TRES FIGURAS Y LETRAS
Comfort Woman, Roxas Boulevard, Manila
Naked, you were raped. Clothed,
You are memorialized.
Pyeonghwaui Sonyeosang, Japanese Embassy, Seoul
You sit, waiting for a nation to acknowledge
Their crimes against humanity.
Memorial to Comfort Women, St. Mary’s Square, San Francisco
Words outspoken ennoble you whom
Brutality and lust has shamed.
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| Memorial to Comfort Women, St. Mary’s Square, San Francisco |
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| Memorial to Comfort Women - Chinese, Korean, and Philippine children (detail) |
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| Memorial to Comfort Women - Kim Hak-Sun (detail) |
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| Memorial to Comfort Women - Philippine child (detail) |
“Tres Figuras y Letras” originally published in vox poetica (September 5, 2018)
ReplyDeleteGonzalinho
December 10, 2018 is the International Human Rights Day.
ReplyDeleteGonzalinho
Photos are posted on this website according to principles of fair use, that is, they are posted for the purposes of information and education. Also, the poem directly refers to the photos.
ReplyDeletePhotos of Memorial to Comfort Women link:
https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/comfort-women-memorial-san-francisco?select=5NiiOy4RUvd_nY9zJaoWzw
Gonzalinho
Year and Artist:
ReplyDeleteColumn of Strength, San Francisco Comfort Women Memorial (2017) by Steven Whyte
Gonzalinho
WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS
ReplyDeleteInquirer.net
05:01 AM December 12, 2018
Violence against women and girls does not happen by chance or by accident. It occurs because of systemic and institutionalized patriarchy. And the rhetoric and actions of President Duterte and those who emulate him reflect this deep-seated problem in our culture.
His sexist and anti-women statements that often relegate women to mere punch lines undermine women’s issues. The social cost of his macho posturing is real and not merely imagined.
Online and offline, violence against women and girls is increasing, in the form of rape threats, sexual harassment, and the like.
The blatant disregard for women’s rights and the continuing perpetuation and normalization of violence against women and girls — especially sexual violence — are ultimately human rights violations.
As we celebrated International Human Rights Day on Monday, the fundamental truth that women’s rights ARE human rights needs to be affirmed more than ever during the Duterte administration.
Mr. Duterte has not only been remiss in protecting women’s rights, but has also continuously and aggressively violated his obligation to uphold these rights.
As long as women are sidelined and marginalized, as long as women’s issues are cast aside and prioritized the least, as long as violence against women and girls persist, we will never tire of exposing, opposing, and resisting Mr. Duterte’s authoritarian and anti-women regime.
WOMEN’S LEGAL AND HUMAN RIGHTS BUREAU,
Quezon City
Read more: https://opinion.inquirer.net/118107/womens-rights-are-human-rights#ixzz5ZcqrDlzO
Gonzalinho
MEMORIALIZING WARTIME ATROCITIES
ReplyDeleteBy: Jesse Angelo L. Altez - @inquirerdotnet 05:06 AM January 23, 2018
Tokyo—The recent controversy involving the 7-foot bronze statue of a Filipino “comfort woman” on Roxas Boulevard stirred debate on how it would affect the relationship between Japan and the Philippines. Seven decades after World War II, the two countries have transformed their relationship from foes to partners, both wishing to foster mutual peace and development in Asia.
…M. Evelina Galang’s book “Lolas’ House: Filipino Women Living with War” (Northwestern University Press, 2017) tells the story of 16 Filipino comfort women interviewed by the author. The harrowing narrative of these women—one attested that she was raped by 20-30 men in a day—shows how no one can be capable of fabricating such stories, as alleged by right-wing elements in Japan.
As much as the atonement money can help the victims of this wartime aggression, band-aids do not fix bullet holes and cannot erase the fact that these wartime atrocities happened. And while economic reparations can help the victimized women move forward with their lives, such atonement money speaks more about Japan than for the women. It implies regret. Thus, the response of the Japanese Embassy to the bronze statue on Roxas Boulevard—in which it finds the process of memorialization “extremely regrettable”—is quite unfortunate.
…what happened 70 years ago cannot be changed. And as much as the Japanese government disagrees with this process of remembering, we owe the victimized comfort women the chance to be memorialized to prevent the repeat of their harrowing experience. Never again should we allow any form of sexual violence. Let the bronze statue on Roxas Boulevard remind us of that.
Jesse Angelo L. Altez is an Asian Development Bank-Japan scholar pursuing public policy at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies. React: @AngeloAltez
Read more: https://opinion.inquirer.net/110478/memorializing-wartime-atrocities#ixzz5lcgwYHrB
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Pope's Intentions for the Challenges of Humanity and Mission of the Church - February 2021
ReplyDeleteUniversal Intention - For women who are victims of violence
“We pray for women who are victims of violence, that they may be protected by society and have their sufferings considered and heeded.”
Link: https://clicktopray.org/pray-with-the-pope/
Gonzalinho