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カナダ・トロント「慰安婦像」除幕式　２０１５年１１月１８日　
The Korean Canadian Cultural Association (KCCA)
中国系の抗日団体ALPHA、カナダの国会議員や地方議員も参列。

ＡＪＣＮ（Australia-Japan Community Network）代表 山岡 鉄秀 氏が日本会議発行「日本の息吹」２０１５年６月号に寄稿した「〈カナダ〉バーナビー市の皆様へ　慰安婦像は平和の象徴にはなり得ません」をご紹介します。

※　ＰＤＦ版ダウンロード

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〈カナダ〉バーナビー市の皆様へ
慰安婦像は平和の象徴にはなり得ません

ＡＪＣＮ代表 　　山岡 鉄秀

上の写真は米ニュージャージー州ユニオンシティに昨夏設置された慰安婦碑の近くに置かれた血だらけの人形である。このような感性を持つ人たちが主張する像が、今度はカナダにも飛び火しようとしている。果たして、これが〝平和の象徴〟たり得るのか!?

なぜcase closedとしないのか？

今年に入り、中韓反日団体による慰安婦像建立の動きがカナダにまで飛び火したとのニュースを聞き、心を痛めておりました。私共ＡＪＣＮからもバーナビー市長宛てに反対の手紙を送りましたし、事務局を通じて現地で反対活動をしている方々への支援も行いました。幸いにもバーナビー市は本件がコミュニティを分断する問題であり、なおかつ、国際政治上の対立を無関係なコミュニティに持ち込む行為であると悟り、審議を継続しないことを宣言しました。ほっと胸を撫で下ろしたのもつかの間、現地日系社会の重鎮といわれる人々が韓国側と話し合いを持ち、その結果、韓国側が「想像以上に肯定的な反応だった」と喜び、慰安婦像推進委員会を作ったというニュースが流れ、「まだ油断は禁物」と緊張感が走りました。
実は、この「推進委員会」の正式名称は、「平和の少女像建設推進委員会」となっています。慰安婦像＝平和の少女像としているのです。
これがいかにまやかしであるか、豪州で慰安婦像建立阻止の活動を行なってきた体験から以下、お示ししたいと思います。

慰安婦像の目的は日本を貶めて孤立させること

昨年３月、豪シドニー郊外のストラスフィールド市で、慰安婦像建立の発議がなされた時、推進派の韓人会の会長は日系コミュニティ紙のインタビューに答えて「慰安婦像建立の目的は、日本が如何に酷い国だったか、そして、今も如何に酷いか、世界中に知らしめるためです。その目的を果たすために、全豪に10基の慰安婦像建立を計画しています」とはっきり述べました。同時に地元の政治家を呼んで決起集会などを開いていましたが、そこでは「日本の軍国主義復活反対」が唱えられ、安倍政権批判が繰り返されていました。慰安婦像が日本非難の象徴に過ぎないことはこのことからも明らかです。
さらに、昨年７月の安倍首相来豪時には、反日団体の代表を務めるストラスフィールド市の副市長が、トニー・アボット豪首相宛てに公開レターを書いて国会議員や地方議員に拡散するという挙に出ました。その内容は、前述の日本非難に加えて、｢豪州政府は日本をベストパートナーと見做すべきではない｣などと政治的主張をした上で、その流れで慰安婦像を設置せよと要求しています。
また、９月にはこの団体が改めて韓国系の新聞に活動目標を掲載しましたが、「安倍のどす黒い魂胆」というような下品な表現に加え、在豪の団体でありながら、「米国政府に日本と距離を置くように」求めることまで主張していました。ここまでくると、彼らの目的が、慰安婦問題にかこつけた、日豪、日米の離反であることがわかります。それは海洋進出を謀る中国の政策とずばり一致します。韓国系の背後で、中国が糸を引いているのです。現に豪州では｢中韓反日連合｣であることを隠していません。

