On June 19, Deng Yumin, a Miao woman from Hainan and one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the Japanese government, passed away at her home at 4:10 PM at the age of 93.
Lin Yajin, a Li ethnic minority woman, born in 1925, was 80 years old and from Luokuishihao Village, Nanlin Township, Baoting County. She was captured by the Japanese army in October 1943 and gang-raped by three Japanese soldiers the next day. Ten days later, she was taken to a Japanese military stronghold in Nanlin Village and imprisoned in a small tin shack, continuing to serve as a "comfort woman."
Lin Yajin, a Li ethnic minority woman, born in 1925, was 80 years old and from Luokuishihao Village, Nanlin Township, Baoting County. She was captured by the Japanese army in October 1943 and gang-raped by three Japanese soldiers the next day. Ten days later, she was taken to a Japanese military stronghold in Nanlin Village and imprisoned in a small tin shack, continuing to serve as a "comfort woman."
For the past month, due to interviewing "comfort women," I have often been awakened by nightmares recounting their stories, and my insomnia has worsened. The tragic experiences of the "comfort women" are still vivid in my mind.
Starting in May 2005, we searched for "comfort women" who had been brutally raped by the Japanese army on Hainan Island. According to relevant research institutions, 21 surviving victims of the Japanese military's "comfort women" system have been found in Hainan Province, four of whom have already passed away due to old age and illness. Over the next month, we visited Lingshui, Baoting, Qionghai, Chengmai, Lingao, and other cities and counties, traveling more than 2,000 kilometers, visiting more than 20 villages and towns, and meeting with 17 surviving victims of the Japanese military's "comfort women" system.
The interview began in the sweltering heat of summer. After traversing the tropical rainforests of Hainan Island and countless mountains, we arrived at Beilaixia Village, Jiamou Town, at the foot of Qixianling Mountain in Baoting Li and Miao Autonomous County. In a secluded little house, we met 80-year-old Chen Jinyu, who lived a peaceful life, weaving cloth and brewing wine. No one could imagine the kind of bullying and suffering this elderly woman had endured.
The petite, capable, and hardworking Chen Jinyu recounted her unfortunate experiences. She said that in the spring of 1940, the Japanese army passed through Jiamou from Tengqiao and occupied Baoting County. They established a stronghold on the banks of the Jiamou River, stationing a small detachment there. They conscripted laborers to build roads and bridges and to grow vegetables to supply the garrison. This stronghold was only two kilometers from Chen Jinyu's home. "I was only 16 years old when the Japanese army established their stronghold in early 1941," said Chen Jinyu, slowly opening up. She explained that the Japanese conscripted her as a laborer. Initially, she was assigned to plant rice and vegetables. Later, she was assigned to a "battlefield logistics service team." At the time, Chen Jinyu didn't know what the "battlefield logistics service team" did; she only felt that being a member was easier than being a laborer. However, anyone who disobeyed would be whipped by the Japanese soldiers and forced to crawl on the ground like "four-legged oxen."
After being selected as a member of the "logistics service team," Chen Jinyu was assigned to catch tobacco worms. A Japanese overseer monitored her every move. After serving as a service team member for seven days, (I remember) two days before the May Day festival, Chen Jinyu and her sisters were eating lunch when the Japanese overseer came to her work shed. After some chatter, the translator told her, "The Imperial Army wants you to go to his room now; they need to see you." "I was terrified, but I had to go, afraid of being beaten," the old woman recalled. As soon as she entered the room under Japanese surveillance, the door was closed…
After being raped, Chen Jinyu was heartbroken. She tried to escape home when the Japanese overseer wasn't looking, but she was discovered and brought back. The Japanese then punished her with the "four-legged bull" torture. The old woman explained that the "four-legged bull" torture involved the Japanese soldiers sticking their swords upside down in the ground, forcing her to bend over with her hands and feet on the ground, the sharp blade pressed against her abdomen. If she dared to raise her head, she would be beaten with sticks; but if she was too tired to hold on, the blade would pierce her abdomen, killing her. Being a "four-legged ox" was extremely tiring; she couldn't endure it for long. The old woman rolled up the back of her clothes to show us the obvious marks on her lower back from being beaten with Japanese soldiers' clubs. She also pointed to several prominent scars on her face, saying they were inflicted by Japanese soldiers with swords.
No one could imagine the kind of bullying and suffering that Chen Jinyu endured.
