This is the longest protest in history – comfort women protest

With the protests in Kenya and Nigeria all happening this year, one may wonder what’s the longest-running protest.

After almost three decades, the ‘comfort women’ protest movement in South Korea has grown in popularity and reached new areas.

Since 1992, South Korean activists have protested weekly outside the former Japanese embassy in Seoul, demanding an apology from Japan for forcing women into sexual slavery during World War II.

These women are known as “comfort women” who were forced to provide sexual services without their consent to Japanese soldiers.

The Korean Council, other key players, the geographic dispersion of the protests, counter-protesters, and growing anti-Japanese sentiment have impacted the movement.

The Korean Council has been the main force behind weekly “comfort women” protests in South Korea since its founding in 1992. They also participate in these protests and account for 69% of all ‘comfort women’-related events held in the country.

The main demands of these protests are for the Japanese government to issue an apology, criticism of the South Korean government’s noncommittal attitude, and denunciation of a rewritten history of what transpired between the soldiers and women.

Early in 2021, a South Korean court declared that the Japanese government was obligated to pay compensation to Korean women who had been coerced into performing sexual acts prior to and during World War II.

The Japanese government, however, disagreed with the decision and insisted that the matter was settled. Moon Jae-in, the former president of South Korea, stated that he was open to discussing historical differences with the Japanese government.

The topic of “comfort women” is part of the ongoing tensions between the two nations. It is anticipated that protests will get more frequent as tensions rise.

The ‘comfort women’ issue has not been settled and no end appears in sight.