China News Service, August 14 (Zhang Aolin) Simple short hair, clenched fists, for more than 8 years, no matter the cold and heat, there is a "girl" sitting in front of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea and staring. It seems to be calling silently: the truth should not be forgotten!

  She is the world's first "Comfort Woman and Peace Girl Statue" "born" in 2011. On August 14, 2020, when the eighth world "comfort women" anniversary arrives, can this "girl" receive the long-awaited sincere apology?

Data map: The bronze statue of the "comfort woman" peaceful girl standing in front of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea. China News Agency issued Liu Guanguan photo

  Her "birth" came from the power of everyone

  On the 8th World "Comfort Women" anniversary, a statue of a peaceful girl will be unveiled in Ansan, a small city in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. The "Girl of Peace" in front of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea will welcome another "little partner".

  The funds for the construction of this new girl statue did not come from the local government, but from 69.445 million won (approximately RMB 400,000) raised by private organizations from 171 groups and as many as 2,303 people in just three months. Yuan) sponsorship fund, built.

  The citizens of Ansan stated that the construction of the statue of the girl "is to correct the distorted history of Korea and Japan that has recently become the focus."

  In fact, this is not the first local girl statue. Four years ago, because the Park Geun-hye government signed the "Korea-Japan Comfort Women Agreement" with Japan, there was a wave of building statues of girls in South Korea, and Ansan City is no exception.

  At that time, the funds for the statue of the girl were also donations from the local people, and the organizer also carried out a street fundraising activity for nearly a month for this. The voice of "The Peace Girl Statue in Ansan is to not forget our history" moved the local citizens.

Data map: Korean people staged a drama with the theme of "comfort women's life" to mourn the "comfort women" who were bullied by the Japanese during the war. Picture source: Oriental IC copyright works, please do not reprint

  On the day of the completion, some citizens said, "Although I did not go to the scene, my family and I have contributed to the bronze statue." Some citizens said, "I don't want a heart-wrenching history like the comfort women problem again." .

  Her life experience, full of war crimes

  According to incomplete statistics, there are currently more than 100 "girls of peace" in South Korea, and the road to the birth of the first "girl" as their "elder sister" is not smooth.

  On August 14, 1991, the elderly Kim Xueshun of South Korea broke his silence and was the first to publicly stand up as a victim of the Japanese "comfort woman" system, to make the atrocities committed by the Japanese army public, and demand an apology and compensation from the Japanese government. She said, "I am the proof of life."

  In January 1992, on the eve of the then Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa’s visit to South Korea, the victims of the "comfort women" stood up and gathered in front of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea, demanding that the Japanese government face up to history and make formal compensation to the victims.

Data map: South Korean people held high photos of "comfort women" victims and gathered in protest in front of the Japanese Embassy in South Korea.

  As the Japanese side has not met these requirements, for several years, relevant groups will go to the Japanese Embassy in South Korea to protest every Wednesday, rain or shine. Because Wednesday is called "Shui Yao Day" in Korean, this multi-year protest is also called "Shui Yao Demonstration."

  However, during the prolonged demonstration, the victims gradually withered. In 1997, Jin Xueshun passed away.

  In order for them to wait for an apology in Japan as soon as possible, with the efforts of the organizer, the first "Girl of Peace" was "born" in front of the Japanese Embassy in Korea during the 1000th "Shui Yao Demonstration" (December 14, 2011). . This move drew strong opposition from Japan, and since then, Japan's right-leaning has accelerated, and it has turned its back on many historical issues.

  In this context, the statue of the Peaceful Girl began to "flower everywhere" in Korea. In less than ten years, South Korean non-governmental organizations have established a large number of girls' statues in major cities such as Seoul, Busan, and Gwangju, as well as some local cities. "They" are scattered on roads, parks and schools, and they have become a sign of the "comfort women" problem.

  When will her cry be realized?

  Today, the issue of "comfort women" has become one of the main contradictions between Japan and South Korea.

  Not long ago, Korean media revealed that there is also a statue of a girl in a private botanical garden in Pyeongchang, South Korea, but the special feature is that there is a statue of a male kneeling in front of the girl. Japan’s Tokyo Broadcasting Corporation reported that the nickname of this group of statues is “Abe of Apologize”.

  Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga quickly expressed dissatisfaction with the report and said: "If the report is true, it will have a decisive impact on Japan-South Korea relations."

  Although the owner of this botanical garden, Jin Changyeol, has stated that the "kneeling statue" does not specifically refer to Abe, the sensitivity of the "comfort women" issue in the relations between the two countries has once again been highlighted. In response, Yang Xiyu, a researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, told Chinanews.com that the "comfort women" issue is the most direct political obstacle in the current Japan-South Korea relations. Whether Japan-South Korea relations can be improved, the key is to solve the "comfort women" issue. Women” and related issues.

Data map: South Korean President Moon Jae-in. Photo by China News Agency reporter Zhong Xin

  Although Japan and South Korea reached a "final and irreversible" agreement on this issue in 2015, this agreement was generally opposed in South Korea. After the current South Korean President Moon Jae-in took office, the South Korean government has repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the agreement, saying that the agreement has "serious flaws." In 2018, South Korea disbanded the "Reconciliation and Healing Foundation" established under this agreement.

  With the outbreak of conflicts such as labor compensation during World War II, Japan-South Korea relations have deteriorated unprecedentedly since 2019, and the prospects for resolving this problem are even less optimistic. Yang Xiyu believes that "the two countries have many historical issues. If a compromise is reached on the issue of comfort women, other historical issues will inevitably be involved." In the short term, "it may be difficult to find a way out."

  Her footprints engraved historical truth

  In recent years, the "Peace Girls" have gradually moved from Korea to the world. China, the Philippines, the United States, Germany... all have left their "footprints." And they all have a common experience: they are strongly resisted by Japan.

  On September 22, 2017, after the "comfort woman" statue was unveiled in the city of San Francisco, the "sister city" Osaka immediately issued a threat of "breaking relations", but the city of San Francisco still stated that there was "no room for negotiation and discussion" regarding the statue.

On September 22, 2017, the unveiling ceremony of the "comfort woman" statue was held in St. Mary's Square, San Francisco, USA. Photo by China News Agency reporter Liu Dan

  In September 2018, a statue of a girl in Tainan City, Taiwan, was kicked by the representative of a Japanese right-wing group Mirohiko Fujii; two statues of peaceful girls in the Philippines were "black hands" and were "black hands" at the end of 2017 and April 2018. Demolition", the second statue survived for only two days...

  Regarding the existence of the "comfort women" girl portraits, certain people in Japan are like thorns on their backs, hoping to let "they" disappear soon. However, the footsteps of the "Peace Girl" have never stopped because of these threats. As Yang Xiyu said, this also reflects the preliminary consensus of all countries in the world: The issue of "comfort women" is an anti-human and immoral war crime.

  In response to Japan’s global protests and attempts to "block" the statue of a peaceful girl, Zhou Yongsheng, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, pointed out sharply in an interview with Chinanews that what Japan did was to cover up history and obliterate. History to maintain Japan’s national image.

  However, these small actions will not shake the determination of the people in the victimized country to pursue the truth, nor will they change the history of what happened.

  The "Peace Girls" cannot speak, grow old, and never give in. In order to wait for the sincere apology from the aggressors, they will stand by forever so that this history will never be forgotten. (Finish)