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The Mainichi
13 hours ago
- General
- The Mainichi
Japan military set up 147 'comfort stations' in Okinawa during WWII; women's fates unknown
NAHA -- As wartime Japan fully deployed its troops in Okinawa Prefecture in March 1944, about a year before the ground battle against U.S. forces began, the Japanese military built airbases throughout the prefecture, including on remote islands. At the same time, it set up "comfort stations" for soldiers in the surrounding areas. At least 147 such stations are known to have existed in the southern island prefecture, where women -- mostly from Korea and Okinawa -- were used for sex by soldiers. After World War II, however, hardly any of these comfort women opened up about their experiences, and little is known of their fates in the fierce ground battle or how survivors coped after the war. In October 1991, a woman was found to have died of illness at an apartment building in Naha, the capital of Okinawa Prefecture. She was identified as Pae Pong-gi, then 77, who was originally from the Korean Peninsula and formerly a comfort woman for Japanese troops. The late nonfiction author Fumiko Kawata chronicled half of Pae's life in her 1987 book "Akagawara no ie" (The House with a Red Tile Roof) based on her interviews with Pae and others. According to the book, Pae was taken from Korea to Okinawa in 1944 by way of the city of Moji (present-day Kitakyushu) and Kagoshima, and was sent to a comfort station on Tokashiki Island, west of Okinawa's main island. There were six other women from the Korean Peninsula at the station, and they were forced to engage in sexual acts with Japanese soldiers there. When the U.S. military landed on Tokashiki Island on March 27, 1945, Pae fled into the mountains and hid herself alongside members of a Japanese military unit. She eventually surrendered to U.S. forces in late August that year, and was sent to a detention facility on Okinawa Island. One of the other comfort women she had been with apparently died in the U.S. attacks, while another was staying in the same facility. Pae didn't know what happened to the other women. After the war, Pae moved from one place to another on Okinawa Island when the prefecture was under U.S. control, and worked in restaurant districts at night. In 1975, three years after Okinawa was returned to Japan, local newspapers and other media broke the news about Pae, and the Justice Ministry granted her a special residency permit. While she had no foreign resident registration and was subject to deportation, it took into consideration how and why she had come to Japan. Yet Pae remained publicly silent about her past experiences even after that. In September 1992, 17 years after Pae's residency permission was reported, a women's group in Okinawa released a "comfort station map" showing the sites of 121 such wartime facilities in the prefecture that had been located by that time through surveys. In August of the previous year, Kim Hak-sun, a South Korean woman, revealed under her real name that she had been a comfort woman for Japanese troops at battlefields in China, which made huge headlines. Shigeko Urasaki, 78, who was involved in the group's surveys in Okinawa, reflected, "It made us realize that we had neglected to confirm the wartime sexual violence that had occurred in Okinawa." Urasaki, a resident of Nishihara, Okinawa Prefecture, closely examined Japanese military documents and testimonies published in municipal historical records in Okinawa and searched for residents who had memories of those comfort stations. But by that time Pae had already passed away. Urasaki said regretfully. "Some of my fellow members remembered the news reports back in 1975, but Okinawa had just been returned to Japan at the time and we were preoccupied with broader issues. I felt deeply ashamed that we lacked an attitude to listen to Pae." So why did the Japanese military establish nearly 150 comfort stations across Okinawa? The Okinawa prefectural historical records cite several reasons: to prevent sexual violence against female members of the public; to prevent sexually transmitted diseases that could lead to the decline of war potential; and to relieve the stress of soldiers. According to military records, a garrison commander of the Japanese military on Ie Island in Okinawa instructed that soldiers "refrain from sexual intercourse other than with the military's special comfort women" because "rapes will alienate people's minds away from us." Most of the comfort stations were set up by confiscating private houses, and were therefore close to local residents' everyday lives. Okinawa University associate professor Hong Yunshin, who has researched comfort stations in Okinawa, speculates that the presence of those stations contributed to the mass suicides of residents across the prefecture following the U.S. military's landing on Okinawa. As the Japanese military had instilled the idea among residents that if they were captured by the U.S. military, they would be "humiliated and killed," Hong noted, "The fears that they might be forced to become comfort women for U.S. troops and get raped is thought to have led to mass suicides and other tragedies." Municipal historical records in Okinawa Prefecture cite residents' memories such as the sight of Japanese soldiers queueing up in front of comfort stations and children playing with contraceptives they picked up and turning them into balloons. However, the exact fate of the comfort women in Okinawa after the U.S. landing remains unknown, with only fragmentary records available. Those who experienced the war firsthand and others have passed away one after the other in recent years, including Pae, Kawata and a Korean woman in Okinawa who had for many years supported Pae. (Japanese original by Shinnosuke Kyan, Kyushu Photo and Video Department)
