Ms. Lee Yong-soo: “Yoon Mee-hyang must be punished... I will finally get my revenge.”
Ms. Lee Yong-soo, a former Japanese military comfort woman victim, voiced a strong criticism at the Heeum Museum where a ceremony remembering comfort women victims of Daegu City and North Gyeongsang Province, took place on June 6.
The Daegu Citizen’s Forum for Halmuni, a civilian gathering to spend time with the elderly comfort women, set June 6th of every year as the day of remembrance for victims of the Japanese Army in Daegu City and North Gyeongsang Province, to cherish the memories of the comfort women victims who have passed away.
As the only surviving comfort woman victim in Daegu City, Ms. Lee spoke about the recent allegations of accounting malpractice against the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issues of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan, and attacked the Democratic Party lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang, former leader of the Korean Council.
“Elder sisters, here I cry, for not being able to do this sooner,” Ms. Lee said during this event, raising her glass. “Elder sisters, I will finally get my revenge.”
“I will make an impressive place of study, a comfort women historical museum,” she continued, making a promise. “We will receive and apology for the comfort women issue, and they will pay reparations.”
“As for the Wednesday rallies, those must be abolished ,” continued Ms. Lee. She stressed, “When I solve this, I can talk about it with the elder sisters who passed away before me after I die.”
“I visited the place where they took Ms. Kim Bok-dong, who was blind in one eye, to solve the comfort women issue,” Ms. Lee added, in tears. “Elder sisters, I will solve this. I hope that you will give happiness and good fortunes to everyone in the world. I love you.”
Reporters had questions to Ms. Lee regarding lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang. Ms. Lee responded, “The Korean Council and the Daegu Citizen’s Forum for Halmuni have not helped at all over the past 26 years.” Again in tears, she added, “When we tried to visit the United States (to help solve the comfort women issue), none of them came along.”
“There is nothing more I have to say. If you commit a crime, you must be punished,” Ms. Lee said about Ms. Yoon, after exiting the Heeum Museum. “I haven’t seen herpress conference. Why should I?”
The event was wrapped up quickly when Ms. Lee fell into a rage and aides rushed to console her.
On another note, in Daegu City and North Gyeongsang Province, 27 people are formally registered by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family as former comfort women. As of now, Ms. Lee in Daegu City and another victim in Pohang City, North Gyeongsang Province, remain alive.
JoongAng Ilbo (June 6th, 2020)
https://news.joins.com/article/23795242 (Korean Original)