This article from the Sankei Shimbun opinion page highlights the last “testament” of a Korean-American man who opposed the spread of anti-Japanese propaganda in the United States. Drawing on firsthand experiences during World War II, he rejected claims of mass coercion of Korean comfort women and criticized Japan’s weak communication strategy. The piece also examines systematic Chinese-Korean lobbying efforts, widespread historical misunderstandings about Japanese rule in Korea, and the need for Japan to persistently assert factual history in international forums.

The following is from today’s Sankei Shimbun opinion column.
It is essential reading not only for the Japanese people but for people around the world.

Has Japan Confronted the Comfort Women Issue?
A Korean-American’s “Final Testament”

Last month, the “comfort woman girl statue” installed on public land in Berlin, Germany, was forcibly removed by local authorities.
This was because the Korean civic group that had installed the statue refused to comply with the judicial ruling that ordered its removal.
It was a measure that was overdue, but naturally justified.
Germany undoubtedly meant to say, “Do not bring another country’s problems into ours.”
Responding to this, correspondent Katsuhiro Kuroda, stationed in Seoul, wrote about the girl statue that remains in front of the Japanese embassy there (dated October 25).
“Since its illegal installation in 2011, anti-Japanese groups continue to hold weekly rallies denouncing Japan, making the area noisy.”
Because of this, even rebuilding the embassy (the embassy is currently in temporary quarters) is still impossible.
The column continued: “Internationally, this is completely abnormal and bizarre. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the normalization of Japan–Korea relations, and while there are many commemorative events, no one touches this issue.”

Repeating Lies

A certain Korean-American man comes to my mind.
Let us call him Mr. L.
He came from a yangban family, the traditional upper class, but he was born during Japan’s rule over Korea.
He reached the end of the war while in the old-style middle school.
After studying at a prestigious Korean university after the war, he moved to the United States, acquired American citizenship, and succeeded in business.
Mr. L passed away this spring in his mid-90s.
Therefore, what I write now may be considered his “final testament” addressed to Japanese people as we approach 80 years since the end of the war.
His anonymity is to protect his family from unjust attacks.

Mr. L was someone who, even as a “fellow Korean,” consistently opposed the unjust anti-Japanese propaganda in the United States such as the installation of comfort women statues led by Chinese and Korean communities.
It was not out of emotion.
As a teenage boy at the end of the war, Mr. L had seen and heard the reality of the comfort stations.
He said:
“In my surroundings, not a single Korean woman was forcibly taken by the Japanese military and made into a comfort woman, nor did I ever hear such rumors. If there really were tens of thousands of comfort women, there is no way the adults around me would not have known.”

In the United States, Mr. L took concrete action.
He sent letters urging local lawmakers—who, under pressure from Chinese and Korean communities, were moving toward approving the installation of statues—to reconsider.
He also attempted to speak openly in public hearings of city councils deliberating the installation, expressing his opposition.
According to him, Chinese and Korean organizations were deploying systematic and strategic anti-Japanese propaganda.
They staged performances in front of the media and U.S. officials, mobilizing elderly women introduced as “former comfort women,” having them weep and scream.
They gathered political donations through church networks, using voting blocs to win over U.S. legislators (including some of Japanese descent).
They sought to embed falsehoods into U.S. textbooks and to expand the installation of comfort women statues—an attempt at “fixing lies as truth (brainwashing).”
“Even lies,” he said, “if presented consistently by Chinese and Korean groups, will cause Americans—who do not know the truth—to believe them.”

Japan Has Been “Losing”

In contrast, Mr. L believed that the Japanese government had been “losing continuously.”
They were timid, lacked a communication strategy, and could not mount organized or effective rebuttals.
“The Japanese side simply panicked, fearing escalation. They seemed to think that if they ignored it, the uproar would quiet down—a typical avoidance mindset.”
Moreover, he said: “Japanese leaders have admitted to things that are not factual (such as coercion) and even apologized (through the Kono Statement, etc.). Because of this, ordinary Americans came to believe that ‘Japan is trying to cover its face and hide from this issue.’”

Mr. L admonished:
“The Japanese government has apologized again and again, even paid money. How long will you keep bowing? It is not too late even now—Japan must persistently assert the truth.”

“The issue of armies and sex” exists in militaries worldwide.
As an example, Mr. L pointed to the fact that the South Korean military dispatched to the Vietnam War produced numerous mixed-race children with Vietnamese women—an issue that remains a serious social problem.
He did not deny that such issues existed in the Japanese military, but stressed they were not a “unique problem” deserving worldwide condemnation.

Yet sadly, within the Korean-American community, people like Mr. L were an overwhelming minority, and eventually he began to fear for his safety.

A Korea Full of Misunderstandings

A former classmate from Mr. L’s old-style middle school said:
“In one word, he was a ‘giant of intellect.’ He was fluent not only in history but in multiple foreign languages.”
I exchanged phone calls and emails with Mr. L many times while he lived in the United States, learning much from him about “the truth of Japanese rule in Korea.”

Let me stress clearly to avoid misunderstanding.
It is true that Mr. L had many Japanese acquaintances, including former classmates, and that he had deep understanding and affection for Japan.
But he was by no means “unconditionally pro-Japanese.”
Rather, he judged fairly and impartially—distinguishing clearly between “what was good” and “what was bad.”

Mr. L said that during the colonial period he had experienced discriminatory attitudes from Japanese, and during the war he felt resentment that rationing differed between Japanese and Koreans.
I also heard this story:
“In Korea, especially in the northern regions, there were many Christians. Many Koreans felt deep resistance to being forced to bow their heads at Shinto shrines built by the Japanese or being obliged to worship the Imperial Palace (toward Tokyo).”

At the same time, regarding the stories widely believed by modern Koreans and many Japanese about the colonial period, Mr. L said, “There are far too many misunderstandings.”
For example, regarding the “righteous armies” (uibyong), celebrated in today’s Korea as armed resistance groups against Japanese rule:
Mr. L’s grandfather, who served as a county chief during the late Korean Empire prior to annexation (1910), said: “A bad law is better than lawlessness.”
What did he mean?
At that time, Korea was in turmoil, and many areas had fallen into lawlessness.
Among those calling themselves “righteous armies” were bandits and thieves who attacked villages, kidnapped wealthy families’ children, and demanded ransom.
Thus, Mr. L’s grandfather and others believed it was better to have “order restored through the rule of law by Japan”—even if under a so-called “bad law”—than to continue in a state of lawlessness.
I do not consider Japanese legal order a “bad law,” but this was likely one candid perspective held by some educated Koreans under colonial rule.

(Chief Editorial Writer, Yoshihiro Kita)