Full Text of SR1073 98th General Assembly
SR1073 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, During the Japanese colonial and wartime | 3 | | expansion of Asia and the Pacific Islands from 1932 through the | 4 | | duration of World War II, approximately 200,000 women and girls | 5 | | were coerced into a system of forced military prostitution; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, The term "comfort women" was a euphemism used by | 7 | | the Japanese government to describe women and girls forced into | 8 | | sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese military at camps, | 9 | | known as "comfort stations"; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The majority of "comfort women" were of Korean or | 11 | | Chinese descent, but women from Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, | 12 | | Malaysia, the Philippines, Australia, and the Netherlands were | 13 | | also interned in military camps run directly by the Imperial | 14 | | Japanese military or private agents working for the military; | 15 | | and | 16 | | WHEREAS, Some of the women were sold to these military | 17 | | camps as minors, others were deceptively recruited by middlemen | 18 | | with the promise of employment and financial security, and | 19 | | still others were forcibly kidnapped and forced to become | 20 | | "sexual slaves" for soldiers stationed throughout the Japanese | 21 | | occupied territories; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Approximately three-quarters of the "comfort | 2 | | women" died as a direct result of the brutality inflicted on | 3 | | them during their internment; some of those who survived were | 4 | | left infertile due to sexual violence or sexually transmitted | 5 | | diseases; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, The stories of the "comfort women" are an | 7 | | essential part of the history of human trafficking; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, The United Nations reports that 2.4 million people | 9 | | across the globe are victims of human trafficking at any one | 10 | | time, and 80% of them are being exploited as sexual slaves; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, At least 16,000 women and girls are involved in | 12 | | the sex trade every year in Chicago, many of whom are victims | 13 | | of human trafficking; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois stands against human | 15 | | trafficking in all its forms, as evidenced by the 2005 | 16 | | formation of the Illinois Rescue and Restore Coalition, a | 17 | | partnership between the Illinois Department of Human Services | 18 | | and the federal government to combat labor and sex trafficking | 19 | | in Illinois; and | 20 | | WHEREAS, The State of Illinois further showed its | 21 | | commitment to fighting human trafficking through Public Act |
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| 1 | | 98-0435, which became law last August and allows trafficking | 2 | | victims to receive financial assistance to remove "trafficking | 3 | | tattoos" that traffickers often use to brand their victims as | 4 | | their property; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, It is fitting for the Senate to support H.R. 121, | 6 | | adopted by the United States House of Representatives in 2007, | 7 | | which called upon the Japanese government to stand by its | 8 | | statement of remorse for the sexual enslavement of "comfort | 9 | | women" by the Imperial Japanese Army and its apology to | 10 | | survivors and to educate future generations about these crimes; | 11 | | therefore, be it
| 12 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL | 13 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize and | 14 | | support "comfort women" by acknowledging as historical fact the | 15 | | suffering they endured during their forced internment in | 16 | | Japanese military comfort stations; and be it further
| 17 | | RESOLVED, That we urge all Illinois educators to share with | 18 | | students of an appropriate age the story of "comfort women" | 19 | | when discussing the history of Asia or World War II, or the | 20 | | issue of human trafficking; and be it further
| 21 | | RESOLVED, That we commit to working toward the inclusion of | 22 | | Asian and Asian American experiences, such as the story of |
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| 1 | | "comfort women" and the forced incarceration of Japanese | 2 | | Americans during World War II, in history and social science | 3 | | curricula used in Illinois public schools; and be it further
| 4 | | RESOLVED, That we reaffirm our commitment to ending all | 5 | | forms of violence and trafficking of women in the State of | 6 | | Illinois; and be it further
| 7 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 8 | | presented to the executive directors of the Korean American | 9 | | Resource & Cultural Center, Korean American Voter Organizing | 10 | | Initiative & Community Empowerment, Korean American Women in | 11 | | Need, the Japanese American Service Committee, the Cambodian | 12 | | Association of Illinois, and Asian Americans Advancing | 13 | | Justice-Chicago.
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