Japan's non-governmental archives on "comfort women," a euphemism used in Japan to describe women forced into sexual slavery for Japanese aggression army during World War II, opened Monday in Tokyo.
The archives, first of its kind in Japan, display photos of 140 "comfort women," information about international trial on Japanese aggressors after the war and testimonies of the victims from nine Asian countries.
The documents available at the archives also include plans, reports and maps of the wartime Japanese emperor, army and government on the "comfort women" issue as well as abundant critical publications and research books on the issue.
With donation from 1,760 peace-loving Japanese citizens, the preparation on the archives started at the end of 2002.
"Japan should make deep remorse on its wartime crimes on neighboring countries. The archives provide people with a correct history of Japanese army's atrocities in the war," the archives curator Nishino Remiko said, urging Japanese media to give timely and responsible reports on the archives and other protest activities against war crimes.
(Xinhua News Agency August 2, 2005)
