US urges Japan to apologise for sex slaves in WWII

JAPAN’S prime minister said yesterday that a US resolution demanding Japan formally apologise for forcing thousands of Asian women into sex slavery during World War II was regrettable because Japan has already made amends.

The US House of Representatives approved a resolution Monday urging Japan to formally acknowledge, apologise and “accept historical responsibility in a clear and unequivocal manner” for the suffering of so-called “comfort women”.

“The resolution is regrettable,” said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. “I explained my views and the government’s response on this matter during my visit to the US in April.”

Historians say the Imperial Japanese Army forcibly sent hundreds of thousands of women, mainly from Korea, China and the Philippines, to wartime Japanese military brothels to work as prostitutes in the 1930s and 1940s.

Since the government acknowledged the practice in the early 1990s, Japanese leaders have repeatedly apologised over the issue. But in March, Abe triggered anger across Asia by saying there was no proof the women were coerced — reflecting a view among Japan’s right-wing politicians, who claim the issue has been fabricated or exaggerated.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said Japan had no plans to lodge a protest with Washington over the resolution.