph (816) 6561-589;
fax (816) 6561-5995; e-mail:n . k o j i m a @ l i b e r t y. o r. j p ;w w w. l i b e r t y. o r. j p / t o p fi l e /human-top.htm
Endnote1 “Lest We Forget: Osaka Human
Rights Museum Planned for
1984,” Buraku Liberation News,
number 11, October 1982, page3.
2 See “What is Buraku Problem,”
Buraku Liberation and Human
Rights Research Institute, for the
background on buraku
discrimination, http://blhrri.org/
blhrri_e/What_is_Buraku.htm
3 “Lest We Forget: Osaka Human
Rights Museum Planned for
1984,” op. cit.

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

Philippine Museum Honors Resistance to Martial Law
Bantayog ng mga Bayani MuseumB“antayog ng mga Bayani” inthe Filipino language means“Monument to the Heroes.” It is alandscaped memorial center
honoring those individuals who
lived and died in defiance of therepressive regime that ruled overthe Philippines from 1972 to
1986.
A 14-meter Inang Bayan (Mother
Philippines) Monument designedby sculptor Eduardo Castrillo
stands on the grounds of thememorial center, depicting theself-sacrifice of a fallen figure of aman, held in one hand by therising figure of a woman who
symbolizes the Motherland,
while her other hand reaches forthe glorious sun of freedom. In
the distance stands a Wall of
Remembrance, where the namesof martyrs are inscribed. The
Monument and the Wall of
Remembrance were unveiled on
30 November 1992.1
In August 2009, the Bantayog ng
mga Bayani Museum (Bantayog
Museum) completed the first two
years of operation since it opened
to the public. Still very much awork in progress, it has managed
nevertheless to merit positive
comments from the public andthe media.

Th e I n s p i r a t i o n f o r t h eBantayog Museum
After visiting the Philippines
immediately after the 1986
People Power Revolution torejoice over the downfall of an
authoritarian regime, Dr. Ruben
Mallari, a Filipino-American
medical doctor, suggested theestablishment of a memorial tohonor those martyrs who
sacrificed their lives for the causeof freedom and justice but failed
to witness the dawn of freedom.
A group of Filipinos responded tothis suggestion and organized theBantayog ng mga Bayani
M e m o r i a l Fo u n d a t i o n . D r.
Ledivina V. Cariño, former Deanof the University of thePhilippines’ College of Public
Administration, helped draft theconcept paper based on thesuggestion of Dr. Mallari. The
final concept paper stated therationale for Bantayog Museum:
Freedom has dawned
magnificently upon us brought
about by our own will, with thehelp of Divine Providence. We
stood together with linked arms
as we proclaimed our unity, ourdedication to liberty andd e m o c r a c y, a n d o u rcommitment to our country.
With boundless faith, we broke
the chains which enslaved us ina regime of terror, intimidationand fraud. But as we enjoy ourliberation, let us not forgetthose who fell during the night.
Let us honor the Filipino
patriots who struggled valiantly
against the unjust andrepressive rule of Ferdinand
Marcos. Let us build a memorial
to those men and women who
offered their lives so that we
may all see the dawn.
For as we remember thosevictims of authoritarian rule, weshall become more vigilant
about preserving our freedom,
defending our rights, ando p p o s i n g a ny a t t e m p t byanyone to foist anotherdictatorship upon us.
In honoring our martyrs, we
proclaim our determination tobe free forever.

The Bantayog Museum aims toreach out mainly to5schoolchildren and college
students, hoping to help themunderstand and learn from thepeople's struggle against
repression. “Never Again!” is arecurring theme of the activities
held at the memorial center.

Preserving the Memory
Based on a set of criteria for
selecting persons to be honored,families of victims, members ofcivic organizations, and thegeneral public are invited to send
the names and personal
circumstances of persons whoshould be honored. A Researchand Documentation Committee
verifies the factual bases of eachnomination and conducts
independent researches andinvestigations, so that the namesof obscure, unknown martyrs inremote places may be brought tolight. The Executive Committee ofthe Foundation reviews therecommendations of theCommittee, and the Board ofTrustees gives the final approval.2
The names of the first sixty-five
martyrs, some of them wellknown such as Benigno “Ninoy”
Aquino, Jr. and many others not
as well-known, were enshrined in
1992. The following year, after
long reflection, the Foundation
decided to include as heroes
those who gave their all for thesake of freedom, justice, anddemocracy during the Marcos
years but died after the EDSA
Revolution.
Since then, hundreds of heroes
and martyrs of the martial law
dictatorship have been honoredby their names being inscribedon the black granite Wall of
Remembrance.

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
R i g h t b e h i n d t h e Wa l l o f
Remembrance is the Jovito R.
Salonga Building, which isnamed after a distinguishedpolitical leader who fought
against the authoritarian regime.
Salonga continues to add his
powerful voice to the democratic
people's movement clamoring forhuman rights, justice and the ruleof law.
The Bantayog Museum occupies
more than a hundred square
meters of space on the second
floor of the Jovito R. Salonga
Building. On the same floor is
the Ambassador Alfonso T.
Yuchengco Auditorium where
film showings are presented, andprograms are held. It is named
after the Foundation's
Chairperson, a prominent
businessman and philanthropist
who has served as the country's
ambassador to China and Japan.
A library is now open on theg r o u n d fl o o r o f t h e s a m ebuilding. It contains archives andreference materials relating to thesame period, and has begun toserve students and scholars
wishing to do research.

Awakening a Sense of History
By displaying authentic material
objects associated with theheroes and martyrs, as well aswith the period of dictatorship,
the Bantayog Museum hopes toawaken in its visitors a powerfulsense of history as it was actually
made by real-life men andwomen.
While concentrating principallyon the period itself of Marcos rule(1972 to 1986), the collection
and displays also include theperiods immediately before (from1965) and after (1986-87) inorder to place the dictatorshipand the corresponding people's
resistance in their historicalcontext.
Thus, the pre-martial law section
deals with the economic,
political and social problems of

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
the 1960s (mass poverty, abusive
government officials, violation ofcivil liberties) that gave rise topopular discontent especially of
the youth.
Methods of torture are
documented, and the model of a
prison cell draws much attention
from visitors.

