Statue Vandalized

[Anchor Lead]

A statue in San Francisco of the late wartime sex slavery victim Kim Hak-sun was vandalized with paint. The statue’s eyes were painted over and its traditional hanbok was splashed as well. The foundation that installed the memorial statue said the act appears to be intentional.

[Pkg]

A statue to commmorate victims of Japan's wartime sexual enslavement, erected inside a park in downtown San Francisco. Three girls hold hands standing in a circle as an elderly woman watches over them. That lady is the late Kim Hak-sun, the very first victim to come forward and share her testimony. Her statue was vandalized recently. The traditional Korean hanbok attire she dons, is stained with green and white paint. Her eyes, also painted white.

[Soundbite] Kim Hyeon-jeong(Comfort Women Justice Coalition) : "We swiftly restored the statue. We consider the act a serious hate crime and will take stern response measures in the future."

This is not the first time such structures are damaged. In the past, a copperplate with inscriptions commemorating sex slavery victims and describing the wartime crimes of the Japanese military was damaged several times. The perpetrator of the latest act is not yet identified, but according to the foundation that installed the statue, it appears to be planned and carried out with malicious intent.