Korean Group Warns Officials To Change Memorial Or Face Opposition at Polls

The Mayor and Council should revise the language on the Comfort Women memorial or else they can expect strong opposition at the polls this November. That's what a Korean American organization warned in a recent letter to officials about the proposed memorial that is scheduled for dedication at Freedom Park on Abbott Boulevard on April 27.

The memorial, proposed by the Fort Lee Korean American Vietnam War Veterans, honors 200,000 women forced into sexual service in military 'comfort stations' by the Japanese Imperial Armed Forces.

The Korean American Civic Empowerment organization (KACE) of Queens and Hackensack, wants to replace "vague and inappropriate expressions" such as "sexual service" with "sexual slavery." They are also seeking to have each individual country that comfort women came from included rather than identifying them as being from "every country in East Asia." KACE is also asking that Japan's flag of the Rising Sun be removed from the design and the girl depicted be made to look more representative of all the victims.

In an undated letter recently received by the Fort Lee Mayor and Council, Dongchan Kim, President of KACE, recommended that the wording on the Fort Lee Comfort Women memorial be revised.

"Should the process continue without revising the wording, we will take action to oppose it and you will face a strong opposition from the Korean American community in your next elections," Kim wrote.

Emphasizing the unanimous support of the governing body for the memorial, Mayor Mark Sokolich said that the language of Kim's letter "shocked my conscience."

Sokolich raised the issue of the letter during Thursday's work session when Nuri Han, New Jersey Program Director for KACE and representative for Comfort Women memorials in New Jersey, asked the Mayor and Council to make revisions to the wording of the memorial saying that the issue was not political, but "for the education of the next generation."

Sokolich impressed upon Han that he and the council had to consider the local Fort Lee Korean American organizations such as the Fort Lee Korean American Vietnam Veterans and the Fort Lee Korean American Association. "You're looking at a government that is committed to making sure that this issue is honored and preserved." However, he added, "We're responsible to our local organizations and I ask you to respect that."

Agreeing with the Mayor, Councilman Armand Pohan said that the governing body needs to consider the position of the local people they have been elected to represent. "What do they want?" he asked. "I want you all to come to some kind of agreement."

Councilman Jan Goldberg stressed, "We need every [Korean American] group to agree on the language and then we'll sign off on it."

Han said that KACE has started a petition among the Fort Lee Korean American community regarding the appropriate language for the memorial.

"We don't need a petition, we need all the groups to come to a concensus," Sokolich said. "The governing body is in full support of the memorial."

To bring resolution to the issue, Sokolich suggested that KACE meet with the local Korean American group, get a concensus and provide the Mayor and Council with a letter stating that the groups have reached a concensus on the memorial.

"I'm not voting for anything that is not in a letter with some sort of concensus confirmed in it," Sokolich said. "You have my support as long as you have the involvement of the local Fort Lee Korean American organizations."

"I'll even convene a meeting here at Borough Hall with all the groups to facilitate the process of getting a concensus on the language of the memorial," Sokolich said.  

Palisades Park and Bergen County have dedicated memorials to Comfort Women.

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