[Statement]
35 Years of the Movement to Resolve the Issue of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery: A Journey Expanding the Transnational Community of Truth and Memory
Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan
November 13, 2025
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the movement to resolve the issue of Japanese military sexual slavery. On November 16, 1990, thirty-seven women’s organizations founded the Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, initiating a long and courageous journey. Through the survivors’ brave testimonies, this movement brought the truth to light and inscribed the principles of historical justice and human rights into the conscience of the international community. Building on this legacy, the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance continues to uphold the values of memory, human rights, peace, and justice, fulfilling its responsibilities and role in the new era.
1. Rewriting History through the Voices of Survivors
The Council has led the historicization of memory by rewriting history from the lived experiences of victims. The first public testimony by Kim Hak-sun on August 14, 1991, inspired numerous survivors around the world to come forward. Women’s voices shattered the thick silence of denial, fractured the solidarity of perpetrators, and reclaimed history through women’s experiences. The establishment of the War and Women’s Human Rights Archive, along with the UNESCO Memory of the World nomination process jointly pursued since 2016 by fourteen domestic and international organizations, stands as a collective effort to ensure that these records are recognized as part of humanity’s shared heritage.
2. Socializing Memory through Broad Citizen Participation
Since January 8, 1992, the Wednesday Demonstration has become the world’s longest-running human rights protest. The erection of Statues of Peace in Korea and abroad, the establishment of the War and Women’s Human Rights Museum, and various educational programs for citizens and youth have transformed memories of personal pain into a social responsibility. The participation and solidarity of countless citizens and young people have made this movement their own—an enduring practice of “memory democracy.”
3. Expanding Transnational Solidarity and Advancing International Human Rights Norms
Since 1992, the Council has hosted the Asian Solidarity Conference, working with civil society across Asia, Europe, and the Americas and with UN human rights bodies to institutionalize the issue of “wartime sexual violence and women’s human rights” in international law. The Women’s International War Crimes Tribunal on Japan’s Military Sexual Slavery (2000) exposed the limits of the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal and clearly identified the responsibility of Japan’s emperor and other perpetrators. The movement also contributed to governmental investigations, parliamentary resolutions, and UN reports and recommendations that established a victim-centered principle. By ending the long history of impunity for wartime sexual violence, the Council helped institutionalize the concept of state responsibility for wartime sexual violence. Most recently, survivors achieved a landmark court victory against the Government of Japan in their damages suit—an unprecedented recognition of justice that had long been denied. These accomplishments extend beyond the “comfort women” issue, contributing to a global framework of justice for women in armed conflict today.
4. Building Global Solidarity through the Butterfly Fund
Established in 2012, the Butterfly Fund embodies the survivors’ will to support victims of wartime sexual violence, children, and human rights defenders worldwide. It has transformed isolated pain into a practice of transnational women’s solidarity, supporting the survival and empowerment of women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Vietnam, Palestine, and Rohingya refugee camps. The Butterfly Fund has become a symbol of “circulating memory and restorative justice,” where the memory of survivors takes flight as new wings of hope.
5. Educating Future Generations for Peace and Memory
Through school and community education, youth exchanges supported by the Seeds of Hope Fund, teacher training, the Kim Bok-dong Peace and Human Rights Prize, and the publication of multilingual educational materials, the Council has transformed survivors’ voices into the language of learning and remembrance. Guided by the vision of “Turning the Heritage of Memory into Peace Education,” the Council continues to transmit the lives and testimonies of survivors as ethical and historical lessons for humanity.
For 35 years, this movement has steadfastly demanded that the Government of Japan acknowledge its responsibility, offer an unequivocal apology, and provide legal reparations, while urging both state and society to uphold the dignity and honor of the survivors.
Today, we reaffirm our resolve.
Our memory will not be erased, and justice will never be defeated.
The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance will continue to stand against the tides of hatred, discrimination, distortion, and denial—building solidarity grounded in truth, responsibility, and remembrance.
With the courage of the survivors and the power of transnational civic solidarity, we will open a new chapter of 35 more years for peace and human rights. The voices of the survivors will continue to resonate across the world, transforming the stories of the past into the practices that safeguard our shared future.