No one could imagine the kind of bullying and suffering that Chen Jinyu endured. The Japanese overseers changed frequently, and Chen Jinyu was repeatedly raped by the overseers and soldiers. The fate of her fellow women was similar. Chen Jinyu was raped the most times. From the first rape by the Japanese overseer, she suffered the same rape every day. One afternoon, Chen Jinyu and her sisters went to bathe in the Jiamu River. Her home was not far across the river to the east. She secretly slipped across, climbed onto the other side, and tried to run, but was spotted by Japanese sentries in the watchtower. Chen Jinyu was quickly caught and taken back. The Japanese soldiers beat her again, then imprisoned her. The next morning, Chen Jinyu was dragged to the drill ground to be forced to perform forced labor. "It was raining heavily at the time. I had just been beaten many times, and the rain made it incredibly painful. I couldn't climb more than a few steps before collapsing in the muddy water, unable to move," the old woman recalled. She said that if it weren't for her sisters pleading with the Japanese soldiers through a translator, she might have died. Afterwards, the Japanese surveillance intensified.
Chen Jinyu and her sisters endured inhumane living conditions in the Japanese army's "field logistics service team." They suffered daily atrocities at the hands of the Japanese soldiers. She couldn't remember how many times she was raped; sometimes two or three times a day, sometimes just one, and they never spared her even during her menstrual period.
One day in June 1945, the Japanese troops seemed very tense, each carrying a gun as they moved about. Chen Jinyu sensed something was amiss, and taking advantage of the Japanese soldiers' confusion, she sneaked across the Jiamu River and took a shortcut home as soon as it got dark. "As soon as I got home, the Japanese came after me," Chen Jinyu recalled. Seeing the Japanese soldiers chasing her so fiercely, she was terrified. In her panic, she ran to the village head's house, where the headman told her to run to the wilderness and hide there.
Chen Jinyu fled that night to a friend's hut in Wanzong Village and hid, afraid to show herself. She hid in the wilderness for over two months. One day, her friend told her that the "silent ones" (locals called the Japanese soldiers "silent ones") had gone to sea. Chen Jinyu carefully made her way home along a side path, but the villagers all said the Japanese stronghold was empty.
After the Japanese surrender, Chen Jinyu was introduced to a farmer who worked as a farmhand. The couple had a good relationship and lived together until her husband passed away 14 years ago. She is now supported by her children, and her remaining living expenses are covered by selling coconuts and betel nuts.
The elderly woman told reporters that she was fortunate not to have taken the "preventative pills" issued by the Japanese army, which allowed her to have two daughters and three sons, and now she has a large family. However, whenever she recalls the various humiliations she suffered in the Japanese army's battlefield logistics service unit, her hatred for the Japanese army's crimes intensifies. The old woman said she is too old to collect debts, but these debts must be repaid.
Lin Ailan, born in 1926, is now 81 years old and a resident of Songmei Village, Nanbao Town, Lingao County. In her twenties, she was captured by the Japanese, her mouth was gagged with a wooden stick, she was hung up by her hands and beaten to death, and at night she was raped and forced into sexual slavery. Her right thigh bone was broken by the Japanese, leaving her disabled and unable to walk normally to this day.
Lin Ailan, born in 1926, is now 81 years old and a resident of Songmei Village, Nanbao Town, Lingao County. In her early twenties, she was captured by the Japanese, gagged with a wooden stick, hung up by her hands, and beaten mercilessly. They raped her at night and forced her into sexual slavery as a comfort woman. Her right thighbone was broken by the Japanese, leaving her disabled and unable to walk normally to this day.
In the following days, we also visited several other elderly women, including Fu Meiju, Wang Zhifeng, Li Meijin, Cai Aihua, Cai Meie, Zhuo Tianmei, Zheng Jinnu, Fu Guiying, Lin Ailan, Chen Yabian, Lin Shigu, Huang Youliang, Yang Bang, Lin Yajin, Tan Yadong, and Deng Yumin. We deeply felt that the experience of being a "comfort woman" had left these victims with incurable physical and psychological trauma. They often suffered from headaches, backaches, abdominal pain, neuralgia, and limb disabilities, prematurely losing their youth and normal working ability. Many victims also lost their fertility, living lonely and destitute lives. Compared to their contemporaries, these elderly women suffered from more illnesses and appeared much older.
In 2001, seven surviving "comfort women" (pre-World War II victims), including Lin Yajin and Chen Yabian, signed a power of attorney authorizing Kang Jian, a lawyer from Beijing Fangyuan Law Firm, to file a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court in Japan, accusing the Japanese government of a public apology and demanding compensation for the harm they suffered as "comfort women."
In March 2005, Lin Yajin successfully traveled to Japan to testify in court. Lin Yajin stated that her actions demonstrated that they were no longer silent victims.
