New Zealand Rejects Comfort Women Statue Application at Auckland Reserve
Local board declines Korean Garden Trust proposal after Japan warns of potential diplomatic harm
Quick Look
- New Zealand's Devonport-Takapuna Local Board rejected an application to install a comfort women statue at Barry's Point Reserve in Auckland.
- The Korean Garden Trust proposed the memorial for WWII sexual slavery survivors from Korea, China, and Southeast Asia.
- Japan suggested the statue could harm diplomatic relations, leading to the board's decision after public consultation.
AI-generated summary
New Zealand officials rejected on Wednesday an application to install a statue commemorating so-called "comfort women" enslaved by Japan before and during World War II after Tokyo suggested it could harm diplomatic relations. Japan forced up to 200,000 women from Korea, China and Southeast Asia into sexual slavery from 1932 until 1945 and the issue remains a sore point in Tokyo's relations with its neighbours. The Korean Garden Trust had sought to install a statue honouring the survivors at Barry's Point Reserve in the Auckland suburb of Takapuna. But after public consultation the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board declined an application to install the statue. "This was a difficult decision, and one we did not make lightly," board chair Trish Deans said. "We carefully considered staff advice and the feedback received from the community through a formal consultation process."
