Eight Chinese women who were forced to be sex slaves for Japanese
soldiers during World War II recently filed a lawsuit against the
Japanese government, demanding a public apology and compensation
for their suffering.
All of the women, now in their 70s, belong to the Li
ethnic group of south China's island province of Hainan. In the
1940s, when they became the so called "comfort women" after
Japanese troops took over the island, they were between 14 and 18
years old.
A
group of lawyers from both China and Japan have volunteered to
assist them, with legal fees to be covered by a group of Chinese
and Japanese who advocate China-Japan friendship.
According to a local official, the Japanese troops set up several
"comfort houses" in Hainan during their occupation, and some 20 of
the "comfort women" are still living, mostly living in solitude and
still bearing the scars of their treatment at the hands of Japanese
soldiers.
A
Tokyo court dismissed a similar suit on May 30, 2001, rejecting the
request from another group of Chinese "comfort women" for
compensation.
The All-China Lawyers' Association, the All-China Women's
Federation, and the China Foundation for Human Rights Development
then voiced strong support for the Chinese war victims and promised
to help protect their legal rights and interests.
(
December 2, 2001)