Who are these WWII Comfort Women?
"World War II "Comfort Women" are the 200,000 girls and women abducted by the Japanese Imperial Army during WWII forced to experience a life of systematic rape and enslavement. They are now mostly in their 80's and they are dying. They were taken from Korea, China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan. In the Philippines, historians say there were about 1000 girls abducted. LILA Pilipina is one of three major organizations of Filipina survivors."
I honestly and shamefully never heard of this before, but after finding and reading FRIENDS FOR LOLAS blog, I had to bring it here in Filipina Moms. I hope these Lolas will eventually get some justice on what is left of their dignities.
Here is a video of Lola Dolor - a survivor of WWII Japanese Rape Camp
The next one is a video and message that was sent by LILA Pilipina to the US Congress. According to the FRIENDS FOR LOLAS blog, The House Res. 121 has been passed since this message. Great news but more has to be done. There is also a list in the FRIENDS FOR LOLAS blog of what else we can do to help this process.
"During World War II, over 1000 Filipina girls and women were abducted by the Japanese Imperial Army and forced to serve as “Comfort Women.” 173 of those women have come forward and for 15 years, the women of Liga ng mga Lolang Pilipina, have been fighting for justice. Since stepping forward to reveal their stories, 54 of the 173 women have died. We can only imagine what has become of the women who never revealed their stories.
Now, as the U.S. Congress and House Resolution 121 make their way to the House floor, the women of LILA Pilipina send a message of hope and thanksgiving. The support of the U.S. Congress and American citizens brings the women one step closer to justice.Should Congress and its 168 co-sponsors pass House Res. 121, the women of LILA Pilipina intend to campaign even harder to bring about justice and healing before it’s too late."
And now, below is the video of our Korean Lolas asking for help in passing of the same House Resolution.
Let us help spread awareness everywhere.
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UPDATE --- Just as I was checking LABAN FOR LOLAS today again, a press release was just posted about the FilAm group called Babae and the Korean American organization called Sahngnoksu are launching a nationally coordinated campaign today to demand justice for Comfort Women. So I hope you will go there now and read.
2 comments:
I'm sure there are many who would prefer to see these stories die and be forgotten. Thanks for bringing this to our attention.
This is really interesting to me. The Filipina women in my family who have lived in the Philippines were always so discreet about things. I remember feeling there was a certain shame that they left in PI when they arrived in the US. And having been enlightened (so to speak) by abuse as a child, I often wondered if there was something that happened to them like this. I'll never know for sure as one has died and the other has dementia. *sigh* We're fortunate to live in these times and in this country where so many brave women have gone up against injustices in the past. Still, life is less than perfect whatever that looks like. I swear I'm not a pessimist! These videos just made me so sad, though hopeful that light is being shed on these issues.
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