Kono Statement

The Kono Statement refers to a statement released by Chief Cabinet Secretary Yōhei Kōno on August 4, 1993, after the conclusion of the government study that found that the Japanese Imperial Army had forced women, known as comfort women, to work in military-run brothels during World War II. The Japanese government had initially denied that the women had been coerced until this point. In the Kono Statement, the Japanese government acknowledged that: "The then Japanese military was, directly or indirectly, involved in the establishment and management of the comfort stations". "The recruitment of the comfort women was conducted mainly by private recruiters who acted in response to the request of the military." "In many cases they were recruited against their own will, through coaxing, coercion, etc." "At times, administrative/military personnel directly took part in the recruitments." "They lived in misery at comfort stations under a coercive atmosphere."