Compensation for Japan's World War II War Rape Victims

This article describes Japan's jugun ianfu ("comfort women") scheme and presents Japan's wartime acts in light of international human rights and humanitarian law. Focusing mainly on rape and slavery, the authors argue that these acts were in violation of then-existing customary international law. They show that the right to compensation following such violations is a fundamental principle of international law. The paper also describes the German compensation programs as a viable compensation scheme and discusses the initiatives presently before the United Nations to address these violations. Finally, the paper offers a comprehensive scheme by which the Japanese government can fulfill its obligations to provide compensation. [Descriptors: Migration - Trafficking, International - Asia]