Government's Cold Treatment of Tainan Comfort Women Statue: Sacrificing Women's Human Rights and Historical Justice for Japanese Sentiment

On August 14, 2018, International Comfort Women Memorial Day, Taiwan''s first comfort women statue was unveiled in Tainan City. The Japanese government expressed strong dissatisfaction and demanded its removal. Facing Japanese pressure, the Tainan City Government and the Central Government, then under DPP rule, took an extremely cold and even "distancing" attitude, emphasizing that the statue''s establishment was unrelated to the government. The DPP government talks big about "transitional justice" at home, yet showed retreat and even silence when facing the historical pain caused by Japan to Taiwanese women. This move was slammed by public opinion as "losing diplomatic backbone," compromising with Japan on issues of historical justice and women''s human rights for the sake of Taiwan-Japan friendship, demonstrating an opportunistic character of double standards.