Professor Ryu Seok-chun Claims in Japanese Right-Wing Magazine "Comfort Women Were Not Forced, but Victims of Employment Fraud"

"Forced labor was voluntarily undertaken to earn money"
'Repeated misjudgment of Korea's colonial evaluation'

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] Professor Ryu Seok-chun of Yonsei University, who was suspended for stating during a lecture that "comfort women were a form of prostitution," has contributed an article to a right-wing Japanese magazine, claiming that the disciplinary action against him was unjust.

In his contribution to the August issue of the Japanese monthly magazine Hanada, Professor Ryu reiterated his argument that the prevailing assessment of Japan's colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula in Korean society is mistaken, introducing the content of his lectures.

Professor Ryu stated, "Most of the people who were conscripted for forced labor were not forcibly taken but volunteered to earn money," presenting claims similar to those of Japanese right-wing groups.

He also added, "The reason why young Korean women became comfort women was not because they were forcibly taken, but because they were deceived into employment by private prostitution brokers."

Professor Ryu further argued that his controversial remark, "If you're curious, why not try it once," which was criticized as sexual violence, was "absolutely not a statement encouraging prostitution, but merely a suggestion to conduct investigation and research."

During the lecture, he mentioned, "Even now, the process of entering prostitution is exactly like that. Even now, they say, 'If you come here to work, it’s definitely not selling your body,' 'You just serve drinks to well-mannered customers,' 'You get paid this much per hour for that,' and so, you end up living as a hostess. It’s still like that now. Not just in the past."

Earlier, Yonsei University imposed a one-month suspension on Professor Ryu for his remarks during the lecture. However, the Seoul Central District Court decided to suspend the disciplinary action's effect until the final ruling is made on the civil lawsuit filed by Professor Ryu against Yonsei University, demanding the cancellation of the discipline.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.