The Japanese military set up the first rape center in Shanghai for the Japanese Navy in 1932. Starting with this, the Japanese military and government systematically set up rape centers wherever its military was stationed. Over 200,000 girls and women from East and Southeast Asia were taken by deception, threat, and abduction to rape centers. They were forced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military.

Starting with the resolution passed in the US House of Representatives in 2007, the European Union and other countries passed similar resolutions urging the Japanese government to tackle this issue. However, the Japanese government has neither admited its responsibility nor delivered an official apology. Though the Japanese military sexual slavery system is clearly a serious war crime, if we fail to bring justice to survivors in all countries, similar war crimes against women’s bodies will continue to occur in conflict areas. Let’s take action to show the seriousness of this issue to the members of the United Nations General Assembly.