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This file photo, taken Aug. 25, 2021, shows Second Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-moon speaking during a press briefing at the foreign ministry in Seoul. (Yonhap) |
Second Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-moon has stressed the importance of a "survivor-oriented" approach to addressing sexual violence in conflict, reiterating South Korea's steadfast commitment to tackling the issue, the foreign ministry said Tuesday.
Choi made the remarks during Monday's virtual event, titled "Reparations for Survivors of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence: Status and Prospects," on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
The Global Survivors Fund, established in October 2019 to support survivors of sexual crimes in conflict around the globe, organized the event, with its members -- South Korea, Britain, Japan and France -- jointly leading the event.
"Vice Foreign Minister Choi stressed that reparations for survivors of sexual violence in conflict must be a process of restoring their honor and dignity, and that a survivor oriented approach is more important than anything in that process," the ministry said in a press release.
Touching on victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, euphemistically called comfort women, Choi called for the international community to take their "courageous" accounts of painful experiences as "precious lessons of history."
The ministry also pledged to expand Seoul's contributions to the international efforts to address sexual crimes in conflict. (Yonhap)
