“Organized sexual slavery under Japanese colonial rule, and during World War II, is one of many sins that Japan must make penance for, a heinous human rights violation that infringed upon the dignity and virtue of women,” North Korea said, according to South Korean newspaper Herald Business.
North Korea said the “repulsive crime” should not be a problem that can be so hastily addressed.
“Victims of Japanese sexual slavery are not only in the South, they are also in the North, and if the problem is not resolved for [North and South], the problem ultimately cannot be resolved at all,” Pyongyang said in statement, adding that Japan must provide reparations for all other crimes against humanity during its colonization of Korea.
North Korea rarely broaches the issue of comfort women in its missives, but the remark follows a breakthrough in talks on Monday between Seoul and Tokyo on a longstanding issue from a shared history.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had initially agreed that they would reach a resolution by year’s end, but on Wednesday Jiji Press reported Abe said differing views between the two sides is making it a challenge to see an agreement finalized before 2016.