Meanwhile, a Hall of
Remembrance beside theBantayog Museum is dedicated tothe heroes and martyrs, throughthe capsule biographies andindividual photos of each one.
This section is meant to inspirelove and respect for their sacrificefor the common good, especiallyin the minds and hearts of young
people.

Other activities

Photo courtesy of Traveler on Foot(http://traveleronfoot.wordpress.com)

There is a growing collection ofmemorabilia from the period ofresistance, including
underground publications, the“mosquito press,” reports fromthe various civil-society groups
emerging at the time, andexpressions of international
solidarity. The families andfriends of the heroes and martyrs
donate much of the Bantayog
Museum’s material collections.
Through the years of repression,
opposition to the Marcos regime
kept growing and broadening
until the shocking assassinationof the political leader Benigno
Aquino, Jr. upon his return to thePhilippines from exile in the
United States. The ensuingnationwide protests have been
well documented, culminating in
the world-famous “People Power
Revolution” that finally drove thedictator out in February 1986.
This event is brought to life in the
Bantayog Museum with the scalemodel of a military tank, stopped
in its tracks and covered withflower petals showered by thepeople gathered to press for theouster of Marcos.

6

Conscious that many otheraspects of the martial law period
are not yet included in thepermanent display, the Bantayog
Museum has been mounting
special exhibits from time totime. One of these was a special
tribute to the late President
Corazon Aquino, who assumed
the presidency right after the
downfall of the Marcos
dictatorship, and whose recent
demise prompted a massive
outpouring of emotions and fresh
insights into her legacy of public
service. Another special exhibit
showed the works of Philippine
artists done in the Social Realiststyle, some of which werepainted during the martial law
period and others depicting how
today's realities mirror those ofyesterday.
Concerts and story-telling areamong the other activities
conducted by the Bantayog
Museum. It may be noted thatsince the Bantayog Memorial
Center hosts numerous programs,
seminars, etc. by various civilsociety groups, the latter are also
drawn to visit the Bantayog
Museum. It is hoped that withmore support from the private
sector and the general public,
more resources will be generated
that will allow the
implementation of so many ideasthat cry out to be done.
Volunteers are the backbone of
the staff, a unique aspect of the
Bantayog Museum and Library.
Many of them were part of thepeople's movement against

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
martial law, and are thus able toimpart an unforgettable personal
touch as they guide visitors
around the exhibits. Others are
s t u d e n t vo l u n t e e r s w i t h aparticular appreciation of thehistory of the period. Consciousof the need to equip themselveswith the requisite professional
and technical skills, they havebeen taking part in a museology
training program consisting ofvisits, seminars and workshops
offered by the country's foremost
institutions along this line, led by
the National Museum.
Admission to the Bantayog
Museum is free, although
donations are welcome. Its
operations are supported andguided by a Board of Trustees
headed by the top businessman
A l f o n s o T. Yu c h e n g c o(Chairperson) and the humanrights lawyer Jovito R. Salonga(Chairperson Emeritus), with
Quintin S. Doromal as Executive
Director.

Making an Impact
Of the more than seven thousand
visitors who have come to the
Bantayog Memorial Center so far,a good number is composed of
ex-activists who are now parents
and grandparents themselves
Often, they come in groups torelive the time when they put
their own lives at stake for thesake of “truth, freedom, justiceand democracy” – thewatchwords of Bantayog Museum
even today.
However, students at all levels(primary, secondary and tertiary)
make up the majority of visitors.
Because Philippine history is partof the academic curriculum,
schools organize annual
educational tours of which the
Bantayog Museum is increasingly
a part. It is not an uncommon
sight to see tour buses lined up at
the entrance to the Bantayog
Memorial Center, loaded withhundreds of students and theirteachers all waiting for their turn.

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
It is mainly because of favorable
media coverage over the past two
years that these schools (and thetour operators) have come tok n o w a b o u t t h e B a n t ay o gMemorial Center. Bloggers havebeen a good source of
information and promotion, as
well.
The Philippine press sees the
Bantayog Museum as a timely
reminder of the dangers offorgetting the past. “At last a
museum for rare courage,” readone headline.3 One columnistsaid, “…(S)pend a nice Sunday
afternoon there, while thebreezes blow and the sun shines,
looking at the names carved on
the Wall of Remembrance, which
belong to those who did
something heroic for us in more
recent times, which claimed
many of their lives, and which is
why the breezes blow, and thesun shines for us today.”4 Not a
few have commented, though,that this is still a small museumwith fewer items than the bigger
ones; others have noted the “little
shop of horrors” aspect which areperhaps an unpleasant reminderof the martial law period's
atrocities.

Future direction
B u i l d i n g u p t h e B a n t ay o gMuseum's collections, as well as
properly organizing them with adigitized information system, isthe focus of work in the short tomedium term. At the same time,
the work of educating the public
about the Bantayog Museum andits chief concerns should be
addressed through more special
exhibits, lecture series,
conferences and such. A very
important complementary task is
to dig deeper into the sources of
information about martial law; anoral history project must be
started while participants during
the period are still around toremember and to recount.
By the year 2011, when the
Bantayog ng mga Bayani

7Foundation observes its 25tha n n i v e r s a r y, t h e B a n t ay o gMuseum (and library) envisions
itself to be “a leadingorganization on the martial law
years, or the leadingorganization.”
The words of Senator Salonga
sum up what Bantayog Museum
will continue to aim at: 5
we shall proclaim our firm
resolve to keep faith with our
martyrs and heroes and our
deepest conviction that thisland of the morning, therepository of our hopes anddreams, is worth living for anddying for.

