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Library of Documents

Category: Human Trafficking/Exploitation

» "Ubiquitous and Unremarked Upon": Militarized Prostitution and the American Occupations of Japan and Korea (2012)

This thesis uses feminist international relations theory to examine the United States' reliance on foreign women to fulfill its international agenda in Korea and Japan. It identifies the ways in which American government and military leaders depended on Japanese and Korean women's sexual labor to sustain multi-year military occupations and advance their strategic political and economic objectives in the region.

» American Military-Base Prostitution (February 2006)

Author Jennifer Latstetter noted in her essay that the United States--a country that professes equality for all--is one of the biggest perpetrators of the cult of military prostitution.

» Combating Trafficking in Persons (CTIP): Department of Defense

The Combating Trafficking in Persons (CTIP) Program Office establishes policy and assigns responsibilities for CTIP. The Department of Defense acknowledges that TIP is 'a worldwide problem posing a transnational threat involving violations of basic human rights.' The three most common forms of human trafficking is labor, sex, and child soldiering. The government agency states it has zero tolerance for "Trafficking in Persons."

» Comfort Women "Settlement" Forgets and De-Legitimizes the Victims (January 20, 2016)

The Japanese and South Korean governments reached a "Comfort Women" settlement. Included in the settlement is a $8.3 million compensation fund for the 46 living women, a formal apology from the Japanese government, and "projects for recovering the honor and dignity and healing the psychological wounds of all former comfort women." Their stories share a common narrative: sexual violence against women by those in power, and subsequently, societies' unwillingness to acknowledge violations.

» Digital Museum: The Comfort Women Issue and the Asian Women's Fund

During World War II, estimates of hundreds of thousands of "comfort women" from the Philippines, North & South Korea, China, Taiwan, Netherlands, Burma, Malaysia, East Timor, Indonesia and south of Micronesia were forced into military sexual slavery and sexually exploited in hundreds of rape stations to serve Japanese forces. It wasn't until after democratization in 1987 that "The Comfort Women Issue" was discussed openly in the Republic of Korea (South Korea).

» Documentary: "Me and an Owl"/South Korea’s “Camptown” Stories (March 22, 2007)

"Me and an Owl" is a documentary exploring the lives of South Korean sex workers living in "camptowns" around U.S. military bases.

» DOD IG Report: Evaluation of the Department of Defense Combating Trafficking in Persons Program (June 16,2014)

The Department of Defense (DOD) Inspector General report, dated June 16, 2014, identified three areas of progress and five areas not in compliance with the DOD "Combating Trafficking in Persons (CTIP)" program.

» Human Rights, the Sex Industry, and Foreign Troops: Feminist Analysis of Nationalism in Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines

This article examines how South Korean, Japanese, and Filipino governments actively support and maintain the prostitution industry servicing U.S. troops as a means to achieve "national security" even though prostitution is illegal in their countries and they did not necessarily choose to participate in the sex trade.

» Human Trafficking: An Introduction for Military, Civilians, and Contractors (September 2012)

Polaris Project offers human trafficking training to Department of Defense military and civilian employees as well as contractors in an effort to identify, deter, and prevent the trafficking of human beings exploited for sex, labor, organ removal, and other criminal activities.

» Militarized Prostitution in Korea (1945-2013)

This timeline posted on Preceden depicts national government support of commercial sexual exploitation the demand military forces created by military forces. The evolution of "Camptown Prostitution" around U.S. military bases in South Korea from 1945 to 2013 is highlighted.

» Military Prostitution and the U.S. Military in Asia (January 17, 2009)

Katherine H.S. Moon's article contests the common assumptions in the West that prostitution is "part of Asian culture." She notes that 'Where there are soldiers, there are women who exist for them. Practically cliché, history is filled with examples of women as war booty and “camp followers,” their bodies being used for service labor of various kinds, including sex.'

» Military Sexual Violence: From Frontline to Fenceline (June 17, 2013)

President and Commander-in-Chief Barack Obama called military leaders to the White House in May 2013 directing them to get to the root of military sexual violence. This article explores historical events domestic and international events in peace and wartime.

» Modern Slavery Study--Action on Military Sex Trafficking: Cases of Criminal Responsibility (October 2014)

The link between prostitution and trafficking is officially recognized by the US government. In 2005, the Manual for Courts-Martial was amended to specify “patronizing a prostitute” as a violation of Article 134 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

» Modern-Day Comfort Women: The U.S. Military, Transnational Crime, and the Trafficking of Women (2007)

In South Korea, U.S. military bases are an international hub for the trafficking of women for prostitution and related forms of sexual exploitation. This paper's authors examine three types of trafficking that are connected to US military bases.

» Redefining Security: Women Challenge U.S. Military Policy & Practice in East Asia (September 2013)

This article reviews the impact of security treaties and the Status of Forces Agreements (SOFAs) providing for U.S. bases, military operations, and port visits in East Asian countries. Their premise is that these agreements with host nations detrimentally compromise the security of local people. Prostitution, abuse of local women, and the mixed-race children fathered by U.S. military men are some of the outcomes that grassroots host nation organizations are trying to end by reforming SOFAs.

» Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S./Korea Relations (1997)

Katherine H.S. Moon, in her excerpt "U.S. Military Prostitution in Asia" from "Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S./Korea Relations," explores how U.S. military camptowns create economic dependence between residents and the military. She compares this relationship with others like it in Okinawa and in the United States.

» The Construction of U.S. Camptown Prostitution in South Korea: Trans/Formation and Resistance (November 28, 2006)

Author Na Young Le authored this paper about U.S. camptown prostitution from a historical perspective and in the context of the nation-state power structures.

» The Women Outside: Korean Women and the U.S. Military

"The Women Outside," a 1995 documentary, examines Korean women and the conditions they lived in until the end of the 1990s. The U.S. maintains a significant presence in South Korea since the end of the Korean War in 1953. The producers state that as of 1995, over 27,000 women "service" the 37,000 American servicemen stationed in this militarized region. Their study guide promotes discussion about their documentary and the issues it raises.

» U.S. Military Faces Scrutiny Over Its Prostitution Policies (April 29, 2012)

In 2005, President George W. Bush signed an executive order adding patronizing prostitutes to the U.S. military's Manual for Courts-Martial. In light of recent Secret Service and military transgressions in Columbia, there remains questions on the strength of the law and its enforcement.

» USFK Command Policy Letter #12 , Combating Prostitution and Trafficking in Persons (CTIP) (October 15, 2014)

This written policy condemning prostitution and human trafficking applies to all military personnel assigned or attached permanently, on temporary duty, or on rotational duty in Korea, and to USFK units or organizations supported by USFK units.