Time to stand up for comfort women- NDP

Time to stand up for comfort women- NDP

OTTAWA –The NDP critic for Human Rights called on the Conservative government to follow the lead from the U.S. House of Representatives and approve a resolution to call on the Japanese Prime Minister to acknowledge, apologize and appropriately compensate the Korean, Chinese and Filipino women who were forced into prostitution during WWII.

NDP MP Wayne Marston (Hamilton East-Stoney Creek) stated, “We must act in accordance with the principles of defending human rights that ordinary Canadians believe in. Around 200,000 women were lured from their homes in neighboring countries and forced to work as prostitutes for the Japanese military. Japan should officially apologize and compensate these women and Canada should be urging them to do so.”

No formal apology or redress has been delivered and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has made disturbing comments in recent months about their situation. In April, Marston introduced a motion at the sub-committee on International Human Rights asking the Conservative government to urge the Japanese to officially apologize and provide compensation. Although the sub-committee passed that motion, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs sent it back for further study.

“Women’s organizations, representatives of the affected communities and the NDP have pushed for such action by Parliament but have had difficulty securing support for inexplicable reasons,” charged NDP MP Olivia Chow (Trinity Spadina), who authored a parallel motion on comfort women that is currently before the House of Commons. “Until truth is named, reconciliation cannot be achieved,” she said.

“If the U.S. House of Representatives can pass a resolution calling for an official apology, this Government should follow that lead and the NDP motion should be approved as soon as Parliament resumes, so that Canada can join other nations in urging the Japanese Government to do what is right,” said Marston. “History denied is justice denied – Canada should have moved on this issue a long time ago.”

(PRESS RELEASE)