CASE UNCLOSED: October 22 2009

  • 2 days ago
Arnold Clavio
Transcript
00:00Brother, please come home. I'm begging you.
00:04It's been more than six decades,
00:07but the calvary of Filipino corrupt women continues.
00:13Brother, please don't.
00:16It's enough. It hurts.
00:18Just kill me. That's all I'm saying.
00:23Some of them have already died,
00:25but they are still looking for justice.
00:29We will win!
00:33Can those who are left fighting
00:36wait for respect and damage from those who have betrayed them?
00:43Action now, not tomorrow.
00:46Because the urgency is there.
00:49They are getting old and weak.
00:52Good evening. I am Aron Clavio.
00:54Yesterday's questions will be answered here in Case Unclosed.
01:15More than six decades have not passed since Felicidad de los Reyes
01:19held the hands of the Japanese soldiers.
01:34In 1943, at the young age of 14,
01:37more than ten Japanese were sent to the village of Masbate.
01:43Lola Feliceng grew up in Masbate.
01:47Her parents were both farmers.
01:52Their peaceful life started to change
01:55when the Second World War broke out in 1941.
02:02They had to flee to the village of Milagros.
02:06My father knew how to plant.
02:10Our neighbors were with us.
02:14So they planted.
02:16My father and I had a fish trap.
02:20We set up a fish trap.
02:23The neighbors were gone,
02:25so there was no one to kill during the war.
02:29Feliceng also studied in Milagros.
02:36She was 14 years old then,
02:38but she was still in the second grade
02:40in Milagros Elementary School.
02:44There was a Japanese teacher named Suzuki,
02:47but I knew him as Shihase.
02:50Shihase was a good teacher.
02:53He was a good teacher.
02:55His name was Suzuki,
02:57but I knew him as Shihase.
03:00He was our teacher.
03:02He taught us how to drill a song
03:06that had the lyrics of Surapiti.
03:13I remember that.
03:15We all remember that
03:17because he was a good teacher.
03:26As a greeting to the Japanese,
03:28the teacher encouraged
03:30Grandma Feliceng to sing
03:33in a program held in their school.
03:37They were happy
03:39because they were able to sing.
03:42They were laughing.
03:56The next day,
03:58a Japanese soldier called her
04:00to give her a gift.
04:07Is she the one?
04:10She's my friend, Surapiti.
04:13The Japanese told me
04:15that there are many people my age.
04:18When I returned to Garis,
04:20the school was just behind me.
04:22When I got there,
04:24I didn't see anyone my age.
04:26There were also women
04:28who were cooking and washing.
04:30But they were older than me.
04:32They were in their 20s.
04:40It was a different gift
04:42that was waiting for Feliceng.
04:46Brother, I'm going home.
04:49Brother, I'm going home.
04:52I'm going home.
04:54I ran to the door
04:56because there were two men
04:58at the door.
05:00I was pushed to the door
05:02because it was a room.
05:05I was able to enter
05:07because I was wearing a hijab.
05:09That's when I cried.
05:18I was able to escape.
05:30That's when I was shocked.
05:32I couldn't believe
05:34what they did to me.
05:36It was painful for me.
05:38I asked myself,
05:40what is this?
05:49They went out one by one.
05:52But I heard them laughing.
05:56They were talking
05:58and laughing.
06:00I said,
06:02that's when I realized
06:04that they were deceiving me.
06:06That's what they said.
06:10Feliceng was just one
06:12of around 200,000 women in Asia.
06:15She was made by Comfort Women,
06:17a group of Japanese soldiers.
06:20Many were hoping
06:22that the Japanese government
06:24would get their statement on this issue.
06:26But like others,
06:28even for us,
06:30we couldn't get their story.
06:32According to Feliceng's record,
06:34she remained inside the garrison
06:36until the next day.
06:38Five Japanese soldiers
06:40were again
06:42attacking her at night.
06:45I was in pain.
06:47I was hit several times
06:49during the night.
06:51When a Japanese soldier
06:53grabbed me,
06:55I felt hot.
06:57When they let me go home,
06:59they said,
07:01go home.
07:03I said, no.
07:05I don't need them anymore.
07:07I know my home.
07:09They let me go home.
07:14I don't need them anymore.
07:24I don't need them anymore.
07:28I don't need them anymore.
07:34According to Cohen Milstein's study,
07:37an international law firm
07:39under the Asia Pacific Wars
07:41of 1931 and 1932
07:43approved by the Japanese government
07:45the system of sexual slavery
07:47in each country they occupied.
07:50This includes
07:52Korea, China, Myanmar,
07:54Indonesia, and the Philippines.
07:57In 1910,
08:01the Japanese occupied Korea.
08:05They announced to the world
08:07that since then,
08:09there is no more Korea,
08:11there is no longer the Kingdom of Korea,
08:13but there is a new province
08:15in Japan
08:17named Joseon.
08:19Then in 1931,
08:21the Japanese imperialists
08:23started to occupy China.
08:29Comfort Women.
08:31They were called
08:33the members of the Japanese Imperial Army
08:35or JIA
08:37to the women they enslaved.
