Comfort women continue to suffer

Comfort women continue to suffer

The Japanese occupation of Indonesia during World War II
lasted only three years. But for some, the pain lasts forever. R.
Fadjri and Lucia Idayanie, contributors to The Jakarta Post,
write the following two articles on the issue of comfort women
and the long struggle for their rights.

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Fifty-two years have passed but the
sufferings of former jugun ianfu (women forced into serving the
sexual needs of Japanese troops during World War II between 1942
and 1945 -- also referred to as "comfort women") have yet to come
to a close.

Japan has agreed to hand over compensation money about Rp 9
billion (US$3.7 million) to Indonesia. But the money will not go
to the comfort women. It has been diverted to the Ministry of
Social Affairs, which it says will be used to build homes for the
elderly.

In the then Japanese-occupied Asia-Pacific region, including
Indonesia, there were around 200,000 women who served as jugun
ianfu. In Yogyakarta and Central Java, the number was around 200.

Those "comfort women" were forced to cater to the sexual needs
of the Japanese troops at the time. They have now reached old age
and do not care anymore about their fate. Some of them are still
healthy but they carry the stigma of being former sex workers.

One of the former jugun ianfu is Mardiyem, 68, who can only
lament her fate in solitude. She is one of the few women willing,
in cooperation with the Legal Aid Foundation (LBH), to demand
their rights, which officially are not recognized by the Japanese
government.

Mardiyem lives by herself, occupying a room with the
Suyotarunan family at Patuk, Yogyakarta. Her room measures three
by 10 meters. The Yogyakarta-born woman has only one wish, i.e.
to devote herself entirely to God and to fellow human beings. "I
want to redeem myself by doing as much good as possible," said
Mardiyem, whose Japanese name was Momeye.

It is her past as a sex worker that has haunted her until now.
The Ministry of Social Affairs announced in April 1993 that a
search was being launched for Indonesian women who were victims
of Japanese troops. With the help of the LBH, data on former
jugun ianfu were collected. The LBH along with the women finally
demanded an official apology from the Japanese government, and
compensation for their sufferings during three years. Against her
will, Mardiyem reopened the old wounds she had buried long ago.
She was compelled to recount her sufferings as a sex worker in a
camp at Telawang, South Kalimantan. How she and other women were
each forced to serve 20 Japanese soldiers every day. How she had
to suffer extreme pain when she was compelled to undergo
abortion. How she was tortured to the utmost when she was caught
trying to escape. Her left foot has since shrunk and her eyes
have been damaged.

Now, the community knows her dark past. What the community
understands is only that such women were former sex workers.
Mardiyem was forced to close down her small business selling food
and making cookies. "I do not understand why since then no one
has placed orders with me anymore. They may feel disgusted with
me or there may be another reason unknown to me," she said after
deeply inhaling her cigarette.

Fortitude

Mardiyem's mental suffering weighs even heavier. People deride
her, insult her and tell her she is shameless because she has
revealed her own disgrace. There was someone who spat in front of
her. Fortunately Mardiyem shows fortitude. Whatever people say
about her, it never slackens her spirit to demand her rights.

"The experience in Telawang has given me strength. We are not
what people imagine. We were forced. We were victims of the war."
she said emphatically.

But Mardiyem considers herself relatively lucky. Her fate is
far better than that of many former jugun ianfu. Many of her
friends, now still alive, experienced more intense sufferings due
to coercion by Japanese soldiers. They became blind or paralyzed
and some of them suffered from cancer of the womb.

Her story is believable because when the women became sex
slaves of the Japanese army, they were very young. When Mardiyem
was forced for the first time to serve a Japanese soldier, she
had not had her first period. Rough treatment, both physically
and mentally, left many of the jugun ianfu with impaired health
when they returned home.

"It would have been some consolation if they had treated us
well. But they were coarse. We were often beaten black and blue,"
said the woman, who likes to cultivate orchids.

It is the suffering of the women sharing the same fate which
has pushed her to fight for them and to demand their rights.

In her present condition, it is clear that Mardiyem cannot
possibly do much. Now she only relies on the retirement pay of
her late husband, Ahmad Mingun, a retired soldier of the
Indonesian Army.

If she succeeds in her struggle, Mardiyem will give part of
the Rp 43 million (the amount of compensation for each former
jugun ianfu) to her only child who now lives in Jakarta. Another
part will be given to orphans and a mosque. She will save some of
the money for herself. "I do not want to trouble other people. I
have no other wishes," Mardiyem said softly. She only wishes to
lead a quiet life and to rediscover her dignity.

Although the matter is complex, Mardiyem still feels strong
enough to struggle.

"I will continue to fight as long as my strength holds up.
This struggle is not only a matter of money but also of dignity,"
said Mardiyem emotionally.