The first museum dedicated to Taiwanese “comfort women” still needs NT$10 million (US$317,158), museum administrators said.
The Taipei Women’s Rescue Foundation, the driving force behind Ama’s Home (“Ama” means grandmother in Hoklo, also known as Taiwanese), said that when the facility opens on Dec. 10, it will be a milestone for the nation’s human rights movement and for Taiwan’s comfort women, but the money needed to run the museum is likely to be a heavy burden.
Since the museum started soliciting donations earlier this year it has collected NT$9.72 million, which includes subsidies from the Ministry of Culture, as well as donations from Taiwan and overseas.
However, as software and hardware for the museum, as well as operating expenses for the first year are expected to cost about NT$20 million, the foundation is facing a shortage of half the required funds.
The foundation on Monday launched a fundraising Web site for the museum.
The Web site tells people about the origin of Ama’s Home, why it was established, planning the space and a brief introduction to the life stories of some of the women, as well as activities related to the museum.
The foundation calls former comfort women “Amas” because most of the women are in their late 80s or early 90s.
The Web site, www.twrf.org.tw/amamuseum, offers various options for making donations, including a one-time donation, a fixed amount for a fixed period or the purchase of charity items.
More than 2,000 Taiwanese worked as “comfort women” for the Japanese Imperial Army in military brothels during World War II.
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