Hello Everybody,   
      
   Some discussion has been had in this echo concerning comfort girls,   
   or comfort women.  Many people around the world have been misled   
   by the term.  While there were a handful of cases where young girls   
   were forced by individual Japanese soldiers to have sex with them   
   and/or their units, this was not the norm.   
      
   For Japan's high command, comfort women and condoms were essential   
   supplies for the imperial troops.  Chaste teenage virgins were most   
   desirable.  However, Japanese officers and soldiers did not round up   
   scared little girls who were running away from them.  Nothing could   
   have been farther from the truth.  The girls came to them, willingly   
   offering their sexual services to the officers and soldiers. As long   
   as they had money (and food or other favors) to spend.   
      
   Almost all the women known as "comfort girls" or "comfort women"   
   willingly sold their services to the Japanese for money.  IOW, they   
   were prostitutes.   
      
   These "comfort women" were put under the control of brother owners   
   and were paid for the sexual service they performed for Japanese   
   soldiers.  That is good old-fashioned brother prostitution - by   
   anybody's definition.  The brothels were licensed by and under the   
   control of the Japanese military.   
      
   Were these women forcibly abducted by the Japanese army?  Were these   
   women forced to be comfort women?  Even Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo   
   Abe was extremely skeptical of that, and has openly denied those   
   allegations.   
      
   Think it out.  To recap what Japanese have said for decades -   
      
   Comfort women were prostitutes like prostitutes. These prostitutes   
   were put under the control of brothel owners and were paid for their   
   services.  The entire system was not criminal.  And most certainly   
   not anything amounting to "war crimes" or "crimes against humanity".   
      
   For more on this subject, read this most excellent book -   
      
   "Sexual Violence and Postcolonial Memory in Korea and Japan", by   
   C. Sarah Soh, professor of anthropolgy at San Francisco University.   
      
   --Lee   
      
      
    * SLMR 2.1a * "Your raincheck is in the mail." - KFC   
      
   --- Maximus 3.01   
    * Origin: Xaragmata / Adelaide SA telnet://xaragmata.mooo.com (3:800/432)