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Original Japanese source (SYNODOS): http://synodos.jp/politics/3894/2

Translation (Office BALÉS): https://www.facebook.com/OfficeBALES

[On comfort women]

-- On your morning briefing on comfort women. As you may recall you have met some former comfort women when they came to visit you at the city hall. We've been informed that on May 25 and 26 another group will be coming and they would like to meet you. Are you going to meet with them?

Yes, I told my office to fit into my schedule.

-- Is this to show you are looking forward to meet them whenever you could?

Yes, you could say that. And we've informed them that the meeting should be fully open instead of having it in a way no one will know what was being discussed.

Nevertheless, if any of them would not like to have their face shown in public or not want the content of our conversation to be heard in public, then we would respect that. But I would assume that they want to see me to make a certain political statement, so in principle we would like to arrange a fully open meeting. I don't see any other good reason to see me as a mayor.  I'm assuming they requested the meeting because they would like to comment on my [recent] political statements. Then I would think that the discussion should take place in an open environment to make the statements heard on both sides.

-- You've been saying that we have to approach them "with due care", what specifically will you talk about with them when you meet them?

There's no use on talking about that here and now. I will talk about that at the time I meet them.

-- Though you have been saying that we must approach them "with due care," this morning you also appeared to have stepped in  a little further by saying something like, "As a matter of fact all armed forces in the world employed the system [of comfort women] and that considering the state of the world of those days it was ... necessary."

No, not really. I didn't mention it because no one asked, but it is true that during those days such system was employed. During those days. But judging it as okay is another matter, because some must have chosen to work in such profession against their will. And I stress "against their will." Because some may have chosen to work in such profession with their free will.

We do have a profession under the adult entertainment business in this modern age, so if they are working with their free will, then well... it must be with their free will. But we do have to be considerate about those who have chosen such path against their will.

-- So you are saying that it was necessary even if it was "against their will?" You don't feel right about it, but with the state of the world, it was necessary. Is that what you are saying?

No. What I meant to say was that regardless of whether it was against their will or with their free will, the system of comfort women was necessary. I assume during those days, regardless of the matter of free will, such a system was necessary in order to maintain discipline and to maintain the armed forces.

[On U.S. armed forces, sex crimes in Okinawa, and use of adult entertainment business in the military]

-- But not today? 

I don't think it is [should be?] allowed today. But I think the adult entertainment business is necessary, not comfort women. That's why when I went to Okinawa to visit the Marine Corps base in Futenma, I told the Commander there to make better use of the adult entertainment business. Then he practically froze with a bitter smile on his face and said, "It's considered 'off limits' in the U.S. armed forces," and therefore it is "forbidden." It's these statements they make on principle that make things complicated.

There are places in Japan where these so-called "sexual energies" can be taken care of, within the confines of the law. So they should make better use of these places upfront. I told him [the Commander]; you can't control these "sexual energies" coming from those "tough guys" at the Marines. So instead of making these statements on principle please make better use of these services.  Then he [the Commander] said something like, "They're ordered not to go to those places. We should wrap up this conversation," and cut the conversation short. But [making better] use of the adult entertainment business is a possible option, don't you think? After all, it's allowed within the confines of the law.

-- Are you saying those incidents occurred because they are not making better use of it? 

No, the correlation of it is a separate matter. But if they use them more openly-- while I'm still not suggesting that there is a correlation that would reduce the number of these incidents-- but they should acknowledge these things upfront, and stop making these statements just on principle. Because that's how solders are. Japanese people in general grow up never thinking about these things so they might not have thought of this, but they're in a business where your life could be at risk, constantly pushing your limits. So in 'those matters' they have almost overflowing thrust of energy that they need some places to have them taken care of. These things must be thought through. You can't just keep on saying things in principle, like "these things are all prohibited" or "all of them are banned." That's not how a human society works. 

-- In your morning statement on comfort women, you said that every armed forces in the world had that system.

Not just employed but utilized it.

-- So they "utilized" it. And who are these countries?

No no. Not "employed" but "utilized" it. I think the U.S. armed forces also "utilized" it. I believe it's detailed in books written by Mr. Kunihiko Hata?

-- So when you say "it is a hard fact that the armed forces was utilizing such system," you are also referring to the U.S. armed forces of those days?

No, not only then but also during the Korean War, didn't they? Even during the Okinawa occupation era, it is a fact that Japanese--Japanese women--were engaged in such business or the likes of such business in the areas around the U.S. armed forces bases. So regardless of whether it was "good" or "bad", there is no doubt that these things did exist during those days.

So if women were working in these places against their will, we must take that into account, and also think of ways to stop that. And if these were the results of the tragedies of war, then as a part of the war responsibility, we also have to be considerate about them. But the fact is that such profession did exist. I won't deny that.

In the entire world, these things were thought as business as usual. If I can say more about this, if you unwind the history before World War II during those barbaric... well, this is not to say the WWII was any less barbaric but more barbaric times, the fact of rapes committed by the victors is only a fact behind all sorts of wars. So I won't name any specific names of those countries and if concrete facts are necessary I could also cite them, but we know as a fact that there were rapes elsewhere besides those committed by the Japanese armed forces during WWII.

So I think to control these incidents, I think it is a hard fact that a system like comfort women was necessary. The Japanese people must know in what context within this understanding that Japan is being criticized by the entire world. So a complete denial of the comfort women system or justification of it is a no go. It was born out of the tragedies of war. But of course, we have to treat those comfort women with due consideration.

The biggest problem the world is criticizing Japan for is that they think the [Japanese] government forcefully abducted those women and forced them into such profession through assault and/or intimidation, and that therefore Japan is a rapist state. But I think the world is saying that even though the system of comfort women did exist, there was no such state that engaged in rape as state policy. That's what they are criticizing us for, and we must take a stand and say that's not true.

But if there is ever evidence found that the Japanese armed forces or the government as a state policy engaged in acts of abduction through assault and/or intimidation, then we would have to be remorseful of such fact. But the very Japanese government has denied that such evidence exists as an official Cabinet decision. So when those former comfort women visit us in Osaka City Hall, I would like to ask them if they were assaulted and/or intimidated and if they were abducted, if they allow me to.

If these things actually did occur, then the Japanese government should take their testimony and acknowledge that for example, abduction did in fact take place. Then we shall admit that the Cabinet decision in 2007 may have been wrong at the time. In today' many debates, those who deny the comfort women issue claim that no assault and/or intimidation or abduction ever took place. So if there is any evidence that says it did take place, then those who flatly deny the comfort women issue will lose their ground. So I really want to hear from them, under what circumstance and how they were forced into becoming comfort women.

-- The "Commander" you talked about the "adult entertainment business" was from Camp Schwab... ?

"Futenma".

-- "Commander" of Futenma.

That's correct.