By David Cagahastian
EMPEROR Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan on Tuesday started their four-day state visit to the Philippines, acknowledging the thousands of Filipino civilians killed during World War II, but silent on the issue of Filipino “comfort women.”
In a departure statement in Tokyo, Emperor Akihito said “the tremendously large number of innocent Filipino civilians” who fell victims to the war must be borne in mind during his state visit.
“Many Filipinos, Americans and Japanese lost their lives in the Philippines during the war. Especially in the battle in Manila, a tremendously large number of innocent Filipino civilians were victims. Upon making this visit, we need to bear this in mind at all times,” Emperor Akihito said in a statement released in Tokyo before departing for Manila.
Contrary to prevailing sentiments of the Japanese people that Japan had already done enough to pay for its atrocities during World War II, Emperor Akihito issued the statement reflecting the traditional Japanese conciliatory stance toward countries like the Philippines, which they invaded during the war.
However, the issue of reparations and a public apology from Japan for Filipino comfort women appears to be a taboo for both the Philippines and Japan, with Malacañang officials, led by President Aquino, himself, admitting that the issue had already been resolved in a reparations agreement made in 1956. Hence, nobody in the government now is willing to take the blame–nor the cudgels–for the Filipino comfort women still living and demanding that Japan apologize for the rapes committed by its soldiers during the war.
In an interview two weeks ago, President Aquino reiterated that even when he was still just a congressman, he had already asked former Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon about what can be done to push the demands of Filipino comfort women for an apology from Japan.
“What he told me was that even before he was appointed, there had already been an agreement with the Japanese government—and that already included the reparations—and supposed to be included in the agreement are all these issues [about the comfort women],” he said.
However, he said it would cost nothing to suggest to the Japanese emperor other forms of assistance that can be given, aside from what had already been given to the Filipino comfort women.
But activist groups are wary that Mr. Aquino’s pronouncements to appease Filipino comfort women are mere motherhood statements that will not redound to the realization of their demands that Tokyo acknowledge the atrocities committed by Japanese soldiers against Filipino comfort women during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines.
Harry Roque, counsel for the Malaya Lolas group of Filipino comfort women and first nominee of Kabayan Party-List in the May elections, pointed out that Japan and South Korea had recently arrived at an agreement that will finally settle the issue of South Korean comfort women who were forced to have sex with Japanese soldiers from the 1930s up until the end of World War II.
The agreement involved a onetime final apology from the Japanese government and the payment of ¥1 billion to provide care for victims through a foundation. Roque said that while South Korea had took up the demand of its own comfort women, the Philippines is not and could actually be using the issue as leverage to get more support from Japan in its disagreements with China over territories in the West Philippine Sea.
“The Filipino comfort women are dying one by one. Each day that they are ignored by their own government, any hope of official acknowledgment and reparations grows dimmer, as the shadows of old age and mortality cast a dark pall on them. They should not be used as pawns by states in the geopolitical controversies of the day, as we fear is happening in regard to the Filipino comfort women. What we mean is that victims of horrendous human-rights violations should not be used by our government as a leverage in its talk with Japan for support against China over the West Philippine Sea controversy,” Roque said.
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko are scheduled to visit the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Taguig City, which is devoted to Filipino soldiers who died in World War II. They are also scheduled to visit a Japanese memorial shrine in Caliraya, Laguna, which was established to honor the Japanese soldiers who died during the war.
Image credits: Stephanie Tumampos