On the 28th, the Japanese government expressed dissatisfaction with the statue reported by the media that South Korea’s private establishment implied Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s apology for "comfort women", warning that this incident would have a "decisive" impact on Japan-South Korea relations.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said at a regular press conference that “this practice is unacceptable in terms of international etiquette” and “if the report is true, it will have a decisive impact on Japan-South Korea relations.”
He also "strongly demanded" that South Korea "conscientiously implement" the "final and irreversible" agreement reached between the two countries on the issue of "comfort women".
Japanese and South Korean media reported that this group of statues is located in the "Korean Botanical Garden" in the private botanical garden in Pyeongchang, Gangwon-do, South Korea. A statue of a girl representing a "comfort woman" sits upright, in front of a male statue, kneeling with hands Prodded.
The official name of the statue is "Eternal Atonement." Japan’s Tokyo Broadcasting Corporation reported that the statue was aliased as "Abe of Apologize."
South Korean media quoted the creator of the statue and reported that Abe refused to apologize for Japan's colonial rule on the Korean Peninsula and the issue of "comfort women", and therefore "urged (Abe) to reflect" with this work.
The Asahi Shimbun reported that the statue was completed in 2018, and the Botanical Garden was closed due to a fire, and plans to use the opportunity of reopening to unveil the statue.
Jin Changyeol said that South Korea already has many statues of "comfort women" girls, "it would be better to build a statue where the responsible person apologizes."
He also told Kyodo News that the statue "is not specifically aimed at" Abe, but "represents all men who should apologize."
The park had planned to hold an opening ceremony on the 10th next month. However, South Korea’s "Joongang Daily" reported on the 28th that the owner had cancelled this plan.
During World War II, Japan forcibly recruited "comfort women" in Asian countries. The South Korean side has always asked Japan to face up to history and formally apologize and compensate for the "comfort women" issue; the Japanese side claimed that this issue has been resolved after the two countries signed the "Japan-South Korea Claim Agreement" in 1965.
The Japanese side stated that during Park Geun-hye's presidency of South Korea, the South Korean and Japanese governments signed the "Korea-Japan Comfort Women Agreement" in December 2015, reaching a "final and irreversible agreement" on the issue of "comfort women".
However, this agreement has been widely opposed and criticized in South Korea. After Moon Jae-in took office as South Korea’s president, the South Korean side has repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the agreement, believing that it has not really solved the "comfort women" issue. South Korea dissolved the "Reconciliation and Healing Foundation" established under this agreement in November 2018. This foundation is funded by Japan and provided to victims of "comfort women".
As the Korean court ruled that Japanese companies must pay compensation for the forced recruitment of Korean workers during World War II, the relationship between South Korea and Japan has deteriorated unprecedentedly since last year. Japan’s "Mainichi Shimbun" said that from the current situation, the problem of "comfort women" is far from being resolved. (Hui Xiaoshuang) (Special feature from Xinhua News Agency)