女性の人権という隠れ蓑

こうして極めて攻撃的な態度で攻めてきた中韓反日団体ですが、昨年４月１日のストラスフィールド市の公聴会で頓挫して以来、自分たちの主張がすんなりと通りそうもないと悟ると、一転して「慰安婦像は女性全体への暴力を防止するためのもので、家庭内暴力の被害者も含める」などと、論点をすり替える作戦に出て来ました。さらに、ナチスのホロコーストを記念するモニュメントを建てたからといって、ドイツ人が差別されるわけではないのだから、日本人も大丈夫だ、などという理屈まで持ち出す始末です。そして、米国でやったのと同じように、市長や議員たちに票田を背景とした圧力をかけ続けています。
さて、慰安婦像が純然たる女性の人権擁護が目的で、平和の象徴になり得るのなら、慰安婦像の建立を含む全ての活動は、和解(reconciliation）を目指すものでなくてはなりません。もし、和解と共存が目的なら、いきなり議会に持ち込む前に、日系人コミュニティに相談を持ち掛け、合意を形成しようとするのが筋ではないでしょうか？　なぜ、意表を突いて強引に決めてしまおうとするのでしょうか？　それも、世界中で同時多発的に行おうとしているのです。
それは前述したような敵対的動機があるからと言わざるを得ません。ニュージャージー州のユニオンシティに建てられた血まみれのマネキン人形をご覧になりましたでしょうか？(上写真)
それでもなお、慰安婦像が平和の象徴になり得ると思う方がいらしたとしたら、失礼ながら、現実から目をそらした恐るべきナイーブさと申し上げねばなりません。そもそも交流と和解を目指すなら、慰安婦像ではなく、文化祭などのイベントにすべきでしょう。

世界中の日系人のためにも毅然とした幕引きを

この問題は、カナダの一都市でたまたま発生したローカルな問題ではありません。中韓による、世界的な反日キャンペーンの一端がバーナビー市に飛び火した、ということです。したがって、万が一、ここで現地の韓国系と日系の住民が妥協して慰安婦像を建てることになった、などという前例を作ってしまったら、彼らは世界中に「慰安婦像は日本人も納得する平和の象徴」と喧伝して、さらなる慰安婦像を建てようとするでしょう。それが現実です。
私共ＡＪＣＮは「非敵対的合理主義」をモットーとしており、どんなに相手が攻撃的でも、敵対的な言動は慎んで行動していますが、現実から目をそらすことはしません。カナダでの安易な妥協は、世界中で防戦している日系人に多大な損失を被らせることになるでしょう。
バーナビー市では、せっかく市長の良識的な判断を得たのですから、世界中の日系人のためにも、毅然として幕引きをして頂きたいと思います。
ストラスフィールドで慰安婦像阻止のために熱心に活動していたある日本人男性が、市議会で慰安婦像に関する議論を傍聴した数日後、自宅のアパート内を見慣れないアジア人の男性グループが徘徊し、奥様と目が合うと慌てて退去したという不審な出来事があり、その数日後に、男性の乗用車の前輪が鋭い刃物で切り裂かれる、という事件がありました。我々日系人(あるいは在外邦人)は、世界のどこに居ようとも、協力し合って、一日も早くこの問題に終止符を打たねばなりません。

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◆カナダの慰安婦像問題
カナダ西部のブリティッシュコロンビア州バーナビー市で、慰安婦像設置の動きが浮上している。カナダでは初めてのこと。同市の姉妹都市である韓国の華城(ファソン)市からの提案が発端。米国同様、姉妹都市提携から反日行動を展開する韓国側の戦略がカナダにも拡大した実態が浮かび上がった(４月２日付産経)。
これに対し現地在住の日本人やカナダ人らが反対活動を展開。日系住民からの500筆を始め、ネットでも１万３千人以上の反対署名が集った。
コーリガン市長は４月15日、「地元の日系カナダ人社会などにおいて懸念が生じる可能性があることに気付いた」として、判断保留を表明。
沈静化するかと思われたが、今度は、韓国系住民が「平和の少女像建設推進委員会」を発足させ、像設置に反対した日系住民の懐柔策に乗り出している(4月26日付産経)。ことに戦時中に収容所に送られたりして辛酸を嘗めた年配の日系人たちと接触し、同じ｢戦争の犠牲者｣だとして、｢平和の｣少女像への理解を求めようとしているという。コーリガン市長は、先述の保留表明時、「日系と韓国系の双方が納得する提案がなされればそのとき検討する」とも述べており、予断を許さない状況だ。

◆プロフィール
やまおか　てっしゅう
ＡＪＣＮ(Australia-Japan Community Network)代表。
豪ストラスフィールド市において推進されていた慰安婦像設置計画を阻止するため、地元在住の日本人を集めてＪＣＮ(後にＡＪＣＮへ改称)を結成、コミュニティの和の大切さなどを訴え、市議会に設置可決を見送らせた。その経緯については、月刊『正論』２月号に執筆している。

韓国系団体がカナダのバーナビー市に提出した慰安婦像の要望・計画書をご紹介します。
プレゼンテーションの日付は不明ですが、内容からすると2015年2月以前と思われます。

