On five buses running through South Korea, statues of young girls occupy seats. They are dressed in traditional clothing and birds sit on their shoulders. 

The statues are a powerful reminder of a painful part of South Korea’s past: “comfort women” were forced into sex slavery by Japanese soldiers during World War II. They were installed Monday, on the eve of South Korea’s anniversary of its liberation from Japanese occupation. 

An estimated 200,000 women were used as sex slaves by Japanese forces, including women in Korea, China, and the Philippines. 

Only 37 “comfort women” survive in South Korea today and the last of the 24 Chinese women who sued the Japanese government for their enslavement died at age 90 yesterday; however, the pain of the war crimes committed persists and the path forward continues to be a point of contention in South Korean and Japanese political relations.

The statues were created by a private bus company and will ride the buses until late September. Though the installation is not affiliated with the government, the mayor of Seoul rode with one of the statues yesterday morning calling it an “opportunity to pay tribute to the victims.”

On Monday, 500 statues of “comfort women” were also erected in central Seoul to commemorate Kim Hak-soon’s 1991 testimony against the abuses of comfort women, the first public testimony by a former “comfort woman” in South Korea.

Read more: One-Third of Trafficked Humans Are Kids, UN Says

Lim has clarified that his goal is not to make Japanese people feel uncomfortable, but rather to ensure that this piece of history and suffering is not forgotten. The buses carrying the statues pass the Japanese embassy in Seoul and will play the traditional folk song “Arirang” as they pass by.

These statues are not the first of their kind. A similar statue, created by artists Kim Seo-Kyung and Kim Eung-Sung, appeared outside the Japanese embassy in Seoul in 2011, prompting outrage from the Japanese government.

In 2015, the neighboring countries reached an agreement over the painful “comfort women” issue in which Japan pledged to give 1 billion yen ($8.3 million) to a fund for survivors. However, many felt the arrangement did not hold the Japanese government to a high enough standard of accountability. 

Read more: Why the Comfort Women Issue Isn’t Completely Resolved

In January, a replica of this statue was installed outside the Japanese embassy in Busan, South Korea, in protest of the inadequate agreement. In response, Japan recalled two diplomats and hit pause on its economic talks with South Korea. The countries have since resumed talks over common concerns such as North Korea, agreeing to discuss the “comfort women” conflict separately.

"The reality is the majority of our people cannot emotionally accept the comfort women agreement," South Korean President Moon Jae-in has told Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The bus statues are supported by Lim Jin Wook, the president of the transportation company on whose buses they appear, but are not affiliated with the government. However, the mayor of Seoul rode with one of the statues in the morning calling it an “opportunity to pay tribute to the victims.”

On Monday, 500 statues of “comfort women” were also erected in central Seoul to commemorate Kim Hak-soon’s 1991 testimony against the abuses of comfort women, the first public testimony by a former “comfort woman” in South Korea.

Read more: One-Third of Trafficked Humans Are Kids, UN Says

Lim has clarified that his goal is not to make Japanese people feel uncomfortable, but rather to ensure that this piece of history and suffering is not forgotten. The buses carrying the statues pass the Japanese embassy in Seoul and will play the traditional folk song “Arirang” as they pass by.

The song has an emotional history and is sometimes called the unofficial anthem of Korea. It represents “all the joys and sorrows in the history and lives of Koreans,” according to the National Folk Museum of Korea, much like the “comfort women” statues—their fists clenched in pain and resilience, birds symbolizing peace and freedom on their shoulders.

Global Citizen campaigns to achieve the Global Goals, including Global Goal No. 5, toward gender equality. You can take action here to help end gender inequality and see justice for girls forced into sex slavery by ISIS.

TopicsSouth Koreajapancomfort womenWWII

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