For further information pleasecontact: Bantayog ng mga Bayani
Museum, 2nd floor of J.R.
Salonga Bldg., Bantayog
M e m o r i a l C e n t e r, Q u e z o n
Avenue corner EDSA, Quezon
city, Metro Manila, Philippines,
ph/fax (632) 434-8343; e-mail:bantayogmuseum@gmail.com;
http://bantayog.wordpress.com.
Endnotes
1 Based on The story of Bantayog
Foundation: Remembering themartial law martyrs and heroes,
availablein
http://bantayog.wordpress.com/
about/.
2 Ibid.
3 Ma. Ceres P. Doyo, “At last, a
museum for rare courage,” The
Philippine Daily Inquirer, availablein
http://services.inquirer.net/print/
print.php?article_id=20070226-5
1611.
4 Conrado de Quiros, “Museum,”
The Philippine Daily Inquirer,
availablein
http://opinion.inquirer.net/inquir
eropinion/columns/view/200708
29-85263/Museum.
5 Statement of Senator Jovito Salonga during the 1992 unveilingof the Inang Bayan Monument
and Wall of Remembrance, availablein
http://bantayog.wordpress.com/
keeping-faith/.

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

Tuol SlengJohn Lowrie

T

uol Sleng Museum in Phnom
Penh is an unlikely museum.
It is where as many as 17,000 or
more people were incarcerated,tortured, and then systematicallykilled during the Khmer Rougerule from April 1975 to January
1979. The museum’s outward
appearance was then, andremains today, that of a typicalCambodian school, but it isominously different as soon as
you enter, in its silence, in its
foreboding. It was a typicalsecondary school once, but not
any more and never again, noteven in a country desperately
short of school buildings. Neveragain will it see crowds of blue
and white uniformed school-boys
and girls. Nor will it buzz withthe familiar chatter of children
and their rote-learning chants thatonce emanated from its eerie
classrooms. Instead you areushered in with the same signs
and their stark warning thatgreeted its many victims such as:
Do nothing! Sit still andwait for my orders. If there
are no orders, keep quiet!
When I ask you to dosomething, you must do itright away without
protesting.

The Start of a Museum
The travesty of what went on in
Tuol Sleng was undoubtedly the
product of an extreme
Cambodian leadership but its
discovery and preservation is dueto the Vietnamese whose army,
with dissident Cambodian forces,
overthrew the Khmer Rouge in
1979. Two of their photojournalists first entered Tuol
Sleng. They saw and recorded

exactly how it had beenabandoned by its erstwhilecustodians, including leaving thecorpses of its final victims to rot.
Vietnamese authorities soon
realized the significance of theirfind and appointed an expert,
Mai Lam, to take charge of it andto document its archives.
Tuol Sleng is therefore much
more than a museum testifying toa macabre chapter of history. It isto this day a largely intact crime
scene with evidence of mass
atrocities and much more. It has
been the repository of vital
evidence carefully conserved firstby Mai Lam, and to this day by
the Documentation Center ofCambodia and supportingorganizations. That evidence is
now playing a vital role in the
Extraordinary Chambers in the
Courts of Cambodia, the United
Nations-backed special court
now sitting to judge those most
responsible for the tragedies of
Khmer Rouge rule. Tuol Sleng
images, the museum’s exhibits,
are not just historical artifacts, but
in mid-2009, they are brought tolife again in vivid and startling
witness testimony. The evidence
comes from no less a figure thanthe man in charge at the time,with his extraordinary
admissions, and by those of thevery few survivors of his
stewardship. Kaing Guek Eav's(alias Duch) is the first Khmer
Rouge leader to face trial. Tuol
Sleng, he confesses, with its
linked facility ten kilometers
away, known as Choeung Ek
Killing Fields, was indeed acenter of extermination; the top
one of hundreds for the Khmer
Rouge, not seen since the Nazi
death camps of the Holocaust.

8

Tu o l S l e n g i s n o w t h e
responsibility of the Governmentof Cambodia through a Secretaryof State at the Council of
Ministers responsible for nationalarchives and of its Department ofMuseums. UNESCO provides
important technical support.
Although it is clear that Tuol
Sleng will be preserved for theforeseeable future, its long-term
future in inextricably bound up
with the outcome of the Khmer
Rouge trial and Cambodia’s
internal debate about how to deal
with this dark chapter of its
history. So far Tuol Sleng islargely untouched, remaining in
its original simplest form. Even
plans to improve some facilities
for visitors have brought much
resistance, but the Government
recognizes that it is in need ofsome essential repair, which must
be done in ways that do not
destroy its authenticity. Really a
new facility will be needed to beable to conserve artefacts anddisplays for posterity, but eventhen, it is unlikely that Tuol Slengwill emulate other museums to
attract and entertain visitors. Suchperipheral facilities, for visitors toengage “interactively”, will not
be welcomed in the near future,
not until that debate is concluded
which may take several moreg e n e ra t i o n s . A ny t h i n g t h a t
detracts from the simple chilling
images and recollections would
be seen as insensitive whilepeople who survived the period
l ive o n w i t h t h e i r p a i n f u lmemories, nightmares andtraumas. One entrepreneurlearned this the hard way in2008. He tried to recreate not far
away a Khmer Rouge stylecanteen, complete with thetypical meal of meager gruel,FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
eating implements and attire of
the period, as if by now there
would be some kind of nostalgia
for it. His idea aroused universal
revulsion; if the authorities had
not ordered it closed, it would
have been a commercial failure.
Tuol Sleng does stand on its own
as a memorial, the uniquesymbolic edifice of the Khmer
Rouge rule where any detractor
likely to pose a threat was purged
most mercilessly. A salient featureof Tuol Sleng is that apart fromthe stories coming from its only
six survivors, with the paintingsof one, Van Nath, appearing there
depicting the horrors, visitors areleft to draw their own
impressions based on what they
see and feel. There are few of theusual narrative descriptions seen
in most museums. There are
literally no stories at all of thevictims; how or why they ended
up there, and unlike for example
Holocaust sites, there are no
personal possessions, no material
evidence of lives once lived andfinally lost there. Apart from a
few clothes, no mementoes wereleft. Visitors do not need a guideto internalize the experiences,although if one does accompany
them, he or she will not only act
as an escort but also be able toadd his or her personal
dimension. Hardly any family in
Cambodia escaped unscathed inthat time.

