A key promise of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who emerged as the country's elected leader in the wake of Candlelight Movement, was to resolve the "comfort women" issue from a survivor or victim centered perspective. Five years later, that promise -- which he also made personally to Grandma Lee Yong-soo -- has not been realized.
On January 14, 2022, Grandma Lee presented a Blue House official with a handwritten letter to President Moon, asking him to respond to her proposal for resolution through the UN Committee Against Torture (CAT), which enforces the Convention Against Torture.
On January 24, 2022, she then delivered signed statements by five other Korean "comfort women" survivors -- Lee Ok-seon (94), Lee Ok-seon (92), Park Ok-sun, Kang Il-chul, and Park Pilgeun -- who also want the crimes committed against them to be recognized by an international body.
Last Wednesday, February 16, 2022, which was the one year anniversary of her press conference calling for referral to the International Court of Justice, Grandma made her third visit to the Blue House seeking a response from President Moon. She was redirected to a nearby tea house, where she met with reporters in tears.
She tried to enter the Blue House but was stopped by police and cried out, "Are you waiting for all of us to die?"
Later, Grandma Lee spoke with Kyunghyang Shinmun (Newspaper) and said:
"이제 더 이상 일본이 진심으로 사과하리라는 환상에 매달리지 않습니다. 피해자들은 거의 다 돌아가셨고, 나도 이제 아흔넷입니다. 일본이 태도를 바꾸기를 기다리기보다 일본이 더 이상 국제사회에서 역사왜곡을 못 하도록 권위 있는 국제기구의 명확한 판단을 받고자 합니다.”
"I no longer cling to the illusion that Japan will sincerely apologize. Almost all of the victims have passed away, and I am 94 years old now. Rather than wait for Japan to change, we should obtain an decision from an international authority, so that Japan will no longer distort history."
From Grandma Lee's perspective, statues and rallies are important, but they alone do not effectuate justice.
You can read the interview with Kyunghyang Shinmun here (may need Google auto-translate).
In addition to seeking bilateral support for a National Assembly resolution to refer the "comfort women" issue to the CAT, Grandma Lee has sent questionnaires to the presidential candidates -- Lee Jaemyung (Democratic Party), Yoon Seokyeol (PPP), Ahn Cheolsoo (PPP), and Sim Sangjung (Justice) -- asking them to respond by March 1st about whether they support her proposal and, if elected, will refer the issue to the CAT during their first 100 days in office.
This year, 2022, is the 103rd anniversary of the March First Independence Movement in Korea against Japanese colonization.
The South Korean presidential election will take place on March 9, 2022.
We will continue to update this petition with developments.