慰安婦問題の合意 歴史を越え日韓の前進を

--The Asahi Shimbun, Dec. 29
EDITORIAL: 'Comfort women' deal should lead to new era of Tokyo-Seoul relations
（社説）慰安婦問題の合意　歴史を越え日韓の前進を

Japan and South Korea on Dec. 28 reached a landmark agreement to settle the long-festering issue of “comfort women.” The agreement, struck at the closing of the year that marks the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 50th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries, has removed the largest source of tension in their bilateral ties.
　戦後７０年であり、日本と韓国が国交正常化してから半世紀。そんな１年の終わりに、両政府は最大の懸案だった慰安婦問題で合意に達した。

This is a historic deal for the relationship between Tokyo and Seoul suitable for this milestone year. We welcome the weighty decision by the two governments to move beyond their long-standing feud and take a wise step forward to overcome the negative legacies of their history.
　節目の年にふさわしい歴史的な日韓関係の進展である。両政府がわだかまりを越え、負の歴史を克服するための賢明な一歩を刻んだことを歓迎したい。

After the Dec. 28 meeting between Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and his South Korean counterpart, Yun Byung-se, Kishida defined the issue of comfort women as “an issue that deeply scarred the honor and dignity of many women under the involvement of the military of that time" and stated, “The Japanese government is acutely aware of its responsibility” for the matter.
“Comfort women” is a euphemism for women who were forced to provide sex to members of the imperial Japanese military before and during World War II.
　きのうあった外相会談の後、岸田外相は慰安婦問題を「軍の関与のもと多数の女性の名誉と尊厳を傷つけた問題」と定義し、「日本政府は責任を痛感している」と明言した。

The Japanese government, which argues that a bilateral agreement on war reparations concluded 50 years ago legally resolved the issue, has been reluctant to use any language that suggests the nation’s responsibility for the issue. This time, the Japanese government used more candid expressions in referring to its stance toward the sensitive topic while maintaining its official position.
　５０年前の請求権協定で「法的には解決済み」とする日本政府はこれまで、国家責任を連想させる言葉遣いに消極的だった。今回はその原則を維持しつつ、率直な表現に踏み込んだ。

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed his heartfelt apology and remorse as prime minister of Japan to former comfort women.
　安倍首相は日本の首相として元慰安婦に対し、「心からのおわびと反省」を表明した。

Abe once indicated a desire to review the 1993 Kono statement on the issue, released by then Chief Cabinet Secretary Yohei Kono. It is quite significant that Abe, albeit through Kishida, expressed his commitment to the core message of the key statement.
　かつて慰安婦問題をめぐる「河野談話」の見直しに言及したこともある安倍首相だが、岸田外相を通じてとはいえ、談話の核心部分を韓国で表明したことには大きな意味がある。

JAPANESE GOVERNMENT’S RESPONSIBILITY MADE CLEAR
　■日本政府の責任明言

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun, for his part, made remarks that responded to Tokyo’s demands.
　一方、韓国の尹炳世（ユンビョンセ）外相も日本政府に応えた。

Yun confirmed that the agreement represents a “final and irreversible resolution” of the bitter dispute, although he premised his comment by saying the measures promised by the Japanese government need to be implemented without fail.
　今回の合意について、「日本政府の措置の着実な実施」という前提つきながら、「最終的かつ不可逆的に解決されることを確認する」と言い切った。

Yun expressed the South Korean government’s solid commitment to the terms of the agreement in an apparent attempt to reassure Japan, which has criticized South Korea for “moving the goal posts” by changing its position on promises it has made.
　日本側から「韓国は約束してもゴールポストを動かす」と批判されていたことを意識したうえでの確約の表明である。

The top diplomats of both countries made these pledges in front of media. They should ensure that the agreement will be faithfully carried out.
　両外相ともメディアを通じて両国民に固く誓ったのだ。合意をしっかり履行してほしい。

Under the deal, the South Korean government will establish a foundation to restore the honor and dignity of former comfort women and heal the wounds they bear in their hearts. Tokyo will provide about 1 billion yen ($8.3 million) from its state budget for the foundation.
　韓国政府は、元慰安婦の名誉と尊厳を回復し、心の傷を癒やすための財団をつくり、そこに日本政府が約１０億円を国家予算から拠出する。

In the 1990s, Japan set up the Asian Women’s Fund, which offered compensation to former comfort women financed by donations from the Japanese public, as well as medical and welfare programs financed by public funds, along with a letter of apology from the prime minister.
　日本は９０年代、国民の募金からなる「償い金」と、政府の資金による医療・福祉支援事業に首相の「おわびの手紙」を添えた「アジア女性基金」事業を始めた。

This initiative produced positive results in Southeast Asia and some other areas, but it failed to achieve its objectives in South Korea because of the rise of public opposition to the project in the country.
東南アジアなどで成果を生んだが、韓国では反対の声が強まり、頓挫してしまった。

Various factors were behind the fund’s failure to win support in South Korea. For one thing, the Japanese government was not necessarily very eager to promote the project. Secondly, the compensation paid to former comfort women was financed by donations from Japanese people, not by the government’s money. These facts provoked criticism in South Korea that Japan was trying to dodge its responsibility.
　韓国側で基金の意義が理解されなかった要因は、さまざまあった。日本政府が必ずしも積極的な姿勢で事業に臨まなかったことや、「償い金」に民間募金をあてたことなどで、韓国側は責任回避だとして反発した。