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Restrictions to Initiative Petition process passes another hurdle
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — Lawmakers in the House voted Wednesday to send the restrictions on Oklahoma's Initiative Petition Process to the Senate. It's Senate Bill 1027, and it essentially requires that every Oklahoma county must get 11.5% of the voters from the last election for it to count. It would limit the number of signatures that can be collected in each county to 11.5% of votes cast in the most recent gubernatorial election for a statutory change and 20.8% for a constitutional change. Those in support said that it would give more votes for rural Oklahomans. 'It is important for the entire state to be involved in this process,' said Rep. Jim Olsen (R-Roland). Bill would limit initiative petition signatures by county, giving less-populated counties disproportionately larger influence Several republican lawmakers debated on the House floor and argued that the process before only allowed most votes from metro areas like Oklahoma City and Tulsa. 'That's simply not true,' said Amber England. England has led several ballot initiatives in Oklahoma and said that they are going to rural areas all the time. She said they have trained hundreds to go out and get signatures from those in rural areas. 'That's how you get people to sign these petitions. They live in that area, so they want the signatures too. It is how we reined in spending under Democrats. It is how we saved our rural hospitals,' said England. 'So both sides have used the initiative process to push people in power when they believed that power had gotten out of hand. I would ask that the governor stand with the side of the people and not special interests and veto this bill.' The petition process has brought about many new laws that the people chose to put on the ballot: From marijuana legalization, Medicaid expansion, and right-to-work. 'I voted with my conscious,' said Rep. Daniel Pae (R-Lawton). Rep. Pae was one of the 'No' votes for SB 1027 on Wednesday. He said that he has voted no several times when it comes to modifying the process. 'It's my personal belief that the founders of the state wanted power to be decentralized, given to the people. We have a pretty robust initial petition process as is,' said Rep. Pae. Another argument given by Republican lawmakers Wednesday was that the petition process is an easy one right now because signatures can mostly come from metro areas. 'So to say it's easy is false. To say that circulators don't go to rural areas is false. This is giving people power,' said Brendan Hoover of the Kirkpatrick Policy Group. He has also been a part of several petition processes over the years. Did lawmakers on this bill come and talk to you to ask how it could be fairer or how it works? 'No. I could have certainly come up with many ways to make it fairer. But none of those would have been taken up today because they don't care about making the process fairer. They care about rigging the system, rigging the process so that they're taking power away from voters,' said England. 'No,' said Hoover. The bill had amendments made, and now it heads to the Senate for their possible approval or rejection. The bill could end up on the governor's desk, where he will have the final word. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Oklahoma City.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oklahoma lawmakers work across the aisle to address high eviction rates
KFOR and KGOU partnered for this report as part of a collaborative project under the Oklahoma Media Center. OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR/KGOU) — Last month, Oklahoma State Senator Julia Kirt's Senate Bill 128 was heard on the Senate Floor. Currently, Oklahoma law requires a minimum of five days between an eviction trial notice being given to a tenant and the court date. This bill would increase the minimum to 10 days — which is the current maximum — and increase the maximum to 15 days. SB128 passed on the Senate Floor with a vote of 26 to 19. Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, said extending the timeline could help both tenants and landlords. 'If someone gets noticed five days ahead that they're being evicted, three days ahead of what their actual date is, they can't get legal assistance,' Kirt said. 