The Exhibits
Tuol Sleng, also known as S21
after the district in which it isfound, is just a kilometer from
central Phnom Penh, near theusual shopping centers, markets,
hotels and tourist sites. It is
inevitably a “must-see” on thedark tourist trail, with up to five
hundred domestic and foreign
visitors daily, although theirreasons for going are quite
different. Foreigners usually feelcompelled to exercise a natural
morbid fascination. They pay
modest admission charges. It is

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
free for Cambodians, for whom it
is a solemn pilgrimage visit; often
personal and intimate, sometimes
a search for an unknown aspecto f t h e i r i d e n t i t y. W h e t h e r
foreigner or Cambodian, allvisitors are emotionally moved
once there. After the somber
warning signs are heeded, there
are four buildings to visit.
Buildings A, B, and C are similar
with several storeys, and barbed
wire on upper floors put there
apparently to prevent inmatesfrom suicide attempts. There are
numerous cells, made of brick orwood dividing up the formerclassrooms. They were used notjust for incarceration but also
torture. Pictures can be seen ofbodies once on the metal beds
still standing there. Blood stains
on the floor, boxes in the cornerfor human waste, are still there.
In some rooms there are boards
d i s p l ay i n g p h o t o g r a p h s o fvictims, with pictures depicting
atrocities such as electrocution,
shackles, scorpion stings, andeven babies removed from theirmother’s womb only to be
crushed against the walls.
Reminders say that many of the“guards” were just teenage
children brainwashed anddesensitized to the brutality.
Building D was the maininterrogation center, next to theguard’s quarters.1
For Cambodians who find the last
trace of their lost relatives in Tuol
Sleng, it is the saddest of shrines,
knowing that the flesh and bloodof their own kith and kin was
spilled in very the rooms where
they are standing. For that reason,
it does make Tuol Sleng one moreplace in the world where thehuman race must be reminded of
its tragic past. It will never be
managed in the same way as forexample the Silver Pagoda
museum in Phnom Penh that sets
out Cambodia’s long and at times
glorious history, including thefamous Angkor Wat era.

9Impact of the Museum
Tuol Sleng Museum will stay
devoted to the history of one
short tragic period, and what
happened in one place, but its
role in this sense as a place oflearning should not be underestimated.2 It cannot, it does not,and will never answer thequestion that is most often asked;
the same question it is hoped that
the Khmer Rouge Trials willanswer, which is simply – “Why?”
Cambodians want an answer.
They need to come to terms withthis the darkest of periods in their
history. They are beginning to do
this.3
However, some Cambodians(who are not consideredmembers of the Khmer Rouge)raise the idea that Tuol Sleng was“invented out of whole cloth by
the Vietnamese, so as to blacken
the reputation of the Cambodian
people and to indict them en
masse for genocidal crimes.”
To this, David Chandler, ahistorian on Cambodia, has this
response:4
I always replied to them that I
believe that their suggestions
were mistaken. The effort toinvent S-21, I think, would havebeen far too costly for the
Vi e t n a m e s e , a n d f a r t o ocomplicated. The Vietnamese
did not have the resources, forexample, to compose thedocuments discovered in the
S-21 archives (and thousands ofothers related to S-21,
discovered elsewhere in Phnom
Penh after the Vietnamesewithdrew), to invent the names
and backgrounds of workers at
the prison, to fake thephotographic evidence, and toinvent biographies for thesurvivors and former workers at
the facility. Moreover, had they
mounted such an operation, it
seems likely that someone who
participated in it would havetalked about it, especially after
the Vietnamese withdrew theirforces in l989.

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
Thun Saray, prominent humanrights leader in Cambodia andwho personally lived through thehorrors, says of Tuol Sleng:
For Cambodians, andinternational visitors as well,this place should be a memorial
place. The experience of visiting
this place where so many
people suffered and died; where
photographs of torture, prisonscells, and more should remind
people of the horrible times andthat things like this will not be
forgotten and will not happen
again. Tuol Sleng is part of thelegacy and gives access to
Cambodians to gain knowledge
about the real events that
happened under the KR.

This year, for the first time, theKhmer Rouge period is to feature
in official teaching of history inschools. The Documentation
Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam)5
has led a “Genocide Education
Project” initiative with forty-eight
Cambodian and international
experts and the Ministry of
Education, Youth and Sports(MoEYS). They have trained thefirst twenty-four senior officials
who will go on to train teachers
for all children to be taught the
subject after 2010. The MoEYS
has approved Dy Kham Boly’s A
History of Democratic
Kampuchea as the official history
textbook. Youk Chhang, directorof DC-Cam says: “Understanding
the past, however horrendous, isthe first step towards restoring
humanity and identity of anation”. The initiative includes
active reading, group discussions,
guest lectures, theatre arts andfield trips. Tuol Sleng will featurein visits for schools from all overthe country not just Phnom Penh.
Such creative methodology
should help teachers overcome
the difficulties inherent inconveying lessons to children
whose parents and older living
relatives not only lived throughthe horrors, but who are stilltraumatized by it. Reputablep s y ch o s o c i a l r e s e a rch , f o r

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
e x a m p l e b y Tr a n s c u l t u r a l
Psychosocial Organisation (TPO)
shows that not only has trauma
stayed with survivors, but also its
pervasiveness is manifested inlater generations. That cycle mustbe broken.

