Japan PM apology on sex slaves

[eppur_se_muova]

Source: BBC

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has apologised in parliament for the country's use of women as sex slaves during World War II.

The apology comes after Mr Abe was criticised by Asian neighbours for previous comments casting doubt on whether the women were coerced.

Mr Abe told parliament: "I apologise here and now as prime minister."
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Mr Abe said, during a debate in parliament's upper house, that he stood by an official 1993 statement in which Japan acknowledged the imperial army set up and ran brothels for its troops during the war.

Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6495115.stm

[Kagemusha]

1. So where's his resignation?

He's the one who raised the issue his apology now ratchets down a notch. Is he taking responsibility in the Japanese sense or the American sense?

[kaneko]

2. I reverse my statement

and claim the contrary!!!!

[yava]

3. problem of education and history, not for talking heads

The crisis of comprehension between Japan and East Asia is similar to that of Turkey with some of its neighbors such as Armenians. Killings and rapes occurred. Then there was military defeat and regime change. The new regimes changed culture (in Turkey they even changed alphabet from Arabic to Latin, in Japan, they changed clothes and other social norms to western and in addition they disbanned the Japanese army and don't really have one any more).
After that and especially for the generations since, they dont feel responsible for the errors and policies of their grand parents especially because now they play positive roles globally.
To blame Turks and Japanese of today for what their fellows did 50 to 100 years ago is the same as blaming today's US citizens for the fact that US blacks died in Koria while they could not vote or have a seat in the bus at home, not to talk about the rights of black women folks in the US at that time!!!
In the case of Japan and especially for young folks, the issue of forced prostitution during WWII is even more difficult to understand bacause the majority of female street and club workers in Japan right now are from China, the Philippines, Thailand and North Koria, i.e. the same countries that provided them to Japanese troups during WWII. So it really comes down to education: when a woman says no, its no. But how many mothers with hungry children victims of WWII were volonteering? Who knows?
For me, it would be best for all of them to accept the appologies and close the chapter.