2021 International Young Adult Online Campaign: raising awareness about registering the “Voices of the ‘Comfort Women’” to the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme
In May 2016, the International Committee for Joint Nomination of Documents on the Japanese Military “Comfort Women” to UNESCO Memory of the World Register (ICJN) submitted an application for the “Voices of the ‘Comfort Women’” to be added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme. The “Voices of the ‘Comfort Women’” is a collection of documents that contain the stories of “comfort women” who were forced into Japan’s wartime military sexual slavery system before and during WWII. During the same year, some right-wing groups in Japan also applied for registration in the UNESCO Memory of the World Program with six cases that deny the forced nature of the Japanese military sexual slavery system.
In October 2017, the application was “postponed” pending “dialogue” between the applicants and the Japanese government. The revised criteria state that when an application is contested, applicants need to “talk” through the third party between two applicants. This revision of pursuing “dialogue” in cases where an application is contested legitimizes the perpetrator’s veto power and amounts to demanding that victims negotiate with perpetrators.
For more information:
ICJN of Documents on the Japanese Military ‘Comfort Women’ to UNESCO Memory of the World Register website: Voices of the "Comfort Women"
Voices of the "Comfort Women": The Power Politics Surrounding the UNESCO Documentary Heritage--Heisoo Shin
In October 2017, the application was “postponed” pending “dialogue” between the applicants and the Japanese government. The revised criteria state that when an application is contested, applicants need to “talk” through the third party between two applicants. This revision of pursuing “dialogue” in cases where an application is contested legitimizes the perpetrator’s veto power and amounts to demanding that victims negotiate with perpetrators.
For more information:
ICJN of Documents on the Japanese Military ‘Comfort Women’ to UNESCO Memory of the World Register website: Voices of the "Comfort Women"
Voices of the "Comfort Women": The Power Politics Surrounding the UNESCO Documentary Heritage--Heisoo Shin