Ms. Kayo Aoyama was born in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, and is a free-lance television host who has appeared on two NHK television programs, Morning Wide (a morning talk show) and Konnichiwa Itto 6 Ken (a show for the Greater Tokyo audience). She is a member of the Council for Transport Policy, an advisory body under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.
 

Ms. Kayo Aoyama was born in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, and is a free-lance television host who has appeared on two NHK television programs, Morning Wide (a morning talk show) and Konnichiwa Itto 6 Ken (a show for the Greater Tokyo audience). She is a member of the Council for Transport Policy, an advisory body under the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Aoyama:I understand that you were Prime Minister of Japan when the Government established the Asian Women’s Fund...

Murayama:Yes, we established it as an organization that would implement atonement projects for former comfort women. And, through feelings of deep remorse for what happened in the past, we gave it the further objective of addressing problems faced by women today, such as violence against them, in an attempt to ensure that tragedies such as those inflicted on the comfort women would never happen again.

Participation of the Japanese people, to fulfill moral responsibility

Aoyama:You mentioned the AWF’s atonement projects. I understand that the projects will end this year in the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Taiwan. Do you feel that the projects have been understood by the people of those countries and region?

Murayama:Well actually, to be more correct, the application period for benefits under the projects will come to an end in the countries and the region you mentioned. Other projects are still ongoing in Indonesia, so it cannot be said that all atonement projects are in the process of being concluded.

The atonement projects, which have expressed feelings of remorse and apology, comprise the offering of “atonement money” from the Asian Women’s Fund, medical and welfare support projects paid for by the Japanese Government, and also delivery of a letter of apology from the Prime Minister of Japan.

Former comfort women who have received project benefits have said that they well understand the feelings of the Japanese people, so I believe that the projects have obtained a certain degree of understanding.

Aoyama:Please tell us about the developments leading up to establishment of the Asian Women’s Fund.

Murayama:Around 1990, the Government responded to a question asked in the Diet (Japan’s parliament), regarding the comfort women issue. This prompted a former comfort woman in the Republic of Korea to come forward and identify herself. She stated that the Government’s response did not reflect reality, and that she wanted people to know more about what had really happened. She also instituted a legal action against the Japanese Government. Later, the United Nations Human Rights Commission and other organizations took up the issue.

Aoyama:So the issue received plenty of attention at the political level, and in the international community as well?

Murayama:Yes. That was during the time of the Miyazawa Government. The Government launched an investigation and found that, without a doubt, women had been forced to become comfort women, and that the Japanese military authorities of the time had been involved. At a press conference, the Chief Cabinet Secretary stated that the Government of Japan extended “its sincere apologies and feelings of remorse to all those who suffered much pain and incurable physical and psychological damage as wartime comfort women.” The Government recognized it would have to address the issue properly.

Aoyama:That was in August 1993, the year before your Government was formed.

Murayama:Yes, I led the Cabinet during a period of time that coincided with the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II. I was convinced that my Cabinet had to address the issue resolutely, and said so during my statement as Prime Minister on August 31, 1994. Thus, our coalition Government (composed of the Liberal Democratic Party, the Social Democratic Party, and the New Party Sakigake) established the Project Team to Deal with Issues Fifty Years after the War. The Project Team established the Sub-committee to Address the Wartime Comfort Women Issue, which worked with specialists to examine the facts of history and determine what should be done to address the issue.

Aoyama:In other words, the Miyazawa Government initiated the investigation, and your Government implemented specific policies to address the issue.

Murayama:The carefully considered and sincere position of each successive Japanese government administration was that the San Francisco Peace Treaty, bilateral treaties and other relevant accords had resolved compensation issues and the question of the right to demand material restitution. The position of each administration was therefore that the Government could not reopen discussions on compensation. But at the same time, the Ruling Parties’ Project Team came to the following conclusions: that the issue could not be ignored in light of international criticism; that the Government had to clearly state Japan’s moral responsibility in order to foster relations of trust with the countries of the Asia Pacific region, at the threshold to the 21st century; and that my Government had to address the issue.

Aoyama:And the result was the establishment of the Asian Women’s Fund?

Murayama:Yes. The Government and members of the ruling coalition parties examined the matter carefully, and came to the conclusion that, in order for the Japanese Government to fulfill Japan’s moral responsibility, atonement projects needed to be implemented, and that the projects should focus primarily on four objectives: (1) support for the establishment of a Fund that would express the Japanese people’s atonement to the former comfort women; (2) the disbursement of Government funds for their medical care and welfare; (3) the Government’s expression of remorse and apology; and (4) the collation of historical documents to ensure that the comfort women issue would serve as a lesson of history.

Japan made mistakes in the past, so it is important that the Japanese people as a whole indicate their feelings of remorse, and that implementation of the AWF’s projects help the post-war generation learn about those facts of history. As a way to give expression to such feelings, the Government called on the Japanese people to indicate their feelings of atonement, urging as many of them as possible to do so through the proposed Asian Women’s Fund. The Government then established the AWF, and began working hand in hand with it to promote atonement projects.

Donations from people throughout the entire country

Aoyama:I understand some people were opposed to this approach.

