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한국 대학생 듀오가 LA 일본총영사관 앞에서 ‘수요시위’를 벌이고 ‘위안부 소녀상’ 참배후 대륙횡단의 대장정(大長征)에 나섰다.
가주한미포럼은 하주영(25·경희대 스포츠의학과 3년), 조용주(21·연세대 스포츠응용산업학과 2년)씨 등 한국 대학생 2명이 21일 LA의 시민단체들과 함께 수요시위를 함께 벌였다고 밝혔다.
이날 두 대학생은 가주한미포럼과 LA 나비, 3.1여성동지회, 종교평화협의회 등 단체들과 함께 수요 시위를 함께 하며 일본의 위안부 역사 왜곡을 규탄(糾彈)하고 반인륜적인 전쟁범죄에 대한 사과와 공식 배상을 할 것을 촉구했다.
이들은 23일엔 LA 외곽의 글렌데일에 위치한 평화의 소녀상 참배후 대륙횡단 출정식을 가졌다.
이들은 LA를 출발해 뉴멕시코주 앨버커키, 시카고, 워싱턴 DC 등을 거쳐 오는 9월1일 뉴욕에 도착할 예정이다. 이들은 미 대륙을 자전거로 가로지르며 만나는 미국 시민들에게 일본 정부의 역사 왜곡과 위안부 할머니들의 고통과 실상을 알리는 활동을 벌인다. 또 위안부 피해자에 대한 사과를 요구하는 서명운동을 하고 주요 도시의 일본 영사관 앞에서 집회도 열 계획이다.
특히 이날 미 대륙 자전거 횡단 출정식에는 앤소니 포트란티노 캘리포니아주 상원의원이 직접 참석해 대학생들을 격려하고 표창장을 수여했다.
‘트리플 A 프로젝트’ 3기 멤버인 이들은 미 대륙을 횡단하는 동안 역사 왜곡과 과거 전쟁범죄를 부정하는 일본의 행태를 알리고 진정한 사과와 위안부 피해자 배상 여론을 조성하는 등 힘을 보태게 된다.
트리플 A 프로젝트는 ‘일본이 잘못을 인정(Admit)하고 사과(Apologize)한 뒤 동행(Accompany)하자'는 뜻으로 지난 2015년부터 매년 새로운 대학생들이 자전거로 미대륙을 횡단하는 도전을 계속하고 있다.
이들과 함께 현지의 사이클 동호인들이 대륙횡단의 성공을 축원(祝願)하며 일정 구간 함께 페달을 힘껏 밟았다.
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Statement of Triple A Project
We are the college students who want to tell the whole world about the Grandmas, the survivors of the Japanese military sexual slavery who are still fighting to recover their human rights and dignity after 70 years.
As sons, brothers, and future husbands and fathers, we believe no women should be made sex slaves under any circumstances and even a war shouldn’t be an excuse.
Yong-soo Lee was 15 years old when she was abducted by Japanese military and sent to a ‘comfort station’ to be made a sex slave. Jan Ruff O’Herne was 21 years old when she was picked out by Japanese officers from the prison camp where she and other Dutch Indonesians were incarcerated. Chin Wha, a Taiwanese, was 19 when she was cheated into the sexual slavery by false promise of a job. Fedencia David, from the Philippines, was only 14 when she was kidnapped with her grandmother at a market, by Japanese soldiers. Both of them were forced into military sex slavery.
These women came from Korea, Netherlands, China, Taiwan and the Philippines, but their stories are the same. They were taken and gang raped and brutalized in captivity, and made into a sex slave by Japanese Imperial Army. It was so horrible that one of the survivors describes it as a “slaughter house.”
After 25 years of struggle by the courageous Grandmas who broke the silence, and despite numerous recommendations from UN and the urge of the international community, Japanese government still fails to own up its past wrongdoings, and it continues to deny, downplay and cover up its past war crimes.
Comfort Women' issue is not a political dispute between Japan and S. Korea, but a matter of a serious war crime and a crime against humanity that needs to be resolved according to the international standard for the similar violations of human rights.
The only way to prevent such egregious and horrible crime against women from repeating itself is to disclose the whole truth and hold the criminals accountable.
Therefore, we want the Japanese government to make a bold move to take the following three steps:
First, Admit. The Abe administration must fully acknowledge and admit Japan’s responsibility for the system of sexual slavery.
Second, Apologize. Japanese government must make an official, unequivocal and sincere apology for inflicting such brutal violence against women and children. And they should stop committing even more crimes by denying and avoiding its responsibility.
Finally, we promise the courageous Grandmas that we will Accompany them. No human being should suffer from what these Grandmas went through. The only way we can prevent the same crimes from happening again is to educate ourselves and others. Therefore, we will stand with the grandmas until the justice is served.
3rd TAP members: Yong-joo Jo, Joo-young Ha (jyjnature@naver.com, 213-436-8385)
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