ＰＤＦデータはこちらからダウンロードできます。

※画像をクリックすると別ウィンドウで大きく表示されます。

※誤）2014　⇒　正）2015

３月から「カナダのブリティッシュ・コロンビア州バーナビー市慰安婦像反対！の署名」ご協力いただいておりますが、４月に入って現地で反対運動をしている方々が、市側にスピーチを行いました。その報告をご紹介します。

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４月９日
市のExecutive committee meeting にて、日系人男性１名・女性１名が慰安婦像設置反対のスピーチをしました。

その際に提出した資料はこちらです。
Presentation to Bby Council April 9th 2015　（PDFデータ）
作成した方より、「他の地域で同じ問題が持ち上がった際にはこの資料を参考お使いください」とのことです。

４月１５日
突然Mayr’s OfficeからPress Releaseがありました。【資料１：バーナビー市長発表2015.4.15】

午後７時より市の公園課のオープン･ミーテインング（PARKS, RECREATION AND CULTURE COMMISSION）で、地元出身の北欧系男性が慰安婦像反対のスピーチをしました。【資料２：スピーチ】

15日付けの地元紙Burnaby Now(April 15, 2015 11:26 AM)に
Burnaby hoping for truce between local Korean and Japanese communities
という記事が掲載されました。

この記事には明確に韓国系市民が提案した「平和の少女像」の実態、韓国系がめざしていることが具体的に書いてあります。
単なる『平和』を願ってではなく、碑に刻まれる文言が重要事項であるということが分かります。

＜記事より抜粋＞
The proposal for the statue included text for a plaque, which states: “To commemorate those who were forcefully taken by the Japanese military to be their sexual slavery (sic) and to restore their human dignity and honor, with hope that the criminal act in violating human rights by warfare or any forms of violence would never recur on this land.”
日本語：この「平和の少女像」に、「韓国の女性が日本軍によって強制連行され、性奴隷として扱われた。このような人権を無視した犯罪行為が二度とおこらないように願い、また、強制連行された女性の名誉と尊厳を回復するために」ということを記した碑を付け加えるという提案

【資料１】
バーナビー市長　発表　2015.4.15

【資料２】
北欧系男性（49歳）慰安婦像反対のスピーチ

Good evening committee members,

To paraphrase an old saying,
Now is the time to speak, or forever hold my peace.

I was born and raised in Burnaby. I’ve lived and worked here for most of my career except for the year that I spent in 2012 and 2013 teaching English in Osaka, Japan. I made it to Japan partly by way of the inspiration that my grade 5 teacher gave me the day she showed the class a video of Osaka Expo ’70, and documentary footage of what it was like to live in Japan at the time. We learnt about multiculturalism that year, Mao’s cultural revolution, and among other things, basic respect for all people in that special class of 1975.

Twenty years later I met a Japanese lady, and we got married and had a couple kids, and even moved to Japan for over a year where I taught eikaiwa conversation class, and found a new admiration for my elementary school sensei. My experience in Japan showed me that the Japanese are a quiet, and non-confrontational people, who are very polite and civil in their everyday life. It wasn’t uncommon that when I was lost in a train station, some helpful Japanese person would physically walk me to where I needed to be, and think nothing of it. I experienced this kindness in Japan frequently.

The reason I mention this is to make a contrast between the average Japanese citizen and tourist of today, with the imperial Japanese army of 80 years ago. They’ve apologized, paid reparations, and moved on after the devastations of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. And so should we, here in Canada.

I believe that the act of installing a statue to memorialize comfort women will divide the local Japanese, Chinese and Korean communities, and pit them against each other for no other reason than to settle old grudges. It goes completely against the value that we cherish in Canada called “Multiculturalism”. We came to this country from all over the world, but we didn’t bring our old battles with us. My family came from Finland, Scotland and Wales, but I didn’t pick any fights with Russia, Sweden or even England for that matter.

My grandfather was killed in the battle of Singapore in World War 2, and my father married a Japanese lady, and so did I. Move on, look to the future, not to the past.

But inevitably to the past we must look.

Fifty years ago in 1965, the city of Vancouver sistered up with Yokohama Japan, and Burnaby joined Kushiro in Hokkaido, to share sister city status. All together, there are 35 cities in Japan who have the same relationship to a city or town all across British Columbia and the Yukon Territory. 25 years later in 1990, a delegation of sculptors arrived on Burnaby mountain and installed several Ainu totem poles to represent their gods, and celebrate life. It seems to me that a comfort women statue would represent the Japanese as a devil, and celebrate only misery. Is this really what we want for our public space? Imposing this statue on people in a happy park setting is a visual assault on the unsuspecting visitors.

