▲ The official record of a 'comfort women' victim under an alias Kim So-ran is newly found in the National Archives and Records Administration of the United States.(Courtesy of Seoul City)
The Seoul Metropolitan Government on December 29 made public that it published the testimonies of 'comfort women' victims who were forced to work as sex slaves by the Japanese Imperial Army during the World War II.
The publication consists of the testimonies from 10 'comfort women' victims and evidence documents and photos through cross-checking all the materials collected including the documents found in the US National Archives and Records Administration(NARA) and onsite visits in Thailand.
The Seoul National University Human Rights Center was selected by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to conduct a project on the testimonies of 'comfort women' victims in March this year.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said that up until now most of the researches and studies on 'comfort women' victims heavily relied on the materials of the Japanese Imperial Government and Army, but this publication extensively made use of the official documents, reports on prisoners of war, still photos and maps of the United States and allied nations which reflect new historical perspectives on the 'comfort women' cases.
reported by Yon Yoon-jeong
translated by Kim Sung-jin