'What folks have found nationwide is if you give people a few more days to catch up, you are more likely to keep them in the property and they're more likely to pay you the back rent. And that's less time that landlord goes without having someone in that property,' she said. This isn't the first time Senator Kirt has attempted to extend the eviction timeline. A bill she filed last legislative session, Senate Bill 1575, proposed extending the timeline to a maximum of 20 days between an eviction trial notice and a court date — twice the current maximum. Kirt said that bill was met with some concern. 'Primarily, people are concerned about property rights and making sure that owners have the right to take their property back,' Kirt said. 'Last year, I filed the bill with a longer additional timeline, and I really compromised it down. That meant that the apartment association that had opposed the bill went neutral on it, because they felt like it was not going to change the eviction practices of most landlords,' Kirt said. Senator Kirt is a Democrat, and all 19 of the senators who voted against SB 128 were Republican. Despite this, there has been some bipartisan effort to extend the eviction timeline. Representative Daniel Pae, R-Lawton, is the House author for SB 128, and was the House author for SB 1575 as well. 'We don't have anywhere else to go': OU Motel closure adds to metro's affordable housing shortage 'I'm really glad to have Representative Pae as the House author. He's a Republican, he is in committee leadership. He also represents a community that has a very high eviction rate — Lawton,' Kirt said. Kirt and Pae represent two of the counties that have some of the highest eviction filing rates in the state—Oklahoma County and Comanche County, respectively. From March 2024 to February 2025, Oklahoma County had a higher eviction filing rate than any other county in the state at about 13.7%, according to data from the Legal Services Corporation. That means almost 14 out of every 100 renter households in the county were served with an eviction notice within that time frame. Oklahoma County had 1,200 eviction filings in the month of February alone. While Comanche County only had 104 filings in February, a seemingly small number considering the number of filings in Oklahoma County, U.S. Census data shows their population at around 121,400 is only about an eighth of Oklahoma County's 816,490. Because of this, Comanche County has the fourth-highest eviction filing rate in Oklahoma at 10.8%. Tulsa County (12.2%) and Cleveland County (11.4%) hold the second and third spots for highest filing rate. Representative Pae said the bill has garnered bipartisan support because some Republican lawmakers, like himself, see housing not just as a social issue but as an economic issue. 'This issue of housing has broad implications for our overall economy. Anytime there's a prospective employer who's wanting to come to the state of Oklahoma, they ask about the quality of our schools, of our access to health care, and the affordability of our houses,' Pae said. In terms of housing affordability in Comanche County, where Pae's constituents live, about 42.6% of renters are considered rent-burdened residents—meaning they spend more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities. 17.7% of Comanche County residents are also living in poverty, which is above the national poverty rate of 11.1% measured in 2023. The U.S. Census Bureau defines the poverty line as 'the minimum level of resources that are adequate to meet basic needs,' which includes food, clothing, shelter, utilities, and telecommunications. Those who cannot afford these basic needs are said to be living in poverty. In Kirt's district, Oklahoma County has a higher percentage of rent-burdened residents than Comanche County at 48.6%, but a slightly lower poverty rate at 15.7%. Megan Staughn, a tenant organizer in Norman, said while the extension would be a marked improvement, it would only scratch the surface of what tenants facing eviction need. Norman City Council, nonprofits seek new location for homeless shelter 'Moving the eviction notice from five to 10 days, that's double. That's wonderful. And 10 days is not very long. If you have multiple kids and a job, getting to court is a huge problem. So, I'm ecstatic to get that number of days moved up and we need so much more,' Straughn said. Beyond extending the eviction timeline, Straughn said one of the best ways Oklahoma lawmakers could help tenants is to protect them from retaliation. 'In Oklahoma, it is legal for a landlord to retaliate against a tenant for voicing their concerns about housing. Any sort of organizing action you take, you have to assess the risks that might occur to tenants. And that risk is homelessness,' she said. While trying to balance supporting tenants and respecting landlords' property rights, Senator Kirt said the impact eviction can have on a person — and oftentimes, a whole family — can last a lifetime. 'Eviction is not only because people might be living in poverty, but it also can cause poverty because trying to recover from an eviction is very hard and people miss work,' Kirt said. 'So I think we see ripple effects of that, and it's not just a one-time court appearance. We're talking about something that has ongoing economic challenges.' SB 128 has already passed through two House committees. To have a chance at reaching Governor Kevin Stitt's desk, it must pass on the House floor by May 8. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
