September 20, 2026

The Japanese Communist Party delegation visiting South Korea on September 16 held discussions with representatives from the “Haebom” rehabilitation center for victims of prostitution, the women’s human rights advocacy group “National Solidarity against Sexual Exploitation of Women,” and the prostitution survivor network “Moongchi.”

JCP Senators Kira Yoshiko and Nihi Sohei apologized for Japan’s past war of aggression and colonial rule, including the “1961 Act on the Prevention of Prostitution,” which had been modeled after Japan’s anti-prostitution law labeling women who sell sex as criminals, and the system of state-sanctioned prostitution established during the Japanese colonial era.

The two senators also said, “We apologize for having imposed the sex trade on the people of South Korea through the Japanese military ‘comfort women’ system. The JCP has been demanding that the Japanese government offer sincere reflection and an apology for that criminal endeavor.”

They added, “The Japanese government’s lack of remorse for its prewar colonial rule is a factor in Japan’s backwardness on gender issues. Our party will do its utmost to support victims of sex trafficking and push for legislative reforms in Japan in order to eradicate the reprehensible sex trade.”

The delegation returned to Tokyo on September 17 after completing the full schedule of their mission.