Interview #1: Ms. Lee Yong Soo
A Comfort Woman's Story and the Power of Place
Ms. Lee Yong Soo (이용수) survived being taken as a comfort woman at age 12. Decades later, she still fights for recognition, justice, and the preservation of this history. This is her story.
About This Interview
In this first podcast episode, my mom and I interviewed Ms. Lee Yong Soo (이용수), a South Korean comfort woman survivor. "Comfort women" were victims of Japanese sexual harassment and violence before and during World War II. Ms. Lee currently lives in Daegu, South Korea, and is a member of the House of Sharing, a nursing home and museum dedicated to the surviving comfort women.
When I first visited the museum during the summer of 2025, the women's incredible resilience inspired me to reflect on the significance of physical sites in preserving memories and stories. Soon afterward, I created Voices of Vanishing Places. Although Ms. Lee's story primarily revolves around the experiences of South Korean comfort women, I decided to include it as my first podcast episode because it demonstrates what's at stake when we lose the places that hold our histories.
The interview is conducted solely in Korean, but I've extracted some quotes and translated them into English so that Ms. Lee's story can reach a broader audience.
Interview Details
Guest: Ms. Lee Yong Soo (이용수)
Interviewers: Christine Oh and Joyce Cho
Date Recorded: November 7, 2025
Location: House of Sharing, Daegu, South Korea
Language: Korean (with English translations provided)
Duration: 16:15
Format: Audio Interview
Interview Questions
Below are translated excerpts from Ms. Lee's interview, organized by the questions we asked. These highlights capture the core of her story, but we encourage you to listen to the full interview to hear her speak in her own voice.
First, I read that many comfort women were rural girls who were taken away by Japanese soldiers one day. I would like to ask Ms. Lee Yong Soo about her life before becoming a comfort woman, and how she came to endure such suffering.
Ms. Lee's Response (translated):
“As a young country girl, I was dragged away to Hsinchu, Taiwan. In Korean age, I was only twelve. I had no idea why I was dragged away. I got hit a lot and even had to endure electric torture whenever I refused to enter the soldiers’ room for their pleasure. Even after I came out after 3 years, I still never knew the reason. When I finally knew that I was kidnapped to be a Japanese comfort woman, I knew a conversation with Japan wouldn’t be effective; we had to fight them through the law. The discrimination and oppression persisted everywhere. Whenever my mother harvested crops, the Japanese took everything. Our community had to rely on each other for food.”
Second, I understand that many comfort women survivors faced public condemnation upon returning home and found it difficult to resume their former lives. Ms. Lee Yong Soo, what difficulties did you encounter when you returned to your hometown, trying to adapt to the lifestyle you had before?
Ms. Lee's Response (translated):
“I had to live with [my deteriorated] physical and mental health. Eventually, when I turned 65 years old, I received economic support and moved to Seoul. A Japanese professor shared his prize money among the comfort women. Still, I felt ashamed of receiving economic support and my history. I hide my face with a wrapping cloth during daylight. Over time, the comfort women gathered in Seoul and started protesting, specifically calling the Wednesday Demonstration (a weekly protest demanding that Japan redress the comfort women). If I think about it, from ages 12 to 84, it has been 72 years since I first protested for Japan to solve the comfort women issue. The young girl has turned 90 now, and we still haven’t solved the issue yet. We only have one grandmother who still lives in the House of Sharing, unable to talk and requiring medical attention 24/7. She can’t even talk, and we don’t know when she will pass away. Why is our government just waiting for all the comfort women to die?”
Third, what significance do you think the House of Sharing has in preserving the history and voices of comfort women?
Ms. Lee's Response (translated):
"It's really significant. A group of monks first established the House of Sharing. A woman named Joo Young Jae donated 1,785 square feet. In the beginning, we had nothing. Lee Yong Nyeo, a fellow comfort woman survivor, provided an immense contribution in building the House of Sharing. Additionally, former prime minister Lee Soo Sung continuously provided financial funding. Thanks to these people, many comfort women survivors were able to reunite at the House of Sharing. We still have one comfort woman survivor who flew in from China. She is severely ill, but she remains in the House of Sharing to guard the museum."
Finally, how do you think current and future generations need to recognize and learn about the importance of the history of comfort women? Above all, how can the current generation contribute to raising awareness about this issue?
Ms. Lee's Response (translated):
“I am not sure if our government or our nation is too weak, or if they are just neglecting the issue. It’s been more than 35 years since the Wednesday Demonstration started, and the problem still persists. The young soldiers sacrificed themselves to bring the nation back to the past; the government should at least acknowledge the pain the young people had to endure. The responsibility to solve the issue still remains in the hands of the government, which is aimlessly waiting for the comfort women to pass away. I really appreciate your attention to this issue. Although I recognize the apology we received from Japan, I still expect compensation. I strongly believe that this issue will be solved eventually. I also believe the history of comfort women should be recorded in UNESCO[‘s Memory of the World Register].”
WORKS & PUBLICATIONS CITED
Kwon, Woo Sung. "Grandmother Lee Yong-su fills the empty space at the memorial monument." OhMyNews, 2019, https://www.ohmynews.com/NWS_Web/View/img_pg.aspx?CNTN_CD=IE002534850