Murayama:Yes, in some quarters there was strong criticism of the Asian Women’s Fund. There were people who said that the Japanese state should take responsibility and offer compensation, and that if it did not do so, the Government was shirking its responsibility by having the Japanese people bear the burden, and that this was unacceptable. But other people were saying the opposite — that no women were ever forced to become comfort women, and that there was therefore no need to promote projects of atonement.

Aoyama:With people continuing to voice such diverging opinions, you felt that atonement projects had to be implemented without delay, especially since the former comfort women were of an advanced age. And you have acted accordingly since then...

Murayama:Yes. They were getting on in age, and some were in poor health. So we decided that we had a job to do, and had no time to waste.

Aoyama:The “atonement money” given to former comfort women (2 million yen per person) has come from donations from the Japanese people. Tell us about the kind of people who have contributed.

Murayama:Some fought in the war themselves, some had husbands or sons who went to war. Some are too young to remember the war. All of them have donated money because they feel really sorry about what happened to the comfort women. Our campaigns for donations have been held in every part of the country, north, south, east and west, reaching out to regions and workplaces everywhere. We also asked for help from organizations of the national government, and from local governments. The cooperation of so many people is truly gratifying.

Aoyama:And the result is that now a total of about 550 million yen has been donated...

Murayama:Yes, and some people gave not once but on a regular basis — some, for example, live on a really small pension, but donate 1,000 yen a month. The AWF publishes Bokin News (News on Donations, a bulletin giving information on AWF projects), and sends issues to close to 20,000 donors.

Aoyama:The AWF has implemented projects in four countries and one region — the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, the Netherlands and Indonesia. Tell us a little more about what the former comfort women are saying.

Murayama:Some former comfort women who accepted “atonement money” have asked us to convey their appreciation to the Japanese people. One wrote to say: “I endured anguish for more than 50 years, but my mind is at ease now, because I have been able to witness justice and accept assistance.” Another wrote: “More than 50 years have passed since the end of the war, and we are now sick in body and depressed in spirit. We were taken away when we were young, and I cannot tell you how much I have suffered ever since. But now I am old, and I have accepted this money, which comes from your donations, and I want to tell you how grateful I am.”

Aoyama:It is said that they agreed to accept the atonement money because of the Prime Minister’s letter of apology, and because the atonement projects were being implemented on the basis of the sincere feelings of the Japanese people. Yet I have heard that in the Republic of Korea, the AWF’s atonement projects have not gone smoothly...

Murayama:We wanted, more than anything, to fulfill moral responsibility to the former comfort women, but unfortunately the AWF’s projects in the Republic of Korea were suspended. Later, Directors of the Asian Women’s Fund decided to lift the suspension, then to extend the period of applications until May 1, after which they will be concluded. It is our hope that, somehow, we can convey the true feelings of the Asian Women’s Fund, so that those involved will understand that we are sincere, and that the projects there can be concluded satisfactorily.

Efforts to eliminate violence against women and the violation of their human rights

Aoyama:How about other projects that will carry on into the future? The AWF is working to resolve problems faced by women today, such as violence against women and the violation of their rights. One way the AWF is proposing a resolution to such problems is by conducting public awareness campaigns. Could you give us an idea of the steps the AWF will take in this regard, in the future?

Murayama:Ever since its establishment, the Asian Women’s Fund has implemented atonement projects for the former comfort women and, guided by feelings of remorse for the tragedies of the past, it is tackling the problem of violence against women in a number of ways. The AWF is also conducting research into ways to prevent violence and, as you mentioned, promoting public awareness campaigns aimed at stopping violence. In addition, we sponsor international conferences that have the same aim. It is a sad fact that even today, in different parts of the world, many women are forced to suffer senseless violence and inhuman treatment — cases include violence against them and violation of their human rights during times of civil war and regional conflict, the trafficking of human beings, harassment at the workplace and in their own communities, and domestic violence. We feel it is extremely important that the Asian Women’s Fund involve itself actively in solving such problems, whether they occur in Japan or other countries.

Aoyama:You were Prime Minister when the Asian Women’s Fund first began its projects, and today, at this time when the period for applications for atonement money is ending, you hold the position of President of the AWF. What message do you have to give the people of Japan?

Murayama:First of all, I am truly grateful to the Japanese people for their support and understanding of the activities of the Asian Women’s Fund. And I must also express my gratitude to all those who selflessly volunteered their time and efforts to promote the AWF’s objectives — first of all, to the late Bunbei Hara, a former President of the House of Councilors who graciously agreed to serve as the AWF’s first President, and to all of the AWF’s Directors and members of the Advisory Committee.

For Japan to occupy an honorable position in the international community, it is extremely important that we atone, in all sincerity and through a feeling of moral responsibility, for the wounds inflicted during the past war, and doing this will also develop relations of trust with other countries. It is also important that we all foster within ourselves the strong awareness that the mistakes of that time must never be repeated, and that war must not be waged. For these reasons, too, I hope the projects of the Asian Women’s Fund will be understood and supported.

Aoyama:Thank you. I wish you and the AWF every success in your future activities.

* This article is reproduced from an article that appeared in the March 15 issue of Photo.