More than 100 South Korean women have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. military, alleging they were forced into sexual labor while serving U.S. troops stationed in the country, their lawyers said Tuesday. The case marks the first time the U.S. military has been officially named in such legal action.
Historians and activists note that tens of thousands of South Korean women were employed in government-sanctioned brothels from the 1950s through the 1980s, during a period when U.S. forces were stationed in South Korea as a deterrent against North Korea.
In 2022, South Korea’s Supreme Court ruled that the government had illegally “established, managed and operated” these brothels, ordering compensation for approximately 120 plaintiffs.
Last week, 117 women filed a new lawsuit seeking an apology and compensation from the U.S. military. According to their attorneys, the suit seeks 10 million won (approximately $7,200) per plaintiff and aims to hold both the South Korean government and the U.S. military accountable for the alleged abuses.
One plaintiff, who declined to be named and is in her 60s, described being coerced into sex work at age 17 after believing she was taking a bartending job. She reported being subjected to physical abuse and forced to see multiple soldiers nightly. She also described mandatory venereal disease tests and said that abnormal results resulted in painful penicillin injections.
In a joint statement, women’s rights activists supporting the plaintiffs said the U.S. military “ignored the South Korean Constitution” and violated the women’s personal freedoms, causing long-term harm.
Another plaintiff described being physically assaulted, stating she was “nearly strangled to death by a U.S. soldier,” and criticized the South Korean government for its role in the system. “We were handed over to the U.S. bases — we were sold off for dollars,” she said in a handwritten statement. “Now we beg you to give us an answer. Why did we have to suffer such things? I want an explanation before I die. I also want an apology.”
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The U.S. currently maintains around 28,500 troops in South Korea. United States Forces Korea did not respond to a request for comment.
Lawyer Ha Ju-hee, representing the plaintiffs, said, “This lawsuit seeks to hold both the South Korean government and the U.S. military authorities jointly liable for the unlawful acts.”
