COMMEMORATIVE COINS FOR WARTIME SEX SLAVES?

Kim Seo-kyung and her husband Kim Eun-sung, who designed the statue of a girl symbolizing the victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery which sits near the Seoul-based Japanese Embassy, recently launched another project to call on Tokyo to repent of its wrongdoings by issuing a commemorative coin.

The statue was first erected in 2011 to mark the 1000th weekly protest staged by the victims of Japan's sexual enslavement during the colonial period (1910-45), euphemistically called comfort women. Since, then there have been various efforts to erect similar statues at home and abroad, with the aim of compelling Tokyo to admit to its past crimes and deliver an official apology.

With the girl statue becoming a rallying point for the victims, the Kims decided to expand their project to a different level by commissioning a coin inscribed with the statue, and bringing it to the attention of coin collectors

The Kims, however, believed it was unlikely that South Korea will officially decide to issue a coin considering the sensitivity of the issue. Under the ousted President Park Geun-hye, Seoul and Tokyo agreed to settle the long-standing issue with compensation of 1 billion yen (US$9 million), which will spent on building a foundation.

"We first considered issuing a collectible medal, but later decided to expand the project to make it more symbolic," Kim Eun-sung added. "Many activists, including teenagers, are voluntarily making badges or other souvenirs to help the surviving victims. This is where we got the inspiration for the coins."

To read the complete article, see:
(Yonhap Feature) Commemorative coins for wartime sex slaves find overseas outlet amid Japan's pressure: activists (http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2017/08/28/
0301000000AEN20170828008300320.html)

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