It was during the time Korea was suffering from colonial exploitation and oppression that over 200,000 Asian women were becoming comfort women. Young girls who had dreams of becoming someone’s wife and leading an ordinary life had their dreams taken away. Some were told they could make money by working in factories, and some were kidnapped by Japanese soldiers.

Japan is denying this issue and has said that it was prostitution, however the truth is it was a system of forced military prostitution by the Japanese government. Japan is now denying any involvement and has tried to cover up the tragic stories of the innocent girls.

There have been numerous attempts to get international attention and appeal for the victims, but have failed due to the lobbying of the Japanese government. However, the Korean victims did not give up. The victims have stepped up to testify about their experiences. Finally, together with the efforts of Korean Americans overseas and persistent NGO’s in 2007, the U.S. House of Representative Foreign Affairs Committee passed a resolution on the comfort women issue.

The world’s longest protest is held every Wednesday in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul, Korea. The comfort women victims may forgive but they will never forget. They only want a sincere apology from Japan so they can move on.