The National Assembly's Legal Committee in South Korea has successfully passed an amendment prohibiting the denial or distortion of Japanese military 'comfort women' victims' experiences, marking a significant step towards protecting their dignity. This amendment includes a new legal definition of the 'comfort women' experiences, characterizing the victims' suffering as a result of forced conscription and sexual abuse during the Japanese occupation. The new law also prohibits the public defamation of these victims, imposing penalties of up to five years in prison or fines of 50 million won for disseminating falsehoods about them, with exceptions for artistic, academic, and journalistic contexts.

Moreover, the law assigns responsibility to the government for maintaining memorials or structures commemorating these victims. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family is tasked with conducting inspections on these memorials and gathering data from central administration and local governments. Civil society groups have lauded this legislative move, stressing the importance of addressing historical violence against women and advocating for the legal accountability of those who diminish or mock the experiences of the victims. In their joint statement, representatives of activist organizations highlighted that diminishing their experiences is a violent act against the victims that must be legally punished by the state.