"慰安妇"档案申遗 中日争端再起

From territorial disputes to war-time atrocities, Japan and China just can't get along.

从之前爆发领土争端，到现在中国为本国人民忍受的二战暴行申遗，中国和日本就是合不来。

The latest spat between the two involves China's recent application to Unesco to preserve archives detailing the abuses that so-called 'comfort women' suffered at the hands of the Japanese military during World War II. If China has its way, documents recording the fate of such women would become part of Unesco's Memory of the World program--a move which Japan has vehemently protested.

中日两国最近的纷争，涉及中国近期将二战时期“慰安妇”相关档案向联合国教科文组织(Unesco)申遗一事。如果中国申遗成功，则记录“慰安妇”命运的档案将成为教科文组织世界记忆(Memory of the World)计划的一部分，而日本则竭力反对这种做法。

The program was established by the United Nations cultural body in 1992 to 'facilitate preservation, by the most appropriate techniques, of the world's documentary heritage.' It currently includes nine relics from China, including ancient literary manuscripts and traditional musical archives as well as such items as film archives from the U.S., a Gutenberg Bible from Germany and deeds from Egyptian sultans and princes. Inclusion on the program's list leads to improved conservation of the items, as its experts help procure resources to preserve and digitize the material.

“世界记忆”计划是联合国教科文组织1992年发起的，其目的是使用最适当的技术保存世界文献遗产。目前中国有九项档案入选世界记忆名录，其中包括古代文献手稿和传统音乐档案。该名录中还包括美国电影资料、德国古腾堡圣经以及埃及提交的苏丹及王子功绩录。纳入世界记忆名录的文献资料可以获得更好的保存条件，项目专家将帮助获取所需资源来保存档案，并将材料数字化。

The term 'comfort women' refers to the tens of thousands of women, many of whom were Chinese and Korean , coerced into sexual slavery in brothels used by the Japanese military in the 1930s and 1940s.

所谓“慰安妇”是指上世纪三十年代和四十年代，被日军强征充当性奴隶的上万名妇女，其中很多人都是中国人和韩国人。

On Thursday, Japan summoned China's ambassador in Tokyo to formally lodge a complaint about the application after China on Wednesday rejected a demand from Tokyo to withdraw the application.

在中国周三拒绝东京提出的撤回申报的要求后，日方周四召见了中国驻日本大使，正式对中国将南京大屠杀以及慰安妇问题相关资料申报世界记忆名录一事提出抗议。

'At a time when efforts are needed to improve Japan-China relations, it is extremely regrettable that China moved to make political use of the Unesco forum and to unnecessarily play up the negative legacy of ties from a period of the past,' Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said on Wednesday.

日本官房长官菅义伟(Yoshihide Suga)周三表示，在需努力改善日中两国关系的特殊时期出于政治目的利用教科文组织，对两国间过去的一段负面遗产做不必要的强调，令人极为遗憾。

The issue has been a contentious one between Japan and its neighbors, particularly China and South Korea, for years. Earlier this year, Seoul tried to seek a state-funded compensation program acknowledging the Japanese government's role in the coercion as well as a formal apology to the women, fewer and fewer of whom are still alive. (Of the Korean women who have identified themselves as former sex slaves, only 55 remained alive as of April.)

日本及其邻国，尤其是中国和韩国多年来在该问题上一直存在争议。今年早些时候，首尔试图寻求让日本设立一个国家赔偿计划，承认日本政府在强征问题上所扮演的角色，并向这些妇女正式道歉。这些女性当中，目前依然在世的越来越少。（在韩国，截至4月份，向政府登记过的性奴隶中，只有55名还在世。）

Japan maintains that the issue of compensation to the women was settled legally as part of a broader 1965 bilateral agreement that addressed Japan's wartime wrongdoing on the Korean Peninsula. Tokyo also says that former leaders have previously apologized to the women. In 1993, the government notes, Japan issued the Kono statement, a document that acknowledges that Japan's 'administrative/military personnel directly took part in the recruitment' of comfort women, and apologizes for such deeds.

日本则坚持认为，想这些女性进行赔偿的问题已根据1965年签订的一份涵盖范围较广的双边协定从法律程序上得到解决。这份协定解决了日本在战争中对朝鲜半岛所犯的罪行。东京还称，日本之前的首相已向她们道歉。日本政府称，日本已在1993年发表河野谈话。这份文件承认日本政府和军方人员直接参与强征慰安妇，并为此种行为道歉。

But the Kono statement has repeatedly been attacked by Japanese conservatives and nationalists as a document drafted under pressure from the South Koreans. And more recently this year, the government of Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said it would re-examine the evidence and process used to compose the apology, prompting outcry from both South Korea and the U.S.

但河野谈话一直不断受到日本保守人士和民族主义人士的攻击，认为起草这份文件是因为受到了韩国人的压力。今年较近期的时候，日本首相安倍晋三(Shinzo Abe)说，日本将重新评估这份道歉文件的证据和流程，这一表态引发了韩国和美国的公开抗议。

Japan later backpedaled on the issue, with Mr. Abe saying in March that his administration 'is not thinking about revisiting' the statement, and that he shared with his predecessors the 'heartache' felt over the plight of the wartime prostitutes. Still, the debate further inflamed emotions about the issue.

日本后来在这一问题上软化了立场，安倍晋三在3月份说，日本政府并没有想要重新审视这一文件，他与他的诸位前任全都为战时妓女的苦难感到心痛。不过，相关辩论进一步激发了人们对于这一议题的情绪。

Those on the Chinese side say that preserving documentation of the women's experiences is important.

支持中方立场的人士说，保留这些女性经历的记录非常重要。

China submitted the application to 'prevent this dark history from happening again,' the country's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a regular press briefing on Thursday. 'This negative legacy should be respected and reflected upon by Japan's government. Japan should face up to this, rather than whitewash its history.'

中国外交部发言人华春莹周四在例行新闻发布会上说，中国进行这一申报是为了防止那段黑暗的岁月重现。她说：“军国主义侵略是日本的一笔负资产，日方的正确态度应是正视历史，正确妥善处理有关历史问题，而不是企图否认甚至美化历史。”