If we are going to remember Japan’s use of wartime prostitutes here in Burnaby, should we not also recognize the grievances of the comfort women who serviced the South Korean and American soldiers from 1952 to 1992? They are also suing the government of Korea for reparations, and surely they deserve a written plaque as well. Perhaps, while were at it, we should erect an atrocity memorial walk through the park, where all the indignities of humanity can be displayed for everyone visiting Central park. Canadians interned during World War 2, Native residential school victims, Pol Pot, Indonesia, Rwanda… where does it end?

I sincerely hope that the spirit of multiculturalism can thrive in Burnaby, and that this proposal does not move forward.

Thank you for your time tonight.

オーストラリアで慰安婦記念碑設置反対運動で活躍している　Australia-Japan Community Network(AJCN)　が カナダで慰安婦像計画のあるバーナビー市長宛てに慰安婦像反対の手紙を出しましたのでご紹介します。

AJCNは、オーストラリアで他のエスニックグループとの連携も模索し、NSW州の政府機関で多文化社会、移民社会のいろいろな問題点の解決を担当するCommunity　Relations　Commission　for　Multicaltural　NSW　に対しても、「慰安婦像のような移民の母国間での政治問題をオーストラリアの持ち込むべきではない、まずコミュニティのハーモニーを第一に考えるべき」と訴えて活動しています。

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25 March 2015

Mayor Derek Corrigan
City of Burnaby
4949 Canada Way
Burnaby, British Columbia, V5G, IM2

Honourable Mayor Corrigan,

Re: Comfort Woman Statue Proposal

I am writing on behalf of Australia Japan Community Network which has been opposing a similar proposal submitted to Strathfield Council in Australia by a group calling itself “China Korea Alliance against Japanese War Crime “. We are dismayed to have learnt that you are also under pressure to consider such a proposal for your council. We would like to politely but clearly point out to you that this has nothing to do with women’s or human rights but has everything to do with the international political campaign waged by China and South Korea against Japan. The hidden agenda of this campaign is to weaken the ties between Japan and the US, Canada, Australia and other countries. This is 100% political, otherwise why would they wait 70 odd years before finding a need to erect such statues across the world?

We have been working to stop the proposal here in Australia for over a year now. I would like to stress to you that in every sense this is a truly divisive community issue. Last year a petition of more than 3400 local residents was submitted to Strathfield Council that included many non-Japanese residents, and even Chinese and Koreans. I am sure you are already seeing this issue beginning to divide your own community and that of your community over a political issue which has nothing to do with your council, the citizens of Burnaby or the wider Canadian community at large.

If I may, I would also like to bring your attention to some of the often raised issues surrounding this controversy. You may have noticed that Ms Jan Ruff O’Herne is often quoted as a victim of the comfort woman system in the on-going anti-Japan campaign. This is totally incorrect. She was a victim of a crime committed by lower rank soldiers in the front line. As this was breaching the code of conduct the facility where she was captured in Indonesia was shut down by the Japanese imperial army itself. Later, the soldiers who held the key roles in this incident were prosecuted and the one found to be most responsible, was executed.

This kind of crime did happen on some occasions during the war. However, those acts were deviations from the norm.

These days, even the far left scholars have ceased on insisting that 200,000 women were abducted and forced into prostitution by the Japanese imperial army. The most ardent promoter of the comfort woman sex slavery theory admitted that there were no such abductions on the Korean peninsula. This is simply because such an act of abducting 200,000 (or more) women by deploying troops in the middle of war is impossible. No army can afford to do it while fighting against enemies. How do you arrange transportation, accommodation and food for the women? There would have been so many riots and it would have made it extremely difficult to govern the occupied territories. There was absolutely no such records at all. Where have the parents, husbands and brothers of those women abducted in front of them been? Do you still remember the ferry accident in South Korea last year and how the parents and relatives of the victims behaved?

What about those crying old women testifying their stories? At one point the South Korean government chose a dozen or so former comfort woman (paid prostitutes) as the most reliable ones to testify. Unfortunately, their testimonies were so inconsistent and some were clearly talking about their experiences in the Korean War where there was no Japanese involvement that they could not be seriously believed.

In fact, 122 Korean former comfort women are presently suing the South Korean government for forcing them to sexually serve American (and Australian) soldiers during the Korean War. Ironically, the current President of South Korea, Ms Park’s own father was directly responsible for the establishment of these comfort woman brothels. I fail to understand how some Koreans can accuse others.

Left wing scholars have shifted their narratives from abduction to collusion. They say “many women were deceived by vicious Korean pimps but the Japanese authority did not proactively arrest them nor rescue the women. Hence, the Japanese government was guilty as well”. In actual fact, there were numerous newspaper articles about Japanese police who cracked down on Korean crime groups and rescued women at that time. In any case, it is far too difficult for them to prove such an abduction theory because it is totally improbable and unrealistic. In reality it was a commercial operation licensed by the army. Such a system would not have been pleasant in any case but there were also stories of amicable relationships between soldiers and comfort women leading to marriage in some cases.

