The Taipei Women’s Rescue Foundation yesterday held a memorial for 59 Taiwanese women who were used as “comfort women” for Japanese troops during World War II, and urged the Ministry of Education to include this part of history in the national curriculum.
The meeting was also held to observe International Comfort Women Memorial Day and remember Taiwan’s last comfort woman, who died in May.
In her opening speech, foundation executive director Tu Ying-chiu (杜瑛秋) quoted a Taiwanese comfort woman, who said that they were “deceived into accepting the job because they were under financial pressure.”
Photo: CNA
“She said they felt their bodies were dirty all the time in those days as comfort women. The experience affected their self-identity and resulted in them being discriminated against. We can only hope that the Japanese government will recognize its mistake, apologize and [offer compensation],” Tu said.
Taiwanese should face this era with honesty, view the comfort women system as a serious violation of women’s rights and include relevant records in the nation’s history, Tu said.
The Ministry of Education should also make it necessary to teach elementary, junior-high and high-school students about comfort women, so that they can learn about the importance of women’s rights, she said.
“The government should establish a national women’s rights museum to preserve relevant records and promote human rights education,” Tu added.
The Tainan Comfort Women Human Rights Equality Association also held a memorial ceremony around the city’s statue of an unnamed comfort woman. It is the only comfort woman statue in Taiwan.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who has been a long-term supporter of causes involving comfort women, attended the ceremony.
Association chairman Tung Shiao-yun (童小芸) said that Taiwanese comfort women had not been fighting for financial compensation, but respect and dignity.
“Japan can settle comfort women issues with South Korea, apologize and agree to establish a foundation to compensate South Korean victims, but what about Taiwanese comfort women? So far, there has not been an official apology and compensation from the Japanese government and leaders. Nevertheless, our determination to pursue truth and justice will never cease,” Tung said.
“Japan and Taiwan simply cannot ignore the unfair treatment that Taiwanese comfort women endured during World War II simply because the two countries have good relations now,” Tung said.
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
INDUSTRY: Beijing’s latest export measures go beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related tech, an academic said Taiwanese industries could face significant disruption from China’s newly tightened export controls on rare earth elements, as much of Taiwan’s supply indirectly depends on Chinese materials processed in Japan, a local expert said yesterday. Kristy Hsu (徐遵慈), director of the Taiwan ASEAN Studies Center at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, said that China’s latest export measures go far beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related technologies. With Japan and Southeast Asian countries among those expected to be hit, Taiwan could feel the impact through its reliance on Japanese-made semi-finished products and
RSS