08:41During the war,
08:43since the Japanese
08:45were used to
08:47having a lot of women,
08:49of course,
08:51they would go to their houses.
08:53But the officials
08:55didn't want that
08:57because it would spread disease
08:59and they would get sick.
09:01They couldn't fight.
09:03So to make sure
09:05their officials
09:07built their own houses.
09:09What they used
09:11were not payments,
09:13but the women
09:15who were forced,
09:17kidnapped,
09:19those houses were
09:21their comfort stations.
09:25Although not all
09:27historians agree
09:29with the victims' stories,
09:31the number of Comfort Women
09:33in the countries
09:35occupied by Japan was estimated
09:37But when
09:39they were victimized,
09:41the number
09:43went from 8
09:45to 21.
09:47So if you look at it,
09:49there were a lot of Comfort Girls.
09:51Mass rape because there were a lot.
09:53Serial rape because there were a lot.
09:55And also gang rape
09:57because there were a lot.
10:01According to a special report
10:03by the United Nations,
10:05the first Comfort Station
10:07was established by Japanese soldiers
10:09in 1932.
10:11One of the commanders
10:13was Lieutenant General
10:15Okamura Yasuji.
10:17He was the one who confessed
10:19that there were women
10:21from a Korean community in Japan
10:23who were sent to China
10:25to become sex slaves.
10:27The governor of Nagasaki
10:29was behind this.
10:31The Japanese government
10:33also sent women
10:35to hundreds of Comfort Stations
10:37that were built by Japanese soldiers
10:39in China,
10:41Hong Kong, Taiwan,
10:43Korea, Guam,
10:45Singapore, Myanmar,
10:47and Thailand.
10:49The Philippines was not saved
10:51from the Japanese invasion
10:53in 1941.
10:57When the war broke out,
10:59more than 500 Filipinos
11:01were included
11:03in the list of
11:05Comfort Women in Asia.
11:07The Japanese felt
11:09that their territory
11:11was consolidated
11:13in 1943.
11:15in 1943.
11:19That's when they started
11:21the Comfort Women System.
11:23It was a power trip
11:25to show that you were defeated.
11:29In the past,
11:31the Comfort Women
11:33fought for justice.
11:35The most famous
11:37Comfort Women in the Philippines
11:39was Maria Rosa Luna Henson
11:41or better known as
11:43Lola Rosa.
11:45September 18, 1992,
11:47when she reported
11:49to the media
11:51that the Japanese soldiers
11:53were attacking her
11:55during the Second World War.
11:57Lola Rosa was the first
11:59Filipino woman
12:01to show her face
12:03to the victims of the abuse.
12:05When Lola Rosa
12:07was released,
12:09it triggered and galvanized
12:11into action.
12:13Other women
12:15followed her.
12:17It was like she gave them courage.
12:21Three months before this,
12:23a new group was formed
12:25called the Asian Women
12:27Human Rights Council
12:29or ASWRC,
12:31the Task Force on Filipino
12:33Comfort Women.
12:35It was formed by 14 women
12:37to investigate and make
12:39a legal statement
12:41on the cases of Comfort Women
12:43in the country.
12:45Atty. Romeo Capulong
12:47of the Public Interest Law Center
12:49was Lola Rosa's lawyer
12:51and other victims.
12:53We did a lot of initial documentation
12:55here in the Philippines.
13:01We collaborated with
13:03Japanese lawyers and
13:05American lawyers.
13:07Because of the other
13:09Comfort Women,
13:11Lila Filipina
13:13was placed under
13:15Gabriella.
13:17On April 3, 1993,
13:19the first batch of
13:21members of the Lila Filipina
13:23in the Tokyo District Court
13:25was assigned to the Japanese
13:27government.
13:29In September of that year,
13:31the second batch was assigned
13:33to the Comfort Women.
13:35The Japanese government
13:37needs to give
13:39justice to the victims,
13:41their families,
13:43and the country.
13:45It needs to record in history
13:47the truth of the Comfort Women
13:49how the women were abducted
13:51and treated inside the Comfort Stations.
13:53And thirdly, because there were
13:55crimes committed,
13:57they need to pay compensation.
14:01While the cases were running,
14:03the Japanese government
14:05established the Asian Women's Fund
14:07or AWF in 1995
14:09under the leadership of the former
14:11Prime Minister Tomeichi Murayama.
14:13Through donations
14:15from the citizens of Japan,
14:17the victims were given
14:19an atonement money
14:21worth 2 million yen
14:23or almost 1 million pesos
14:25each.
14:27The Japanese government
14:29also gave 1.2 million yen
14:31or 600 pesos as a medical fund.
14:35According to the Lila Filipina,
14:3788 out of 174
14:39victims
14:41accepted the atonement money.
14:43Not all Lolas
14:45decided to accept.
14:47Others really didn't want to accept.
14:49Others wanted to accept,
14:51but we didn't.
14:53Because that will be doing injustice
14:55for the second time around.
14:57Because clearly, this is an atonement money
14:59to help the victims
15:01while they were fighting.
15:03Aside from the atonement money,
15:05they also sent an apology
15:07letter to the Comfort Women.
