The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a controversial memorial to so-called comfort women — a name often used to describe the estimated 200,000 women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese during World War II. Kim Yonenaka reports.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a controversial memorial to so-called comfort women -- a name often used to describe the estimated 200,000 women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese during World War II.
The resolution, written by Supervisor Eric Mar, calls for a memorial to be built and urges Japan to "fully acknowledge and apologize" for enslaving women. The resolution also calls for Japan to compensate the women who are still alive.
A huge crowd of people both for and against the resolution jammed into San Francisco City Hall on Tuesday.
Supporters said the memorial will draw attention to a human rights atrocity. Opponents said the resolution unfairly singles out Japan's wartime wrongdoing and fuels anti-Japanese sentiment.
