Published : Dec. 29, 2011 - 18:11
Ad printed in Wall Street Journal on Thursday by Kim Jang-hoon and Seo Kyung-duk. (Yonhap News)
Singer Kim Jang-hoon and Sungshin Women’s University professor Seo Kyoung-duk used ad space in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, requesting compensation or a public apology from the Japanese government on former sex slaves.
Headlined “Do You Hear?” the ad shows a photo of Korean elderly women who were “comfort women” forced to serve as sex slaves for Japanese soldiers during World War II and explains that they have been holding weekly meetings outside the Japanese Embassy in Seoul since 1992. It adds that the number of attendants to the gatherings has grown to about 1,000.
“The Japanese government, however, has never expressed any intention of compensation or public apology for its atrocities,” the ad points out, and asserts that the “Japanese government must sincerely apologize to the women and compensate them for their mental and physical suffering at once.”
“This responsible behavior is the only possible way for Korea and Japan to work together towards peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia. We expect a wise decision from the Japanese government,” it reads.
Kim, known as the “Dokdo guardian,” supported the fee for the ad while Seo took charge of the details.
The two have printed several ads in foreign newspapers so far, including the “Visit Korea” ad which gave information about Dokdo and Leodo, in the New York Times in February.
By Park Min-young (
claire@heraldcorp.com)