Cai Aihua, now 89 years old, was originally from Dongling Village, Zhongxing Town. At the age of 19, Cai Aihua was captured and taken to the Fulai Military Headquarters to serve as a "comfort woman." She suffered injuries from being kicked in the abdomen by Japanese soldiers, resulting in permanent back and abdominal pain.
Cai Aihua, now 89 years old. Cai Aihua, originally from Dongling Village, Zhongxing Town, was captured by Japanese soldiers at the age of 19 and forced into sexual slavery at the Fulai Military Headquarters. She suffered severe injuries from being kicked in the abdomen by Japanese soldiers, resulting in permanent back and abdominal pain.
Wang Zhifeng, now 77 years old, originally from Meiwan Village, Shankou Township, Chengmai County, was captured by Japanese soldiers at the age of 17 while returning from pounding rice at her maternal grandmother's house. She was forced into sexual slavery as a "comfort woman" and dug trenches at the Japanese military headquarters in Dayun City, Shankou Township. Wang Zhifeng has been deaf for many years and suffers from arthritis in both legs. She said she was unaware of the Japanese surrender.
Wang Zhifeng, now 77 years old, originally from Meiwan Village, Shankou Township, Chengmai County, was captured by Japanese soldiers at the age of 17 while returning from pounding rice at her maternal grandmother's house. She was forced into sexual slavery as a "comfort woman" and dug trenches at the Japanese military headquarters in Dayun City, Shankou Township. Wang Zhifeng has been deaf for many years and suffers from arthritis in both legs. She said she was unaware of the Japanese surrender. Lin Shigu, born in 1920, is 85 years old and a resident of Gangpo Village, Guangpo Town, Lingshui County. In 1940, she was captured by the Japanese army and forced into sexual slavery at the Japanese military headquarters (now Hongling, Lingshui County). Because of her resistance, her arm was broken by the Japanese soldiers, leaving her disabled to this day. During her sexual abuse at the hands of the Japanese army, she attempted suicide multiple times.
Li Meijin, also 85 years old, originally lived in Maoyuan Village, Heling Farm, Chengmai County. At the age of 16, she was captured by Japanese soldiers and forced to walk to the Japanese stronghold in Jialai, Lingao, where she spent her days clearing turf and building the Jialai Airport. Forced to work as a "comfort woman" at night, she is currently caring for her bedridden husband.
Li Meijin, 85 years old, originally from Maoyuan Village, Heling Farm, Chengmai County, was captured by Japanese soldiers at the age of 16 and forced to walk to the Japanese stronghold in Jialai, Lingao County. During the day, she cleared lawns and built the Jialai Airport. At night, she was forced to work as a "comfort woman." She is currently caring for her bedridden husband.
Fu Guiying, born in March 1919, 82 years old, originally from Meiao Village, Fushan Town, Chengmai County, was subjected to sexual exploitation by the Japanese for several years, starting in July 1941. This photo shows Fu Yukai (81 years old), a fellow villager who was also forced to do hard labor with Fu Guiying (left), reminiscing about the past.
Fu Guiying, born in March 1919, 82 years old, originally from Meiao Village, Fushan Town, Chengmai County, was subjected to sexual exploitation by the Japanese for several years, starting in July 1941. This is a photo of Fu Yukai (81 years old), a fellow villager who was forced into hard labor by the Japanese along with Fu Guiying (left), reminiscing about the past.
Zheng Jinnu, a member of the Li ethnic group (she doesn't know her exact age, but is approximately 80). Around the age of 16, Zheng Jinnu was captured by Japanese soldiers while working in the fields. She was taken to a Japanese military headquarters in the mountains, imprisoned, raped by three Japanese soldiers that same day, and forced into sexual slavery as a "comfort woman."
Zheng Jinnu, a member of the Li ethnic group (she doesn't know her exact age, but is approximately 80). Around the age of 16, Zheng Jinnu was captured by Japanese soldiers while working in the fields. She was taken to a Japanese military headquarters in the mountains, imprisoned, raped by three Japanese soldiers that same day, and forced into sexual slavery as a "comfort woman."
Chen Yabian, a member of the Li ethnic group, born in 1925, is currently 80 years old and lives in Zuxiao Village, Zuguan Town, Lingshui County. In 1942, at the age of 17, she was captured by the Japanese and taken to Sanya City, where she was imprisoned in a comfort station and used as a sex tool by Japanese soldiers. She was repeatedly raped and beaten, and her eyes were damaged from crying. In 2003, Chen Yabian went to Japan to participate in a seminar on Chinese comfort women.