Gyeonggi Province Publishes "Comprehensive White Paper on the Human Rights Archive of Camp Town Women"

Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi Women and Family Foundation have published the nation's first "Comprehensive White Paper on the Human Rights Archive of Camp Town Women."

This white paper comprehensively compiles the entire process of the "Camp Town Women Human Rights Archive Project," which was carried out from April to December last year in accordance with the "Ordinance on the Protection, Support, and Commemoration of Camp Town Women Victims in Gyeonggi Province."

The white paper consists of five chapters: Chapter 1 covers the background and progress of the project, a timeline of the camp town women human rights documentation, an overview of camp town history, and archive statistics; Chapter 2 contains representative public and private records. Chapter 3 summarizes oral interviews with camp town women themselves, while Chapter 4 includes records and explanatory materials on spaces related to camp towns. The final Chapter 5 presents the main outcomes of the archiving activities.

Cover of the Comprehensive White Paper on the Human Rights Archive of Camp Town Women

The "Camp Town Women Human Rights Archive Project" investigated, collected, and documented materials related to camp town women, historical camp town sites, and the camp town women's movement, and established a digital archive. The project aimed to expand social memory of camp town history, promote women's human rights, and support the healing and recovery of victims.

Gyeonggi Province and the Gyeonggi Women and Family Foundation expect that the archive's records, videos, and spatial content will be widely utilized for education, exhibitions, and human rights training materials in the future, thereby contributing to greater social empathy and understanding of camp town women's human rights.

Kim Jinhyo, Director of Gender Policy at Gyeonggi Province, stated, "The achievements of this archive are important materials documenting the painful history of women's human rights left by war and division. We hope this will serve as an opportunity not only for the healing and restoration of honor for camp town women who have lived under social stigma, but also for increased social interest and improvement in the human rights of camp town women."