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NEWS - Former Taiwanese Sex Slaves



Subject: NEWS - Former Taiwanese Sex Slaves Sue Japanese Government

Former Taiwanese Sex Slaves Sue Japanese Government

               AP
               14-JUL-99

               TOKYO (AP) -- Nine Taiwanese women forced to work in
               brothels for Japanese soldiers during World War II sued
               Japan''s government today for compensation and an
               apology. 

               The women demanded $83,000 each in the suit filed at the
               Tokyo District Court, their lawyers said. 

               "I want the Japanese government to restore my honor,"
said
               Lu Man-mei, whose eyes filled with tears as she recounted
               her experiences. "After our return to Taiwan, we couldn't
find
               work or get married." 

               Japan maintains that all questions of compensation have
               already been settled with the nations involved. But Kunio
               Aitani, a lawyer for the group, said Tokyo has no postwar
               treaty with Taiwan and cannot claim that the grievances
of
               Taiwanese sex slaves have been satisfied. 

               Another plaintiff, Kao Pao-chu, described being abducted
by
               Japan's military and forced into "comfort centers" -- the
               euphemism for Imperial Army brothels -- in China and the
               mountains of Burma, also known as Myanmar. 

               "I want to meet with people from the Japanese government
               and at least hear them say 'I'm sorry,"' Kao said. She
also
               said she spent eight years in brothels outside of Taiwan. 

               The case gained new attention last week with the
revelation
               that several prominent Taiwanese families were
               shareholders in a Japanese company that ran the wartime
               brothels. 

               Taiwan was a Japanese colony from 1895 to 1945 and
               served as a launch pad for the Imperial Army's wartime
               invasion of Southeast Asia. 

               Historians say as many as 200,000 women, mostly Koreans
               but also Filipinos, Chinese and Dutch, were forced into
               sexual slavery by the Japanese during the war. 

               Until 1992, the Japanese government denied that its army
               was involved in establishing and running the front-line
               brothels. 

               Tokyo set up a private foundation to issue apologies and
               compensation. Most women have refused to accept the
               payment, saying it is not enough. 

               "Japan set up the fund to evade its responsibilities,"
said
               Mei-Fen Chiang, a lawyer who runs the Taipei Women's
               Rescue Fund.