日韓解決合意 法的責任、曖昧なまま 少女像撤去は玉虫色

毎日新聞2015年12月29日　東京朝刊
Japan-South Korea accord on 'comfort women' leaves ambiguities
日韓解決合意　法的責任、曖昧なまま　少女像撤去は玉虫色

In the latest accord reached by the governments of Japan and South Korea on the so-called "comfort women" issue, Japan did not back down from its position that the issue had been resolved in a 1965 treaty with South Korea. Instead, the two governments agreed that South Korea would establish a foundation for former comfort women, for which the Japanese government would provide the funds. There remain, however, gaps between what the two governments are seeking, which will require future political maneuvering.
　慰安婦問題で韓国側には日本政府の「法的責任」を求める声が強かったが、日本側は「解決済み」との立場は崩さず、韓国が財団を設立し日本が資金を拠出する新たな支援策で折り合った。両国間で完全に一致していない論点もあり、今後の調整に委ねられた。

According to the latest agreement, the South Korean government will establish a new foundation to support former comfort women, for which the Japanese government will supply some 1 billion yen. Unlike the Asian Women's Fund, which was funded in part by donations from the private sector and dissolved in 2007, the new foundation's monies will come solely by the Japanese government. The arrangement implies that the Japanese government is taking a certain degree of responsibility for the comfort women issue, making the agreement more acceptable for Seoul, which had been calling on Japan to explicitly acknowledge its responsibility as a state.
　□請求権
　今回の合意では、元慰安婦を支援する新たな財団を韓国政府が設立し、日本政府が１０億円程度支出することで両国が歩み寄った。資金の一部を民間からの寄付金で賄ったアジア女性基金と異なり、全額が日本の政府予算。日本側が一定の責任を取ったとの意味合いを持たせ、日本が国家としての責任を明確に認めるよう求めてきた韓国側が受け入れやすくなった面がある。

Meanwhile, the Japanese government, which has continued to argue that the comfort women issue was completely and definitively resolved in the 1965 Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea, will be providing the funds for the new foundation under the pretext that it is taking "moral responsibility." According to a Japanese government source, the cash amount ended up being much higher than initially planned, because "it would be difficult to persuade former comfort women to accept the accord if the amount were too small." Asked about the Japanese government's provision of funds for the foundation, Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida emphasized to reporters, "They are not reparations."
　一方、１９６５年の日韓請求権協定で「完全かつ最終的に解決済み」と主張してきた日本側は「道義的責任」との名目で支出する。政府関係者は「あまりに少ないと韓国が元慰安婦らを説得できなくなる」と当初の想定より大幅に増額した。岸田文雄外相は財団への支出について記者団に「賠償ではない」と強調した。

At a joint press conference held by Kishida and his South Korean counterpart Yun Byung-se following the accord, Kishida said the Japanese government is "painfully aware of its responsibilities." He also explained that the prime minister would express a "heartfelt apology and remorse." The wording the prime minister will use will be almost exactly the same as those in letters sent by past prime ministers to former comfort women -- which was the limit of what the Japanese government was willing to accept. As for the method by which the prime minister's sentiments will be communicated to former comfort women, Kishida said, "That is the job of the foundation. We will move forward in adherence with the Japan-South Korea agreement."
　□謝罪
　元慰安婦らが求める謝罪については、岸田氏が共同記者発表で「日本政府は責任を痛感している」と表明。「首相が心からおわびと反省の気持ちを表明する」と説明した。歴代首相が元慰安婦に送った手紙の文言とほぼ同じで、日本側にとって受け入れ可能なラインだった。合意に基づく首相の言葉を元慰安婦に伝える方法について、岸田氏は記者団に「財団の事業。日韓で合意したものを進める」と語った。

At the Japan-South Korea summit held in November, South Korean President Park Geun-hye sought a resolution to the comfort women issue that "the victims would be able to accept, and that the public will find satisfactory" as a condition for reaching a final agreement. Meanwhile, the Japanese government demanded that South Korea put in writing that, after an agreement is reached, the issue would not be brought up again. Ultimately, both Kishida and Yun stated that the agreement reached on Dec. 28 was "final and irreversible," using the term "irreversible" for the first time. Tokyo believes that the document released at the joint foreign ministerial press conference is proof of Seoul's definitive commitment to this promise.
　□最終妥結の条件
　最終決着となる妥結の条件については、韓国側は朴槿恵（パククネ）大統領が「被害者が受け入れられ、韓国国民が納得のいく水準の解決策」と１１月の日韓首脳会談で求めていた。日本側は韓国側が「蒸し返す」ことがないよう文書化を目指した。結局、両外相が「最終的かつ不可逆的に解決することを確認」と表明し、「不可逆的」という言葉が初めて使われた。共同記者発表の文書によって、日本側は決着の確約が取れたと受け止めている。

However, the fate of the statue of a girl in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul -- installed in remembrance of former comfort women -- is still unclear. South Korea said merely that it would "take the measures necessary," while Kishida took it one step further, saying the statue will be "appropriately relocated." The end result remains ambiguous, with both sides going only as far as they were willing to go, respectively.
　□少女像
　少女像の撤去をめぐっては、韓国側は「適切に解決されるよう努力」との表現にとどめた。一方で岸田氏は「適切な移転がなされる」と踏み込んだ。双方で言い分が異なる玉虫色の結果だが、双方が折り合えるギリギリの表現となった。