De Lima pushes for comprehensive compensation for Filipino comfort women

A full compensation for Filipino comfort women or the sex slaves of the Japanese soldiers during the World War II has been proposed in the House of Representatives.

House Senior Deputy Majority Leader Leila De Lima made the call under her House Resolution 912 urging the Executive Department and all other appropriate government agencies to provide adequate, prompt, and effective reparations to the surviving members of the Filipino comfort women or the Malaya Lolas and, where appropriate, to the families and successors-in-interest of deceased survivors in accordance with international and domestic laws. 

“Hustisya para sa Malaya Lolas! (Justice for Malaya Lolas!)  These concrete steps should be implemented swiftly and seriously, as they are consistent with the country’s obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW),” De Lima said.

She said the most striking comfort women incident happened in November 1944 when the Malaya Lolas were forcibly taken by members of the Imperial Japanese Army to “Bahay na Pula” — a hacienda-turned-headquarters in San Ildefonso, Bulacan — where they were detained and repeatedly subjected to rape, other forms of sexual violence, torture, and inhumane conditions of detention. 

“Consistent with its constitutional duty to uphold human dignity, human rights, equality, and the rule of law, the State must act decisively to address this longstanding injustice to Malaya Lolas and provide an effective remedy for the continuing consequences of wartime sexual violence and the State’s failure to afford timely, adequate and effective redress,” De Lima, a former Commission on Human Rights  (CHR) chairperson, said. 

She noted that only a few members of the Malaya Lolas remain alive — several of whom are already bedridden and of failing health. 

“Ano pang hinihintay ng gobyerno, bakit hindi pa rin maipagkaloob sa kanila ang nararapat na pagkilala at sapat na danyos perwisyo sa mga karahasan at pagdurusang dinanas nila?” De Lima said. 

(What is the government waiting for? Why are we denying the Malaya Lolas the recognition and the compensation they deserve after the sexual abuse that they endured?)

Failed promises

Under CEDAW and its relevant general recommendations, States are required to exercise due diligence and to provide effective remedies, including reparations, to women who have suffered gender-based violence. 

Back in March 2023, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women found that the Philippine government failed to fulfill its obligations under CEDAW by not providing adequate redress to the survivors, and recommended that the State provide full reparations, including compensation, official apology, and measures to preserve historical memory. 

As such, De Lima urged the government to comply with recommendations of the CEDAW Committee on the situation of the Malaya Lolas which include the following:

• Compensation in an adequate and effective amount in recognition of the grave physical, psychological, emotional, social, and intergenerational harms suffered by the survivors; 
• Comprehensive rehabilitation and support services, including medical, psychosocial, and social assistance, made accessible and responsive to the age, health, and circumstances of the surviving members;
• Measures for memorialization and historical preservation, including the protection, preservation, and development of “Bahay na Pula” and related sites of memory as historically significant spaces deserving of recognition and protection; 
• Educational measures, including the integration of the history of wartime sexual slavery and the experiences of Filipino “comfort women” into basic and secondary education curricula consistent with truth and human rights education; and,
• Legislative, administrative, and institutional guarantees of non-repetition, including policies and programs to prevent conflict-related sexual violence and strengthen accountability for gender-based human rights and humanitarian law violations.

“Walang dahilan para ibinbin at ipagkait pa ang makatwirang mga serbisyong ito para sa Malaya Lolas. Ang pagkakaloob nito ay hindi lamang hustisya para sa kanila, kundi pagbibigay din ng proteksyon at paggalang sa karapatan at dignidad ng kababaihan sa bawat henerasyon ng ating kasaysayan,” De Lima said. 

(There is no reason to hesitate and deny the fair compensation to Malaya Lolas. This is  not just about justice, but giving them protection, respect and dignity.) —AOL, GMA News