SDHF Newsletter No.98-6 The Origins of the US Army’s Korean comfort women

The Origins of the US Army’s Korean Comfort Women (HEART PRESS)　
By Choi Kilsung,
Professor at University of East-Asia, Professor Emeritus at Hiroshima University
(6) Chapter 5 Diary of a Japanese Military Brothel Manager

September 25, 2015

In August of 2013 the publication of the book, ” Diary of a Japanese Military Brothel Manager,” caused a major sensation in South Korea. In South Korea, it was widely regarded as being “definitive evidence” of the forced recruitment of Korean comfort women by the Japanese Army. However, if we read through this diary objectively, we are lead to an opposite view; the army comfort stations are run by private dealers and the comfort women were employed by them, even if order of the brothel are maintained by army regulations because of the circumstance of battle zone.
The brothel manager was not merely a manager but under some conditions he became a proprietor. He sent to his home ￥2000, 500 or 600. This shows his earning was quite high, considering that private first class Japanese soldier’s monthly pay was ￥10.
Prof. Choi included major part of the “Diary” in Chapter 5 since he assumed that it is better to leave readers’ judgment concerning the nature of the comfort station and comfort women to reading the original “Diary” than just arguing about the matter.
I think this is a valuable primary source material for grasping the real nature of the comfort women.

*Chapter 5 content; https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Chapter-51.pdf
*Author profile: https://www.sdh-fact.com/auther/choi-kilsung

*Introduction & Contents: https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Introduction-TOC-.pdf
*Chapter 1: The Korean War as I Experienced It
https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Chapter-1-US-Armys-Korean-comfort-women.pdf
*Chapter 2: From Rape to Prostitution
　　 https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Chapter-2-US-Armys-Korean-comfort-women.pdf
*Chapter 3: The Spread of Prostitution
https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Chapter-3-US-Armys-Korean-comfort-women.pdf
*Chapter 4 content; https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Chapter-4.pdf

Questions are welcome.

MOTEKI Hiromichi, Secretary General
for KASE Hideaki, Chairman
Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact