CARE 2021 Year-end report

As 2021 winds down, CARE wishes to express our deep thanks to you for remembering the “comfort women” and keeping up with our events and activities.

The past two years have been especially tough due to the pandemic.  We are grateful for all of our friends and community partners.  And we are mindful of survivors of sexual violence who are fighting for immediate intervention, resources, and justice around the globe.

2021 began with Lee Yong-soo’s plea for the Japanese and South Korean governments to mutually resolve all “comfort women” issues at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), after Japan rejected the Korean court’s ruling in January.  The funds paid by Japan as part of the December 2015 deal have failed to recover the victims’ honor and dignity because Japan also insists that “comfort women” were not sexually enslaved and that the “comfort” system was not a state crime.

In 2022, Grandma Lee will press forward with her campaign because the current administration under Moon Jae-in has not delivered his promise for a victim-centered resolution.  In light of concerns that Japan will reject the ICJ proposal, Grandma Lee has also urged South Korea to proceed unilaterally and refer the issue for investigation under the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT).  Ahead of the March presidential election in South Korea, Grandma Lee has been meeting with candidates from all parties and seeking their public pledge to resolve this issue through the CAT and/or ICJ.

Justice for “comfort women” is more urgent than ever.  Survivors are passing away, while Japan’s government continues to breach the Kono Statement by failing to record and teach clearly the history of Japan’s wartime sexual violence against women and children from multiple countries. The “comfort women” are the victims of one of the largest known systems of government-led human trafficking and sexual violence in the 20th century.

Justice requires that the victims are fully heard and represented.  We cannot stay silent while the last survivors cry out for resolution and healing.  CARE stands by Grandma Lee and the remaining “comfort women” survivors fighting for redress.

Earlier this year, a UK news team (Channel 4) documented Grandma Lee’s efforts to achieve justice.  The program and other highlights from 2021 are linked below:

• UK Channel 4 news documentary on Grandma Lee and discussions (here and here
• Petition to support Grandma Lee Yong-soo’s campaign for justice
• Discussion on academic responsibility and the Mark Ramseyer paper
• Discussion of historical records and archive (in progress) with UCLA Center for Korean Studies, and with UC Irvine Law School and Korea University American Law Center
• Student essay contest based on memoirs of Jan Ruff O’Herne (Netherlands) and Maria Rosa Henson (Philippines)

Please stay tuned for updates next year, including about the Eternal Testimony project, an AI-based interactive/conversational video initiative that preserves the testimony of Lee Yong-soo and Lee Ok-seon (the protagonist of Keum Suk Gendry-Kim’s Grass).  Our sister organization Comfort Women Justice Coalition is also working to preserve the testimony of Chinese survivor Peng Zhuying.

Thank you again for your attention and support!  As much as possible in these difficult times, we hope you have a safe and restful holiday and a happy new year.

Team at CARE