By Norimitsu Onishi
Friday, March 2, 2007

TOKYO: A denial by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that the Japanese military had forced foreign women into sexual slavery during World War II is a clear sign that the government is preparing to reject a 1993 government statement that acknowledged the military’s role in setting up brothels and forcing, either directly or indirectly, women into sexual slavery.

That declaration also offered an apology to the women, euphemistically called “comfort women.”

“There is no evidence to prove there was coercion, nothing to support it,” Abe told reporters Thursday. “So, in respect to this declaration, you have to keep in mind that things have changed greatly.”

His remarks came as the U.S. House of Representatives has begun debating a resolution that would call on Tokyo to “apologize for and acknowledge” the military’s role in wartime sex slavery.

(more…)

Related posts

• “Heading South” (Sex in the Public Square) (1)
• “Brokeback Mountain” A Landmark In The Troubled History Of America’s Relationship To Homosexuality (Frank Rich; HuffPo) (0)
• ‘The L Word’ Spins Off Its Chart (NYT) (1)
• ‘Shortbus’ Cast Didn’t Study for This in Acting Class (NYT) (0)