Berlin groups mark 6th anniversary of "Statue of Peace" honoring imperial Japan's wartime sexual slavery victims

Civil groups in the German capital Berlin held commemorative activities on Sunday to mark the sixth anniversary of the installation of the "Statue of Peace", which commemorates the victims and survivors of Imperial Japan's sexual slavery during World War II.

The statue, which is known locally as "Ari," meaning 'brave', was first jointly unveiled as a public art piece back in 2020 by Korea Verband, the association of Korean people in Germany, and several other Korean organizations.

Nearly a century has passed since the first women were forced into sexual slavery by Imperial Japan before and during World War II, but the memories of their suffering remain deeply painful today.

From 1931 to 1945, an estimated 400,000 women from 11 Asian countries and regions were coerced into sexual slavery for the Japanese military. Most victims came from China, the Korean Peninsula and the Philippines, with others from Myanmar, East Timor, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and other regions.

After this tribute statue was first unveiled in Berlin six years ago, Korean groups and local scholars said that sustained pressure had come from the Japanese side over the installation.

The municipal government of Berlin, citing pressure from Tokyo, decided not to permit the statue to be displayed in a public space and, in October 2025, it was removed from its previous street-side location and temporarily placed in a nearby private compound.

"Politically, I feel that, regarding Japan, many politicians in Germany, and here in Berlin too -- especially Mayor Kai Wegner -- came under pressure because Japan doesn't want this statue to be showed in public space," said Shulamit Kriener, a scholar of modern Korean history at the School of Oriental and African Studies of the University of London.

Korea Verband has continuously negotiated with the Japanese side and the Berlin government, but encountered considerable resistance.

Kriener said that Japan has taken the wrong approach over how it views not just this statue, but the wider history which surrounds it.

"I think what Japan does amounts to a cover-up or suppression of truth. I think Japan views it more as an attack or an assault on themselves rather than an opportunity to confront its own history, which is something that, admittedly, probably hasn't really happened over the last few decades anyway," she said.

Han Jeong-hwa, chairperson of Korea Verband, said on Sunday that the statue gives local residents in Berlin the opportunity to learn about the crimes committed by the Japanese military against women in multiple Asia-Pacific countries during World War II.

She said the organization will continue to push for the statue's return to a public space, where it can be properly appreciated and its history properly shared.

"We have renewed hope that the statue will return to the original spot. We realized that the old location was a very good one because there was much more of a neighborhood feel. People there really loved the statue, and we had so many positive feedbacks -- much more feedback from the people walking by and those living in the area," she said.

Berlin groups mark 6th anniversary of "Statue of Peace" honoring imperial Japan's wartime sexual slavery victims

The new school year in southern Lebanon's Nabatieh governorate has started with classrooms serving both as learning spaces and shelters for families displaced by Israeli attacks.

In the southern town of Froun, Bint Jbeil District, a local public school has been converted into a combined educational and shelter facility ahead of the school year's start.

Ghina Ammash, a displaced student living in the school with her family, shared her hopes for the year despite the difficult circumstances.

"We hope it will be a good school year, but we're staying here because we have no other choice. We want to study, succeed, and work when we grow up, and we hope it will be a good school year," said Ammash, a student at the Froun Intermediate Public School.

School principal Abbas Makki outlined the challenges the faculty and students face as displacement continues in Froun.

"Our student enrollment has dropped by half, and the start of the school year was chaotic. There are students who enrolled here but are unable to secure housing, though they were promised accommodation would be provided for them. We insisted on starting the school year despite the presence of displaced people so no one is shortchanged. We have set aside one floor for housing and another for teaching," said Makki.

In Nabatieh, the school year opened amid fears of further attacks and forced displacement, with some schools damaged or unusable.

Isaac Muhammad Hammoud, a local high school teacher, noted the staff's determination.

"Despite the many challenges we face this year - starting with our move from the main building of Hassan Kamel Al-Sabah High School to the Nabatieh Vocational School building - the teachers' determination to persevere and their sense of responsibility have driven them to overcome these hardships and show up to deliver their message," said Hammoud, who works at the Hassan Kamel al-Sabbah High School.

"There are many difficulties we face. The situation isn't good. We move about cautiously, never knowing when the enemy will attack, and we are displaced. Distance learning isn't enough, in-person learning works better," said Aya Zaitoun, a student at the shool.

New school year begins in southern Lebanon, with classrooms doubling as shelters