Future Direction
If lessons of history are learned
and acted upon, then the causeof universal human rights will beadvanced. Tuol Sleng showsgraphically how Khmer Rouge
leaders ruled by fear; fear overthe entire population, real fear of
knowing what would befall all
those whose absolute loyalty
could not be assured.
Individuality was destroyed. So
was trust in the natural inherent
goodness that human beings
should harbor and show towards
each other. Fear dictated thatsurvival, at any cost, became themain determinant of humanbehavior. No country in theworld will ever attain acceptable
standards across the full gambito f c iv i c , p o l i t i c a l , s o c i a l ,economic, and cultural rights
until the day comes when leaderscease to use fear and oppression
to maintain their control. If Tuol
Sleng helps to bring that day to
Cambodia, it would at least
bestow one most noble final
honor on its victims.
John Lowrie, who has worked in
Cambodia since 1998 as a seniorhuman rights and development
worker with international andlocal civil society organizations indeveloping countries, has beenworking on the promotion ofgood governance, rights ofdisabled people and others livingwith vulnerability including
ethnic minorities, and thesustainability of local civil society
organizations in developing
countries.
For further information, pleasecontact: John Lowrie, New
Horizons Society, ph (855-12)

10

931
301;
e-mail:nhs@camintel.com,
johnlowrie@wirelessip.com.kh;
www.newhorizonsunlimited.org;
and see his recent article:
www.scribd.com/doc/11621086/
Th e - N a m e - o f - t h e - G a m e - i s Sustainability-but-Does-the-LastPlayer-Count-by-John-Lowrie
Endnotes
1

For a more detailed room byroom guide, please visit:<http://www.tokyoreporter.com/
2008/10/04/museum-tour-thetuol-sleng-genocide-museum/>.
For an excellent pictorial guidewith comment, read “Hanging in
the Past” by Timothy Dylan Woodand Rita Leistner, available in
<
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
www.ideasmag.artsci.utoronto.ca/ i s s u e 4 _ 1 /ideas_leistner_wood_low.pdf>.
2 For a very useful commentary on
Tuol Sleng and how it relates as a
museum compared with otherssuch as those of the Holocaust
written before the Khmer Rouget r i a l s r e a d Pa u l Wi l l i a m s ,“Witnessing Genocide: Vigilance
and Remembrance at Tuol Sleng
and Choeung Ek,” Holocaust and
Genocide Studies; Fall 2004; 18,2;
availableinhomepages.nyu.edu/~pw32/
Cambodian_genocide.pdf
3 For the Cambodian Government
Perspective on Tuol Sleng see“Memory of the World Register:
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum
Archive Ref N° 2008-04,
available at: http://
portal.unesco.org/ci/en/files/
27488/12200140123TuolSleng_
web.rtf/TuolSleng%2Bweb.rtf
4 David Chandler, “Tuol Sleng andS-21,” Searching for the Truth,
June 2001.
5 The Documentation Center ofCambodia has an excellent
website http://www.dccam.org/
and also posts regular updates of
relevant articles including the
Khmer Rouge Trials,” http://
www.cambodiatribunal.org/

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

WPHRE and Human Rights Education Law in Japan:
Implications for the Japanese Local Governments1
Kenzo Tomonaga

Human rights education andhuman rights awarenessraising play a vital role inpromoting human rights and ineliminating all forms of
discrimination including Buraku
discrimination.
Eight years have passed since theLaw on the Promotion of Human
Rights Education and Human
R i g h t s Aw a r e n e s s - R a i s i n g(LPHREA) was enacted in Japan,2
while almost five years havepassed since the United Nations
started both the World
Programme for Human Rights
Education (WPHRE) and the
Decade of Education for
Sustainable Development(UNDESD) in January 2005.
The Japanese government has
been issuing since 2002 its
annual White Paper on Human
Rights Education and AwarenessRaising that describes various
human rights education activities
and initiatives undertaken in eachyear. However, the Japanese local
governments have not issued
such reports yet. In this context,
the Buraku Liberation and
Human Rights Research Institute(BLHRRI) surveyed the local
g ove r n m e n t s r e g a r d i n g t h eimplementation of theircommitments under LPHREA,WPHRE and UNDESD. This
paper provides a synopsis of thesurvey findings and a number of
proposals for the future.3

Survey Findings
BLHRRI sent a survey
questionnaire to each of the

1,870 local governments in Japanin September 2007. 1,450 local
governments (77.5% of the total)
sent valid responses.
The survey questionnaire covered
training programs, and specificp l a n s . Fo r L P H R E A , t h equestionnaire also covered local
government supporting structure
a n d r e p or t i ng o f a c t iv i t i e sundertaken; and for WPHRE and
UNDSD, specific plans for Dowa
education and awareness-raising.
The responses of the local
governments are summarized
into the following:
A. Activities and initiatives madeby local governments
regarding LPHREA(i) Training and publicity activities
based on LPHREA
Almost half (715 or 49.3%)of the responding local
governments said that they
offered training programs for
local government employees,
while another half (734 or
50.6%) said ‘No’. One local
government did not respondto this question.
Less than half (672 or 46.3%)of the local governments said
that they offered training
programs for teachers, whilea slightly more than half (756or 52.1%) said ‘No.’ Fourlocal governments did not
respond to this question.
Slightly more than half (768or 53.0%) of the local
governments said they held
public information activities

11

on LPHREA for local
residents, and less than half
(678 or 46.7%) said ‘No.’
Four local governments did
not respond to this question.
(ii) Plans based on LPHREA
This is the most important
item among the questions inthe survey. Among all local
governments that responded,
234 (16.2%) said “Yes, we
h av e a p l a n b a s e d o n
LPHREA,” 192 (13.2%) said
“We have a plan which isconsidered to be based on
LPHREA,” and 1,021 (70.4%)
said “No, we do not havesuch a plan yet.” Five local
governments did not respondto this question.
From among the 426 local
governments that responded
that they have either a plan
based on LPHREA or
considered to be based on it,
two prefectures (Hyogo
Prefecture and Oita
Prefecture) said that they
h ave b o t h . Fr o m t h e s e
confused responses of two
prefectures, we may
conclude that only 424 outof 1,870 local governments(22.7%) have specific plans
based on LPHREA.
(iii) View of local governments
without any plans yet
Among
the
local
governments that do nothave such a plan yet, 107(10.5%) said that they would
be formulating a plan basedon LPHREA, 298 (29.2%)
said that they were currently

