Japanese MPs deny sex slavery in WaPo adverstisement
"No historical document has ever been found by historians or research organisations that positively demonstrates that women were forced against their will into prostitution by the Japanese army," the ad said under the title, in bold letters, "THE FACTS".
The advertisement says: "The ianfu (comfort women) who were embedded with the Japanese army were not, as is commonly reported, 'sex slaves'. They were working under a system of licensed prostitution that was commonplace around the world at the time."
It adds that many of the women made more money than field officers "and even generals".
The ad acknowledges that there were "breakdowns in discipline". "Criticism for events that actually occurred must be humbly embraced," it says.