In "The Origin and Development of the Military Sexual Slavery Problem in Imperial Japan," Shin Sung Chung (1977) attempts to provide an objective presentation of the facts of the case, arguing, "It has been alternatively concealed and unveiled according to changes in the balance of power between the countries involved" (p. 220).

Chung (1977) begins by discussing terminology, since the parties have no universally accepted language to talk about the issue. "Military sexual slavery" is the phrase used by the Korean Council and the United Nations, but this is charged language and covers a variety of different kinds of practices used with different groups of women. Chung (1977) observes, "It was not until 1937 that the Japanese government created an official brothel policy and began to systematically establish brothels in areas where soldiers were stationed" (p. 223).

Chung acknowledges the difficulty of studying the subject, in part because the Japanese army destroyed most of their records after Japan was defeated. Yet, Chung (1977) observes, enough evi

dence remains to show that "the Japanese Army's systematic, well-planned, and inhumane implementation of military sex slavery policy brought the military exploitation of women to new levels" (p. 230). This was the result of several aspects of Japanese Imperial society, and Chung spells these out in some detail, offering a good outline for further examination of the social issues that made such practices possible.

Chung's article, written in 1997 before much attention had been given to the subject, also provides context. It is also especially useful in its discussion of terminology, considering the ways in which language informs the debate.

Bonnie B. C. Oh's ( ) "The Japanese Imperial System and the Korean 'Comfort Women' of World War II" begins by putting the issue into context. Military prostitution is not unique to 20th century Japan but Japanese society was able to institutionalize the practice in unique ways. Oh ( ) argues, "Given [the] open acceptance of systematized and legalized prostitution, it is not surprising that there should have been an organized brothel system in the Japanese military" (p. 5). Oh considers the historic and political climate at work that seems to have encouraged a system of forcing women, especially women from nations the Imperialist forces were trying to conquer, to submit sexually to the invading forces.

The five young women in Tamura Taijiroo's ( ) "Gate of Flesh" are trying to survive the postwar devastation by working as private prostitutes serving the occupying soldiers. At the end of the story, one of the girls faces the punishment of the others for having broken the house rules. Tanaka (2002) reminds readers, "To