Both governments, citizen groups supporting former comfort women and news media should all learn lessons from this failure.
　両政府とともに、元慰安婦たちの支援者ら市民団体、メディアも含めて、当時の教訓を考えたい。

Through future talks, the two sides will work out details about the operation of the proposed new foundation. The top priority should be placed on respecting the feelings of the surviving former comfort women, who now number fewer than 50.
　新たに設けられる財団の運営のあり方については今後、詰められる。何より優先すべきは、存命者が５０人を切ってしまった元慰安婦たちのそれぞれの気持ちをくむことだろう。

A support group for these women has denounced the agreement as “diplomatic collusion that betrays both the victims and the public.” Negative reactions to the deal driven by nationalism could also emerge in Japan.
　韓国の支援団体は合意について「被害者や国民を裏切る外交的談合」と非難している。日本側からもナショナリズムにかられた不満の声がでかねない。

But the agreement can be a valuable foundation for building new relations between Japan and South Korea. The Japanese government has to meet its commitments faithfully, while the South Korean government has no choice but to have a serious conversation with the people to win their support for the agreement.
　だが今回の合意は、新たな日韓関係を築くうえで貴重な土台の一つとなる。日本政府は誠実に合意を履行し、韓国政府は真剣に国内での対話を強める以外に道はない。

PROMOTE RELATIONS BASED ON MUTUAL BENEFITS
　■互恵の関係強化を

On Dec. 18, 1965, Japan and South Korea held a ceremony in Seoul to exchange ratification documents for the basic treaty to establish diplomatic relations and four other agreements, opening a new chapter in their history.
　５０年前の１２月１８日。
　日韓はソウルで基本条約と四つの協定の批准文書を交換し、新たな第一歩を踏み出した。

The four agreements on war reparations, fishing industries, cultural assets and cooperation, and Korean residents in Japan have been improved in some way in response to the demands of the times.
　請求権のほか、漁業、文化財・文化協力、在日韓国人の法的地位の４協定はこれまで、その時々の実情に合わせて何らかの形で改良が加えられてきた。

Generations of people in the two countries, including those alive today, have a shared responsibility to review and reconsider the “1965 regime,” the historic framework created in that year by these agreements to define the basic assumptions for the bilateral relationship.
　現在の日韓関係の原点ともいえる「６５年体制」の枠組みを、時代に応じて考えていくことは、いまを含む各世代の両国民が担う責務である。

Japan-South Korea relations have developed remarkably over the past half-century.
　この半世紀で日韓関係は大きく飛躍した。

South Korea’s per-capita income has grown to nearly $30,000 from slightly more than $100 back then. Japan’s support contributed to South Korea’s marvelous economic development.
韓国の１人あたりの国民所得は、当時の１００ドル余りが今や３万ドルの目前。そこには日本の経済協力金が役立った。

Japan has also gained huge benefits from its neighbor’s rapid economic growth.
そして日本も、急成長する韓国から莫大（ばくだい）な利益を得た。

Over the past half-century, the development of the relationship between Japan and South Korea has been driven by mutual cooperation and benefits. This is also how ties between the two neighbors should be in the future.
　ともに協力し合い、利益を広げる互恵の関係がこの半世紀の歩みだったし、これからもあるべき隣国関係の姿である。

The United States, which strongly urged the two nations to normalize their relations five decades ago, has been actively involved in the process leading to the agreement on the comfort women issue.
　日韓の国交正常化を強く後押しした米国は、今回の和解にも大きく関与した。

During the past two-and-a-half years, Tokyo and Seoul have been locked in diplomatic smear campaigns against each other, making demeaning remarks in front of other countries, mainly on the diplomatic stage in Washington.
この２年半、日韓両国はワシントンを主舞台として、激しい「告げ口」外交を展開してきた。

Hurt and exhausted by this verbal battle, the two countries have realized the obvious fact that this futile fight produces nothing and decided to return to the most basic principle in diplomacy--dialogue.
　その結果、傷つき、疲れ果てた日韓が悟ったのは「不毛な争いは何も生み出さない」というあたり前のことであり、対話という原点に戻ることだった。

LONG LIST OF CHALLENGES TOKYO, SEOUL SHOULD TACKLE TOGETHER
　■安保など課題山積

This is an age when the world faces a large number of challenges that demand global responses, including not only various economic problems but also issues concerning security, humanitarian assistance related to conflicts and natural disasters, and environmental protection.
　経済だけでなく、安全保障や紛争・災害の人道支援、環境対策など、地球規模の課題が多い時代、

That means there are countless challenges Japan and South Korea, the two major powers in Asia, should grapple with together through cooperative efforts.
アジアを代表する主要国同士の日韓が手を携えて取り組むべきテーマは数知れない。

The foreign ministers of the two countries on Dec. 28 voiced their expectations that the agreement will open a new chapter in the history of the bilateral ties. Kishida said he is convinced that Japan-South Korea relations will enter a new era, while Yun said he expects the two countries to start carving out a new relationship next year.
　両外相はきのう、ともに「日韓関係が新時代に入ることを確信している」「来年から新しい関係を切り開けることを期待する」と期待を述べた。

The hope is that the new year, which starts in three days, will mark the beginning of 50 years in which Japan and South Korea can walk together with their eyes looking ahead toward a new future for their relations.
　３日後の新年からは、日韓がともに前を向いて歩む５０年の始まりとしたい。