[Statement]
35 Years of the Movement to Resolve the Issue of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery: A Journey Expanding the Transnational Community of Truth and Memory
Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan
November 13, 2025
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the movement to resolve the issue of Japanese military sexual slavery. On November 16, 1990, thirty-seven women’s organizations founded the Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, initiating a long and courageous journey. Through the survivors’ brave testimonies, this movement brought the truth to light and inscribed the principles of historical justice and human rights into the conscience of the international community. Building on this legacy, the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance continues to uphold the values of memory, human rights, peace, and justice, fulfilling its responsibilities and role in the new era.
1. Rewriting History through the Voices of Survivors
The Council has led the historicization of memory by rewriting history from the lived experiences of victims. The first public testimony by Kim Hak-sun on August 14, 1991, inspired numerous survivors around the world to come forward. Women’s voices shattered the thick silence of denial, fractured the solidarity of perpetrators, and reclaimed history through women’s experiences. The establishment of the War and Women’s Human Rights Archive, along with the UNESCO Memory of the World nomination process jointly pursued since 2016 by fourteen domestic and international organizations, stands as a collective effort to ensure that these records are recognized as part of humanity’s shared heritage.
2. Socializing Memory through Broad Citizen Participation
Since January 8, 1992, the Wednesday Demonstration has become the world’s longest-running human rights protest. The erection of Statues of Peace in Korea and abroad, the establishment of the War and Women’s Human Rights Museum, and various educational programs for citizens and youth have transformed memories of personal pain into a social responsibility. The participation and solidarity of countless citizens and young people have made this movement their own—an enduring practice of “memory democracy.”
3. Expanding Transnational Solidarity and Advancing International Human Rights Norms
Since 1992, the Council has hosted the Asian Solidarity Conference, working with civil society across Asia, Europe, and the Americas and with UN human rights bodies to institutionalize the issue of “wartime sexual violence and women’s human rights” in international law. The Women’s International War Crimes Tribunal on Japan’s Military Sexual Slavery (2000) exposed the limits of the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal and clearly identified the responsibility of Japan’s emperor and other perpetrators. The movement also contributed to governmental investigations, parliamentary resolutions, and UN reports and recommendations that established a victim-centered principle. By ending the long history of impunity for wartime sexual violence, the Council helped institutionalize the concept of state responsibility for wartime sexual violence. Most recently, survivors achieved a landmark court victory against the Government of Japan in their damages suit—an unprecedented recognition of justice that had long been denied. These accomplishments extend beyond the “comfort women” issue, contributing to a global framework of justice for women in armed conflict today.
4. Building Global Solidarity through the Butterfly Fund
Established in 2012, the Butterfly Fund embodies the survivors’ will to support victims of wartime sexual violence, children, and human rights defenders worldwide. It has transformed isolated pain into a practice of transnational women’s solidarity, supporting the survival and empowerment of women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Vietnam, Palestine, and Rohingya refugee camps. The Butterfly Fund has become a symbol of “circulating memory and restorative justice,” where the memory of survivors takes flight as new wings of hope.
5. Educating Future Generations for Peace and Memory
Through school and community education, youth exchanges supported by the Seeds of Hope Fund, teacher training, the Kim Bok-dong Peace and Human Rights Prize, and the publication of multilingual educational materials, the Council has transformed survivors’ voices into the language of learning and remembrance. Guided by the vision of “Turning the Heritage of Memory into Peace Education,” the Council continues to transmit the lives and testimonies of survivors as ethical and historical lessons for humanity.
For 35 years, this movement has steadfastly demanded that the Government of Japan acknowledge its responsibility, offer an unequivocal apology, and provide legal reparations, while urging both state and society to uphold the dignity and honor of the survivors.
Today, we reaffirm our resolve.
Our memory will not be erased, and justice will never be defeated.
The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance will continue to stand against the tides of hatred, discrimination, distortion, and denial—building solidarity grounded in truth, responsibility, and remembrance.
With the courage of the survivors and the power of transnational civic solidarity, we will open a new chapter of 35 more years for peace and human rights. The voices of the survivors will continue to resonate across the world, transforming the stories of the past into the practices that safeguard our shared future.