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
considering making such aplan, and 608 (59.5%) said
that they do not have suchan intention. Eight local
governments have no
response on this point.
(iv) Government structure topromote the LPHREA-based
plan
The second important aspect inpromoting human rights
education and awarenessraising by local governments isthat they have an official
structure or a task force topromote the LPHREA-based
plan. Among the local
governments that have
LPHREA-based plans, 299(70.4%) have such a task force,
while 120 (28.4%) do not havesuch plan. Five local
governments did not respondto this question.
(v) Promotion structure
including academic experts
and representatives of local
residentsforthe
implementation of LPHREAbased plans
Among the local governmentsthat have LPHREA-based plans,257 (60.5%) have promotion
structures that include
academics and local residents,
while 161 (38.1%) do notinclude them. Six local
governments did not respondto this question.
(vi) Reports on theimplementation of plans basedon LPHREA
Among the local governmentsthat have LPHREA-based plans,
72 (16.9%) have publishedreports on the implementationof such plans, while 341(80.5%) have not done so.
Eleven local governments did
not respond to this question.
B. Efforts made by local
governments regarding
WPHRE

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57(i) Training and publicity on
WPHRE
To the question on whether or
not they have offered training
programs on the WPHRE for
local government employees,
82 local governments (5.7%)
said ‘Yes,’ and 1,322 (91.1%)
said ‘No.’ Forty-six local
governments did not respondto this question.
134 local governments (9.2%)
said that they have training
program on WPHRE forteachers, while 1,276 (88.0%)
said that they have no suchtraining program. Forty local
governments did not respondto this question.
Also, 81 local governments(5.6%) said that they haveconducted public information
activities on WPHRE for local
residents, while 1,349 (93.0%)
said that they have not done
so. Twenty local governments
did not respond to thisquestion.
(ii) Plans based on WPHRE
Among the local governmentsthat have responded, 10 (0.7%)
said, “we have a plan directlybased on WPHRE,” 45 (3.1%)
said “we have a plan which isconsidered to be based on
WPHRE,” and 1,384 (95.4%)
said, “we do not have any suchp l a n s ye t ” ( e l e ve n l o c a lgovernments did not respondto this question). Thus, only 55
local governments have plans
either directly based on orconsidered to be based on
WPHRE.
(iii) View of local governments
without any plans yet
Among the local governmentsthat said that they do not havesuch a plan yet, 22 (10.5%)
said that they are going toformulate a plan based on
WPHRE, 232 (24.0%) said thatthey were considering
adopting such a plan, and

12

1,023 (73.9%) say that they do
not have such an intention.
Seven local governments did
not respond to this question.
C. Efforts made by local
governments regarding
UNDESD(i) Training and publicity on
UNDESDTo the question on whether or
not they have offered training
programs on the UNDESD for
local government employees,
46 local governments (3.2%)
said ‘Yes,’ while 1,373 (94.7%)
said ‘No’, and 31 gave no
response. 68 local
governments (4.7%) said thatthey have had training
programs on UNDESD forteachers, while 1,339 (92.3%)
said that they do not have sucha program. Forty-three local
governments did not give a
response.
Also, 51 local governments(3.5%) said that they haveconducted public information
activities on UNDESD for local
residents, while 1,372 (94.6%)
said that they have not dones o . Tw e n t y - s e v e n l o c a lgovernments did not give a
response.
(ii) Plans based on UNDESD
Among the local governmentsthat have responded, 4 (0.7%)
said “we have a plan directlybased on UNDESD,” 28 (3.1%)
said “we have a plan which isconsidered to be based on
UNDESD,” 1,393 (95.4%) said
“we do not have any suchplans yet,” with 25 local
governments not giving a
response to this question.
Among those local
governments that have no suchplans yet, 7 (0.5%) said, “weare going to formulate a planb a s e d o n U N D E S D, 2 9 2(20.9%) said “we are currently
considering about such aplan,” and 1,082 (77.6%) said

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFIC
that they do not have such an
intention. Seven local
governments did not give a
response to this point.
D. Guidelines and basic plans for
Dowa education
As the recommendation from theArea Improvement Measures
Council rightly pointed out inMay 1996, it is necessary tocreate and expand human rights
education based on the many
years of Dowa education
experiences. It must be noted
also that 1) Buraku discrimination
still exists; 2) it is important tostudy deeply about the Buraku
discrimination issue; and 3)
Dowa education should besituated as a vital pillar of humanrights education in view of theleading role it historically plays
for the advancement of humanrights education.
From such a viewpoint, we asked
whether local governments havebasic plans and/or policies for
Dowa education. 296 (20.4%)
responded ‘Yes,’ while 1,137(78.4%) said ‘No’ and 17 did not
respond. Among local
governments that have no suchplans/policies, 24 (2.1%) aregoing to formulate such a plan/
policy, 230 (20.2%) are currently
considering adopting such a plan,
875 (77.0%) do not have such an
i n t e n t i o n , a n d 8 g av e n oresponse.

Future Issues
The following issues have to beconsidered in the call for morecommitment and action in theyears to come:(1) Local governments should
offer training programs fortheir employees andteachers, and conduct public
information activities for
local residents on suchinitiatives as LPHREA,WPHRE and UNDESD so

SEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57
that their significance would
be more widely recognized.
(2) All local governments should
formulate plans based onthese initiatives.
(3) Local governments that
already have plans should
publicly report on the statusof their implementation on aregular basis.
(4) All local governments should
establish a task force for thepromotion of these plans andactions consisting of thegovernor/mayor and all
section representatives, andwhich should hold meetings
on a regular basis.
(5) All local governments should
set up an advisory bodyconsisting of academic
experts and representativesof local residents (including
those representing thediscriminated-against). The
advisory body should holdmeetings regularly to comeup with proposals for theformulation
andimprovement of the plan.
(6) The local government planshould include concrete
programs for the solution ofvarious human rights issues
including the Buraku
discrimination issue.
(7) The local government planshould include programs forhuman rights education andawareness-raising in allplaces including the school,community, home, and theworkplace.
(8) The local government planshould include human rights
training programs for public
officials and professionals
such as government
employees, teachers, police
officers, medical and welfare
practitioners who are deeply
engaged in human rights
issues.

