뉴스레터

The unveiling of The Peace Monument on the streets of Berlin, Germany (2020. 9. 28)

The Birth of New Korean-German Civil Society

Korea Verband was founded in 1990. Since then, German citizens have been informed about issues related to Korea in German society. And we have been planning and implementing international programs to overcome past history with young people from various countries such as Germany, Poland, Korea and Japan. In 2008, we established the AG Trostfrauen. The Korean Council for the Women Drafted for Military Sexual Slavery by Japan was visiting Germany while campaigning in Europe to announce the Sexual Slavery Victims issue. Since then, Korea Verband has organized and conducted campaigns, various educational projects, and has held rallies with international women's rights organizations. Once a year we invited survivors of the Sexual Slavery Victims to Germany to hold testimony, public lectures and press conferences, and also hosted meetings between survivors and German politicians. And we continued to hold peace protests in front of the Brandenburg Gate, a symbol of Berlin, demanding Japan's apology and efforts to resolve the issue. This has affected the call for German public opinion. In the fall of 2019, Korea Verband opened a space to display issues related to the Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims and data on sexual violence that occurred during the war. The name of this space is 'Mooeon-Daeon'. We held an exhibition titled 「Wound – Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims in South Korea and the Philippines testify through pictures」 and held a workshop with youth in cooperation with schools around the exhibition hall. Currently, it is under construction to improve it to an exhibition space for youth with the support of NAHF.

Memory and Empathy through The Peace Monument

Meanwhile, the conflict within Germany over The Peace Monument, which was set up to remember the Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims, remains. Germany is virtually impossible to build unless it is a sculpture that remembers or commemorates the history of its own country. The standard of setting up sculptures related to history in public places is also difficult. In this situation, on September 28, the 'The Peace Monument' donated by The Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan was established on the streets of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is the third time The Peace Monument has been installed in Germany, but it is the first time it has been built on public lands. It is about 3km away from the Japanese Embassy in Germany.

The Peace Monument was set up in Freiburg, which had a sisterhood relationship with Suwon City, but the planned work was canceled because Japan had trouble with it. The privately owned Women's Museum in Vaughan also gave up on setting up The Peace Monument. They decided that the pressure from the Japanese consul general and Nordrhein-Westfalen was so strong that it would be difficult to set up. The ultra-small The Peace Monument, less than 10cm on display at Ravensbrueck Memorial, had to be removed suddenly. It was the result of Japan's harsh diplomatic pressure. Therefore, it is meaningful that the Peace Monument was successfully set up in Berlin. This is because the movement for Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims has been expanded by highlighting the issue of women who have been damaged by war and the issue of women's human rights.

For the strength of patience against it, For the peace that we make together

Korea Verband is organizing a federation for to set up and protect the Peace Monument in Berlin. The federation includes more than 30 organizations, including international organizations for women who have been sexually assaulted during the war, Korean-German civic groups, migrant groups, German Protestant groups, Korean churches and local communities. This shows the status of movement for 'Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims' in German society.

Most interestingly, the community reUNION joined by 13 local groups was included in the federation. In Germany, to set up a particular sculpture on public land, the consent of a community of local residents must be required. To achieve this, we cultivated vegetables with residents in the common garden of the school near 'Mooeon-Daeon' and held various cultural events. We have consistently interacted and communicated closely with the community. The consent of reUNION is the result of this long-standing effort. The reason why we formed the federation with such diverse members is that we thought that we should look at the issue of 'Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims' from a postcolonial perspective rather than limited to Asia. We also had a willingness to inform the violence of war, as well as the horrors of sexual violence against women. But this was possible because of this perception in German civil society: "If there is a fault in history, it must be liquidated."

Korea Verband has anticipated that it is likely that the Japanese government will prevent the set-up of The Peace Monument. So we were careful with security in all the processes from licensing to set-up. Just before the unveiling ceremony, the information related to the event was released. Nevertheless, about three hundred people gathered. It was a wonder. Insa Eschebach, a religious scholar who served as director of Ravensbrueck Memorial, said: “The Peace Monument is not aggressive, and it protest without a fist, flag, flame or weapon. The Peace Monument confronts someone with presence and patience. This is the power of The Peace Monument.” Daniel Schuhmacher, who described 'Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims' in high school history textbooks for the first time in Germany, said: “Germany has neglected the crimes of imperialism and the sexual violence that has harmed women. The Peace Monument is like symbolizing it. I hope that through The Peace Monument, the discourse on the subject will begin.” Japan then said it was extremely regrettable, contrary to their position. And they explained their position to various officials, and said they would eventually try to demolish The Peace Monument.

However, the issue of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims is a theme that reveals women's human rights and peace against sexual violence that occurred during the war. That is why I think Berlin is sympathetic to our intention to set up The Peace Monument and is fascinated by the high artistry of the monument. Germany and Japan are the same World War II war criminals, but they have shown different attitudes toward the affected countries and past history. We hope that citizens around the world, including Japan, will share and expand the value of human rights and peace implied in The Peace Monument. Based on our long experience and network across Germany, we will continue to work to solve problems related to the Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victims. We engrave the words of Japanese Military Sexual Slavery Victim and survivor Lee Yong-soo on my heart. “The Peace Monument is deep resentment and sadness of victims, the heart of education for future generations.”