15:09That's not an official
15:11statement of the
15:13Prime Minister and the Cabinet.
15:15That's why
15:17it can't be considered
15:19as a public apology.
15:23The victims and their supporters
15:25believe that the Japanese government
15:27built the Asian Women's Fund
15:29so that they won't directly
15:31accept their atonement to the Comfort Women.
15:33That's where they hid.
15:35Under the foundation.
15:37And that's what managed,
15:39the victims.
15:41Meanwhile, what the victims want is direct.
15:43The Japanese government
15:45should ask for an apology
15:47and directly give
15:49compensation to the Lolas.
15:51They can directly give it
15:53to the government.
15:57It should be given
15:59with explicit recognition
16:01by the Japanese government
16:03that they are giving this
16:05because they know
16:07that this is a crime against humanity
16:09committed by their troops
16:11in the Second World War.
16:13In the midst of the heated
16:15discussion about the Asian Women's Fund,
16:17the case was dismissed
16:19in the Tokyo Court
16:21on October 9, 1998.
16:25The reason given
16:27by the Japanese court
16:29is that the Japanese
16:31courts are not yet ready
16:33to implement the human rights.
16:35So,
16:37by November,
16:39we went to the Court of Appeals
16:41of Japan.
16:43They call it the Appellate Court.
16:45And by the year 2000,
16:47the order was dropped
16:49and it was
16:51dismissed in the Court of Appeals.
16:53And then we decided to bring it
16:55to the Supreme Court.
16:57And in the Supreme Court,
16:59in the year 2003,
17:01on December 25,
17:03we lost.
17:05A class action suit
17:07was filed by the victims
17:09in the District Court of Columbia, Washington, D.C.
17:11on September 18, 2000.
17:13But just like what happened
17:15in Tokyo,
17:17Judge Kennedy's case was also dismissed
17:19on October 4, 2001.
17:21The court allows
17:23that you can file a case
17:25for as long as the case is a violation
17:27against the human rights
17:29of a foreigner.
17:31The reason was
17:33at that time,
17:35the Japanese Emperor was given
17:37immunity.
17:39So, we lost.
17:43Despite his age of 78,
17:45he still hopes
17:47that he can get justice.
17:49While his grandmother,
17:51Rosa, was brought back to life
17:53in 1997,
17:55when she was stabbed in the heart.
17:57Somehow,
17:59she was able to get justice.
18:09The comfort women
18:11were subjected to the same fate
18:13when they were stabbed
18:15by the Japanese government.
18:19It seems that the victims
18:21who were brought back to life
18:23in the Congress
18:25have high hopes
18:27that we would like to know
18:29if the Japanese government
18:31would be willing to
18:33apologize
18:35after acknowledging the existence
18:37of comfort women and then
18:39provide compensation.
18:41If this happens,
18:43this is a hope for our grandmothers
18:45because, of course,
18:47if this comes from us
18:49and we ask the government of Japan,
18:51there is still hope.
18:53It would have passed
18:55in the second reading of the Congress,
18:57but on April 10, 2008,
18:59it was brought back to the committee level
19:01of the Foreign Affairs Committee Chair,
19:03Representative Antonio Cuenco.
19:07One of the reasons
19:09why it was brought back
19:11is the strong lobby pressure
19:13from the Japanese government
19:15and from other sectors.
19:17That's why
19:19it was brought back.
19:21They questioned the quorum
19:23while on other occasions,
19:25they didn't really question
19:27the number of voters.
19:29We tried to get the report
19:31of Congressman Cuenco,
19:33but he didn't launch an interview
19:35on Case Unclosed.
19:37Lola Pelesing is one of the victims
19:39who are waiting to pass the resolution.
19:41At the age of 79,
19:43she is googling her time
19:45in visiting Lola's house
19:47in Lila, the Philippines
19:49to continue fighting for their rights.
19:51That's what we are asking.
19:53Why are we not
19:55being understood
19:57by our government?
19:59It's up to the government.
20:01What they need is now.
20:03Action now.
20:05It can't be tomorrow.
20:07Because the urgency is there
20:09that they are getting old
20:11and they are getting weak.
20:13So when will we decide
20:15that we need to fulfill their request
20:17if they are no longer there?
20:19We tried to get the report
20:21of Comfort Women,
20:23but we couldn't get an answer
20:25from them.
20:27According to Atty. Kapulong,
20:29they are not finishing their fight
20:31in court.
20:33The political aspect
20:35of this case
20:37is more important.
20:39It's a comprehensive
20:41investigation
20:43and giving
20:45a lesson
20:47to show
20:49how bad
20:51a war is,
20:53what should be the responsibility
20:55of the aggressor
20:57who committed
20:59a crime against humanity.
21:03Just like their age,
21:05Lila is also getting old
21:07when the Philippine Comfort Women are fighting.
21:11Now, they are becoming
21:13victims of
21:15giving support to the victims
21:17when finally,
21:19they can use justice.
21:23Until next Wednesday,
21:25I am Arnold Glavio.
21:27We will continue with
21:29Case Unclosed.
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