The American government also went to extraordinary lengths in the search for solid evidence of Japanese war crimes. The IWG (Nazi War Crimes ＆Japanese Imperial Government Records Interagency Working Group) spent seven years and 30 million dollars searching for evidence under the Clinton and Bush administrations. The final report to the congress clearly states there was no tangible evidence found.

The abduction theory is an impossible theory. Then why are Chinese and South Koreans pushing to erect statues across the world? The president of the Sydney Korean Society said through his delegate that he wanted to erect 10 statues across Australia. Are they that concerned with woman’s human rights from seventy odd years ago? I really don’t see this in their written or spoken comments at all. Rather, the real motive appears to be far more political. The true intention of the comfort woman statue campaign run by the Chinese and South Koreans is to bring pressure to the close relationship between Japan – and the US, Australia, Canada. “Comfort woman” issue has being used as no more than a tool for their campaign to achieve this outcome. This is clearly shown in their action agenda, (See attached document). South Korea is a glove and China is the hand inside. South Koreans are simply being used by the Chinese Communist Party which wants to remove all obstacles in their way to support their own expansionism.

Ms. O’Herne is apparently saying “The Japanese are waiting for me to die but I will never die until the Japanese government officially apologizes.” We are sincerely and truly sympathetic with her case and feel sorry for what happened to her, but she has been offered an apology and compensation by the Japanese government but has chosen not to accept these offers. The matter was legally settled between the Japanese government and the Dutch government. We would like to send her our very best wishes but politely point out once again she was not a victim of the comfort woman system which was in essence a commercial operation. She was the victim of some rogue elements in the Japanese Army who were held to account for their crimes. There should not be any confusion or blurred lines in this matter. Sadly it appears she has been misled by politically motivated people to believe a very different story which has no basis in fact or evidence.

As you may or may not be aware this is a highly politicized matter far beyond any normal human rights issue. No local Canadian community should be subjected to this politically charged dispute with this China-Korea international campaign. We know that you just wanted to be kind to your new sister city but please put harmony in your community first. Harmony in the multicultural city is not given. It requires hard work to achieve and maintain. This is exactly what we are going through right now here in Australia. You have far more important things to do for your residents.

Australia Japan Community Network is a group of Japanese and non-Japanese residents working together to achieve harmony in multicultural societies in Australia. Please do not hesitate to contact me should you like to discuss on this matter.

Australia Japan Community Network

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【　Attached Document　】
In a newsletter widely published by the Korean Society of Sydney in September 2014, the ‘Korean and Chinese Alliance Committee in Australia (KACA) for denouncing Japanese militarism says, “We will mark the year 2014 as the beginning of ‘The New March 1st Movement’ and declare that they will “continue their activities in Australia to denounce Japan for their war crimes committed during World War II“. Chairman, Sang Ok, is vigorously leading this campaign as written in the article below.

KACA activities as listed in the news article are as follows:
1. We will strongly accuse the Japanese Prime Minister Abe and other politicians for visiting the Yasukuni Shrine and demand an apology to Korea and China.

2. We will hold exhibitions, forums and seminars to teach the second generations of Korean and Chinese people in Australia and Australian citizens about the resurgence of Japanese militarism, history revisionism and war crimes such as ‘Comfort women’ and the ‘Nanjing Massacre’.

3. We will erect statues of the “Three Sisters” in Australia in order to inform people widely about the atrocities committed by the Japanese army in the name of “Comfort Women”; kidnapping of young Korean, Chinese and other Asian women and turned them into sex-slaves.

4. We will lead the consensus to pressure the Japanese government to stop revisionism so that we can prevent the good-hearted Japanese people, who have been silent, from waking up to teach the false history to future generations of Japanese.

5. We will demand that the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott acknowledge the Japanese invasion and violations of women’s human rights during World War II, and correct his mistake in thinking that Japan is Australia’s best friend in Asia.

6. We will urge the Australian government to change their thinking towards Japan as their ally, and demand their foreign policies that currently lean towards Japan to be changed so that Australia will treat Korea and China equally with Japan.

7. We will urge the US government not to be deceived by Japan, acknowledge the dark evil intention of Prime Minister Abe, stop remilitarization of Japan and change their foreign policies that put Japan first before Korea and China.

8. We will hereby announce that both Korean and Chinese people will work together for the benefits of both countries and we will continue our activities until above mentioned aims are fulfilled.