13(9) Local governments should
formulate plans andprograms for concrete
human rights issues such as
basic plans/programs for
Dowa education andawareness-raising along withhuman rights education andawareness-raising plans/
programs.
(10) Grassroots movements
should be built up topromote LPHREA, WPHRE
and UNDESC with theparticipation of wide-ranging
organizations, groups andindividuals.
Mr. Kenzo Tomonaga, the former
Director of the Buraku Liberationand Human Rights ResearchInstitute, is now a member of theBoard of Directors of the institute.
For further information, pleasecontact: Mr. Kenzo Tomonaga, c/o Buraku Liberation and Human
Rights Research Institute, 1-6-12,
Kuboyoshi, Naniwa-Ku, Osaka
City, Japan 556-0028; ph (816)6568 0905; fax (816) 6568
0714; e-mail: udhr@blhrri.org;
www.blhrri.org

Endnotes
1 Professor Yasumasa Hirasawa of
Osaka University translated thisarticle from Japanese language
into English language.
2 The English translation of LPHREA

is available at http://blhrri.org/
blhrri_e/news/new117/
new11701.html

3

The full report on the survey
findings is available in Japanese
language at http://blhrri.org/
kenkyu/data/survey_on_HRE/
index.htm

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

Human Rights Events in the Asia-PacificT

he 14th Annual Meeting of the
Asia Pacific Forum (APF) on
Human Rights 1 discussed anumber of issues including
human rights and corruption,
human rights and religion, andhuman rights defenders. On theissue of human rights andcorruption, the APF members"committed to undertake practicalmeasures to combat corruption
using a human rights based
approach and to promoteawareness of the close linkages
between corruption and humanrights and the harmful effects ofcorruption on the enjoyment ofcivil, political, economic, socialand cultural rights." On the issueof human rights, religion andbelief, the APF members
considered the "need for inter andintra faith dialogue [at national,
regional and international levels]
to promote mutual understanding
and the protection and promotionof human rights and the value ofusing a human rights approach tobalance potentially competingrights." 2 The Jordan National
Centre for Human Rights hosted
the meeting with the cosponsorship by the APF and the
Office of the High Commissioner
for Human Rights.3

NGO Parallel Conference
A parallel "Arab and Asia-Pacific
NGO Workshop on the Role of
National Human Rights
Institutions in the Promotion andProtection of Human Rights" washeld on 2 August 2009 in
Amman. The workshop discussed
the basic roles and functions ofnational human rights institutions
based on the Paris Principles, thechallenges facing human rights
defenders in the Arab & AsiaPacific, and the establishment of
NHRIs in the Arab & Asian
regions. The NGO representatives
also discussed the human rights

situation in Iran, and Taiwan, andadvocacy at the International
Coordinating Committee (ICC) of
National Institutions for the
Promotion and Protection of
Human Rights. The workshop had
forty-four participants fromvarious countries. The Amman
Center for Human Rights Studies
in cooperation with Forum Asia,
the International Women’s Rights
W a t c h - A s i a P a c i fi c , t h e
International Services for Human
Rights and The Foundation For
the Future organized theworkshop. 4

Photo contest on CEDAWTh e A s i a Pa c i fi c R e g i o n a lCoordination Mechanism
Thematic Working Group on
Gender Equality and
Empowerment of Women, coc h a i r e d b y U N E S CA P a n d
UNIFEM, is holding a photo
contest to celebrate the thirtiethanniversary of the Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms ofDiscrimination Against Women.
The photos should depict any of
the following:- Women participating indecision-making processes,
such as women exercising
their right to vote and theright to be elected, taking
part in peace negotiations
andp o s t - c o n fl i c t
reconstruction processes,
holding leadership positionsin the government, civilsociety, community, private
sector- Women participating in postdisaster rehabilitation andreconstruction initiatives- Women and girls enjoying
the same opportunities foreducation as men and boys
- Women enjoying the same
employment opportunities
and labor rights as men, andworking in sectors that are

14

traditionally dominated bymen- Women having equal accessto health care services-Womenandmenparticipating equally inhousehold duties, such as
taking care of children or theelderly- Rural women, indigenous
women, HIV positive
women, migrant women,
refugee women and otheroften excluded groups ofwomen enjoying these rights.
Seven photos will be chosen as
winners and exhibited on 25
November 2009 at the openingof the exhibition "Women CAN:
Women's Rights are Human
Rights" to be held in Bangkok,
and featured on the websites of
the UN agencies involved inorganizing the contest. Entries
should be submitted on 15
October 2009 at the latest. For
more information please visit:www.cedawphotocontest.org.
Endnotes
1 The APF has the national humanrights institutions (NHRIs) of
Jordan, Afghanistan, Australia,
I n d i a , I n d o n e s i a , M a l ay s i a ,Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, New
Zealand, Palestine, Philippines,
Qatar, Republic of Korea, Sri
Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste as
members.
2 14th Annual Meeting of the Asia
Pa c i fi c Fo r u m , C o n c l u d i n g
Statement.
3 Asia Pacific Forum website, http://
www.asiapacificforum.net/about/annual-meetings/14thjordan-2009/?searchterm=Amman%20meeting
4 Based on report in the Amman
Center for Human Rights Studies(ACHRS) website: www.achrs.org/
e n g l i s h / i n d e x . p h p ?
option=com_content&task=view&id=165&Itemid=59

