Statement by the NHRCK Chairperson on the “Memorial Day for Comfort Women Victims”
- Remembering the voice of the late Kim Hak-sun, the first to speak out -
- Restoring honor and dignity must be centered on the victims -
□ The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (Chairperson Ahn Chang-ho, hereinafter “NHRCK”) issues the following statement on the occasion of the “Memorial Day for Comfort Women Victims” on August 14, 2025, in remembrance of the pain and courage of the victims.
□ August 14, 1991, marks the day when the late Kim Hak-sun, a victim of the Japanese military’s comfort women system, publicly testified about her experience for the first time. Since 2017, the Government of the Republic of Korea has designated August 14 of each year as the “Memorial Day for Comfort Women Victims” and has held commemorative events.
□ The forced mobilization for comfort women and the atrocious acts of sexual violence committed under Japanese imperial rule constitute war crimes that violated international conventions such as the International Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Women and Children (1921) and the Forced Labour Convention (1930).
○ Nevertheless, these gross human rights violations, including the forced mobilization of comfort women, went unpunished for decades and only came to be publicly known in 1991, 46 years after the end of the Second World War, through the courageous testimony of the late Kim Hak-sun.
□ In 2015, the Governments of the Republic of Korea and Japan reached the “Agreement on the Issue of Comfort Women Victims.” However, the wishes of the victims, particularly their calls for an official apology and legal recognition of responsibility by the Japanese Government, were not adequately reflected in the agreement.
○ The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the Committee against Torture have also expressed concerns that the 2015 agreement did not sufficiently adopt a victim-centered approach, and have repeatedly stressed the need for full redress and compensation for the victims.
□ As of 2025, there has still been no official apology from the Japanese Government acknowledging its accountability, and the victims’ honor and dignity have yet to be fully restored. However, the NHRCK notes the significant meaning of the domestic court ruling of May 15, 2025, in which the court, for the third time, confirmed the Japanese Government’s liability for damages in a lawsuit filed by the bereaved family of the late Gil Gap-soon. This decision reflects both societal awareness of the issue and the will to realize justice.
○ The repeated recognition by domestic courts of the Japanese Government’s legal responsibility carries great significance, as it reframes the matter -once viewed primarily as a diplomatic issue- into one of war crimes requiring reparations for damages.
○ However, whether the victims will actually receive compensation from the Japanese Government remains uncertain. For substantial redress to be achieved, the Korean Government must maintain a consistent position prioritizing the victims’ perspectives and continue diplomatic efforts.
□ The Governments of the Republic of Korea and Japan must take all necessary measures, including guaranteeing the rights of the comfort women victims, providing reparations, and restoring honor, so that the victims’ dignity is fully upheld.
□ The NHRCK remembers the voice of the late Kim Hak-sun, who first spoke out, and hopes that the “Memorial Day for Comfort Women Victims” will serve as a reminder that this issue is not merely a matter of the past, but a pressing human rights and peace agenda for the present and future. The NHRCK will continue to make every effort to prevent the recurrence of wartime sexual violence and to protect the human rights of victims.
August 13, 2025
Ahn Chang-ho
Chairperson, National Human Rights Commission of Korea
