,
,
,
, “The ‘Statue of Peace’ was installed on the beach resort of Sardinia, Italy, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea on the 22nd(local time).”,
,
, ‘Amid the threat of removal of girl statues in various parts of the world due to pressure from the Japanese government, there were initial conflicts due to Japanese protests even for the newly erected statue.’,
,
, ‘The inauguration ceremony held on the coast of Stintino Island in Sardinia was attended by local politicians, women’s organizations, and civic group representatives.’,
,
, ‘This is the second installation of a girl statue in Europe, following Berlin, Germany.’,
,
, “Following speeches by Mayor Rita Ballebella of Stintino and Chairwoman Lee Nayoung of the Justice Memory Association, a local choir sang the Korean folk song ‘Arirang.'”,
,
, ‘According to reports, during the event, Sardinian citizens approached the Chairwoman and promised to protect the girl statue by pledging with their fingers.’,
,
, ‘Stintino erected the girl statue on a popular beach public site so that it can be known to many people, just 200m away from the Stintino City Hall.’,
,
, “The Statue of Peace is a sculpture that remembers the historical facts of the Japanese military’s ‘comfort women’ and expresses the hope that the ongoing sexual violence occurring worldwide will cease.”,
,
, ‘The mayor, a former women’s rights lawyer, accepted the proposal from the Justice Memory Association to establish Italy’s first girl statue.’,
,
, “Next to the girl statue, there is a long inscription titled ‘Testimony of Memory’ installed separately as a guidepost.”,
,
, ‘The inscription describes details such as the forcible taking of numerous girls and women as sexual slaves by the Japanese military in Asia-Pacific during World War II.’,
,
, ‘It was also reported that the strong regret against Japan’s denial of comfort women and the movement to remove the girl statues were reflected in the inscription.’,
,
, ‘However, it was not smooth sailing from the beginning, with Japan requesting the postponement of the inauguration ceremony, among other things.’,
,
, ‘According to this media, Japanese Ambassador to Italy, Suzuki Satoshi, visited Stintino two days before the inauguration on the 20th and requested the postponement of the inauguration from Mayor Ballebella. This reportedly sparked controversy between Korea and Japan, touching on the remaining scars between the two countries.’,
,
, ‘According to the media, Ambassador Suzuki allegedly argued to the city that Japan has apologized for past crimes and is in the process of paying compensation to the victims, claiming that the inscription about the girl statue is not accurate.’,
,
, ‘Mayor Ballebella rejected Ambassador Suzuki’s request to postpone the inauguration.’,
,
, ‘However, the media reported that she expressed the need for fact-checking to verify the accuracy of the inscription.’,
,
, ‘According to the media, Mayor Ballebella stated, “I believe that accurate facts should be conveyed,” adding, “I am ready to confirm Korea’s official position through the Korean Ambassador to Italy.”.’,
,
, ‘Mayor Ballebella emphasized during the inauguration speech that the girl statue is not about Japan but about universal women’s rights issues, as also conveyed by Chairwoman Lee Nayoung of the Justice Memory Association.’,
,
, ‘Prior to the inauguration, the Japanese Kyodo news agency reported that Mayor Ballebella acknowledged the bias in the inscription of the girl statue and stated that she would change the content to accommodate the positions of both Korea and Japan.’,
,
, ‘However, Chairwoman Lee Nayoung relayed that after meeting with Mayor Ballebella, the Mayor made no mention of changing the inscription during her meeting with the Japanese Ambassador and has no plans to change the inscription in the future.’,
,
, ‘With Japan’s movements seeking to restrict the girl statue through disputes surrounding the truth about Mayor Ballebella’s statements, sparks of friction surrounding this girl statue issue remain and there is a possibility that Japan will continue to exert pressure and engage in public opinion warfare.’,
,
, ‘Chairwoman Lee Nayoung stated, “Mayor Ballebella may have mentioned the possibility of changing the inscription to avoid conflict with Japan, but it is more important to protect the girl statue going forward.”‘,
,
, ‘The South Korean Embassy in Italy stated that they have not yet received any communication from Stintino regarding the related content and are monitoring the situation and will consider appropriate responses if necessary.’,
,
, ‘An embassy official stated, “We will monitor the situation and consider appropriate responses.”‘,
,
, ‘The Sardinia Island girl statue is the 14th overseas girl statue, but the statues, which were located in various countries around the world due to problems raised by the Japanese government and embassies, continue to suffer hardships.’,
,
, ‘The first girl statue in Europe, installed in Berlin, Germany, is also facing removal.’,
,
, ‘In response, the left-wing party in Mitte borough criticized the municipal office, saying in a statement on the previous day, “We have already had sufficient discussions and heard proposals for the future of the girl statue, but the district office did not take any action.”‘,
,
, ‘The Justice Memory Association stated in a press release that they will continue to strive to establish a Statue of Peace worldwide.’,
,
, ‘The Justice Memory Association emphasized, “Sardinia Island is a beautiful city that attracts many tourists from Europe and the United States.” “The girl statue will serve to convey the cruelty of inhumane criminal acts while looking out over the Mediterranean and to convey the importance of peace and human rights to the world.”‘,
,
, ‘(Photo=Provided by the Justice Memory Association, Yonhap News)\n’