FOCUS ASIA-PACIFICSEPTEMBER 2009 VOLUME 57

2009 Study Tour to Jeju, South Korea
Nobuki Fujimoto

H

URIGHTS OSAKA organized,
in cooperation with the Kobe
Student Youth Center, a study tour
to Jeju island in South Korea from25 to 29 August 2009 to learn
about its history of “migration.”1
Jeju island is southwest off the
Korean peninsula.
Jeju island has close historicalties with Osaka where the biggest
community of Korean residents inJapan is found. Koreans had been
migrating to Osaka since the startof the Japanese colonial period in
the early 20th century. Majorityof them came from Jeju island
partly because of the availabilityof regular shipping service
between Jeju island and Osaka atthat time. There are historical
records that show that one-fourthof the Jeju population migrated toJapan, particularly to Osaka, towork in factories and other jobs
during the colonial period.
The thirty-member study groupconsisted of NGO activists,
academics, students, concerned
citizens, and Korean residents in
Osaka whose grandparents cameto Japan during the Japanesecolonial rule.
The group visited a women divers
museum, the Jeju April 3 Peace
Park,2 the Jeju Peace Museum,the former Japanese militaryfacilities (including theunderground strongholds andairport), and the Jeju ImmigrantCenter, a non-governmentalorganization (NGO) affiliatedwith the Jeju Migrant Peace
Community.
The Haenyeo Museum has many
exhibits on the lives of Jeju
women divers. Haenyeo is the
Korean word for the women whogather marine products by diving

more than ten meters deep into
the sea. The hard life of these
women divers symbolized Jeju
island. They migrated to otherparts of Korea and to foreigncountries (especially to Japan)
diving for marine products andtheir income supported theisland's economy. There are also
records showing theirinvolvement in the anti-Japanese
movement in the 1930s.
At the Jeju Immigrant Center, thegroup met and talked with the
Director, Mr. Kim Jeong Woo,and staff members of various
nationalities. The Center provides
migrants (both migrants married
to Koreans and migrant workers)
from China, Vietnam, Philippines,
Cambodia, etc, with consultation
service, Korean language andculture classes, and emergency
shelter.
The group learned that the Jeju
Immigrant Center fulfils its aim ofmaking the foreign migrants live
together with the Koreans byprotecting and promoting theirrights through exchange of
information and views on theissue.
The Jeju island study tour was thethird and final stage of the Korean
study tour project of HURIGHTSOSAKA.3
Nobuki Fujimoto is a staff of
HURIGHTS OSAKA.
For further information, pleasecontact: HURIGHTS OSAKA,
PiaNPO, 3F, 2-8-24 Chikko
Minato-ku, Osaka 552-0021
Japan; ph (816) 6577-35-78; fax(816) 6577-35-83; email:webmail@hurights.or.jp;
www.hurights.or.jp

15

Endnotes
1 Migration in the context of Jeju
island refers to both voluntary and“forced” migrations. Voluntary
migration covers both the colonialera movement of people from Jeju
Island to Japan to find work at theirown initiative, and the more recent
movement of people from othercountries (particularly Southeast
Asian countries and China) to workin Jeju island. Forced migration on
the other hand refers to thecompulsory deployment of Korean
workers by the Japanese colonial
government during the latter partof the second world war. This latter
type of migration, however,remains a debatable point among
Japanese historians.
2 A summary of the final report of
the Korean National Committee forInvestigation of the Truth about the
Jeju April 3 Incident (available inw w w. j e j u 4 3 . g o . k r / e n g l i s h /sub05.html) states that the “Jeju
April 3 Incident was a series of
events in which thousands ofislanders were killed as a result ofclashes between armed civiliangroups and government forces. It
took place over the period fromMarch 1, 1947, when the National
Police opened fire on protesters,and April 3, 1948, when membersof the Jeju branch of the South
Korean Labor Party began an
uprising to protest against
oppression by the National Police
and the Northwest Youth andagainst the South Korean
government, until September 21,
1954 when closed areas of the
Halla mountain were opened tothe public.” Then President Roh
Tae-woo apologized to the Jeju
people for the unfortunate
incident.
3 For information on the previous
study tours see "2008 Study Tour toSouth Korea" (www.hurights.or.jp/
asia-pacific/053/04.html) and"Korea-Japan Symposiums on"International Marriage" and"FemaleMigrant
Workers"" (www.hurights.or.jp/
asia-pacific/050/08.html) in thispublication.

HURIGHTS OSAKA Calendar

DE
AU
OSAKA

ST
PO

BUR
E

HURIGHTS OSAKA has published in early 2009 in New Delhi the South Asian Teachers and Human
Rights Education - A Training Resource Material. This is a handy and user-friendly resource material thatsituates the understanding of human rights and human rights education in the context of South Asia,and utilizes the existing materials in this subregion to illustrate the practice of human rights educationin the school system. Copies can be bought through the website of the Indian Social Institute-Delhi(www.isidelhi.org.in).

JAPON

TAXE PERCUEPRINTED MATTERAIR MAIL

May be opened for inspection by the postal service.

HURIGHTS OSAKA, inspired by the Charter of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, formally opened in December 1994. lt has the following goals: 1) to promote human rights
in the Asia- Pacific region; 2) to convey Asia-Pacific perspectives on human rights to the international
community; 3) to ensure inclusion of human rights principles in Japanese international cooperative activities; and 4) to raise human rights awareness among the people in Japan in meeting its growing internationalization. In order to achieve these goals, HURIGHTS OSAKA has activities such as Information Handling, Research and Study, Education and Training, Publications, and Consultancy Services.
FOCUS Asia-Pacific is designed to highlight significant issues and activities relating to human rights in
the Asia-Pacific. Relevant information and articles can be sent to HURIGHTS OSAKA for inclusion in thenext editions of the newsletter.
FOCUS Asia-Pacific is edited by Osamu Shiraishi, Director of HURIGHTS OSAKA.
Sender:

HURIGHTS OSAKA(Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center)
3F, piaNPO, 2-8-24 Chikko Minato-ku Osaka 552-0021 Japan
Phone: (816)6577-3578
Fax: (816)6577-3583
E-mail: webmail@hurights.or.jp Web site: http://www.hurights.or.jp

HURIGHTS OSAKA