Butterfly Women

On the last week of July, Il-Chul Kang (age 86) and Ok-seon Lee (age 87) flew from South Korea to the U.S. for a press tour.  Both Halmonies - or "Grandmothers" - are on a mission to demand an official apology from Japan before they pass on.

Il-Chul and Ok-seon are WW2 survivors of sexual slavery in the hands of the Japanese Imperial Army.  They are two of 200,000 women in Asia (including Korea, China, Indonesia, and the Philippines) forced into military brothels known as "comfort stations".  Il-Chul was 16 while Ok-seon was only 15 when they were taken from Korea to China.

Within these comfort stations, both women had to endure years of rape, abuse, disease and starvation.  It was not uncommon for them to "service" anywhere from 20-50 soldiers a day, usually without adequate protection.  In order to control the rampant disease, Imperial Army doctors would inject the women with arsphenamine, a drug that had left Ok-seon barren.  If women fell ill, became pregnant, or were pronounced "unusable" they were often killed and abandoned.  Il-chul was nearly cremated alive after falling ill to severe typhoid fever.

It wasn't until twenty years ago that Halmonies like Ok-seon and Il-chul have come out publicly with their testimonies.  Many women have lived in silence to avoid being ostracized by their families and society.  Halmonies who have broken their silence are giving the remainder of their lives to activism in the hopes of securing an official apology from Japan. 

However, their demands have been met with resistance.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the supporting Liberal Democratic Party have refused to apologize.  Earlier this year, Shinzo Abe issued a review on the Kono Statement, the only official acknowledgment Japan has made about coercing women into sexual slavery.  That review angered Halmonies and their supporters - it meant that Abe was invalidating the Halmonies' testimonies and denying one of many grave war crimes Japan had committed.

Il-Chul, Ok-seon, and supporting activists have gained some support abroad with success.  The U.S., Australia, parts of Europe, and now the UN Human Rights Committee have passed Resolutions demanding Japan apologize.  

However, Tokyo remains staunch in its resistance.

As Il-Chul and Ok-seon press on with their mission, the question remains: Will they finally see justice within their lifetime or will it be too late?

•  Travel costs (flight, boarding, food, and transportation) to fly to South Korea and visit both Halmonies living in The House of Sharing, an assisted-living center and museum.  People from around the world tour through the museum and listen to the Halmonies' testimonies in person.  I would do additional interviews with the Halmonies and those who support them in their home environment.

•  Transportation costs to go into downtown Seoul where the weekly Wednesday Protests take place across the street from the Japanese Embassy.  It is the longest running protest in the world (23 years!) according to the Guinness Book of World Records.  There is a solid attendance of 100 participants.

And of course there will be even more perks for all of you!  It would be ideal If there's a way for me include something from The House of Sharing.  That may include art pieces from the Halmonies or a chance to visit The House of Sharing.

At $10,000, I can begin production on the remainder of the 30-minute long documentary.

At 30 minutes, this film - and therefore both Halmonies' stories - has a chance to reach a broader audience.  Film festivals and regional television stations prefer to screen or broadcast documentaries that are at least that length.

Risks & Challenges

My main challenge right now is devoting to this project full-time.  Assistant editing gigs are time-consuming, and therefore slows this project to a crawl until I have time off again - which might be another few months.  Regardless, I have the drive to finish at least this smaller piece by the end of this year.

Even if you don't wish to contribute at this time, you are still doing your part if you:

•  Share this campaign with 1) someone you know might be interested in learning this issue and/or 2) someone you know wants to help in some way.

•  If you live in the San Fernando Valley, I'll definitely need some help packaging and sending off these perks!  Please contact me if you want to volunteer some of your time.

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