Women and Soldiers: Sexual Violence and Survival Strategies in Occupied Japan

After World War II, for a variety of reasons, some women in Japan had intimate relations with occupying US soldiers. These women were called ‘panpan’, a derogatory label, and to this day have been forced by society’s overwhelming disapproval to remain silent about their experiences. Many of the women have now passed away and can no longer tell their own stories. To provide a voice for them, the author has gathered the oral histories of sixty-three of those called panpan to revive and reframe their experiences with Occupation soldiers, including rape, prostitution, love and marriage.
There is an overwhelming asymmetry of power between victorious soldiers (men) and women in a defeated country. However, the author reinterprets this as a space where relations of interaction, understanding and practice can be nurtured, rather than one defined by division and confrontation. The author attempts to re-position panpan as women who use their agency (activism exercised under restricted conditions) despite being exposed to the violence of occupation. As result, the women’s survival strategies emerge as they negotiate with the occupying soldiers, making them pay their living expenses and obtaining supplies from them in order to survive the harsh conditions of the time.
This book is another story of the Occupation, a history of the postwar period re-drawn from the perspective of stigmatized women.

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‘Toshimi Chazono has written a very important book on relations between Japanese women and occupation American soldiers in the postwar years. She brings to light significant new documentation, namely a Kyoto survey report of 200 Japanese “streetwalkers” held at a local hospital. Using American military records and Japanese oral histories, she provides conclusive evidence of the sexual violence suffered by many Japanese women. This deeply-researched and clearly-written book deserves a wide readership among readers interested in the Second World War as well as Japanese and American history. Highly recommended.’ ---- Mary Louise Roberts,Distinguished Lucie Aubrac Professor of History Emeritus, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

‘What were the survival strategies of Japanese women who survived in the era of hardship under the overwhelming asymmetry of power, from rape, prostitution, love, pregnancy, childbirth and marriage with Occupation soldiers? From the few remaining historical documents, the author has successfully brought back to life the voices of the women who were called panpans. ’ ---- --- Chizuko Ueno, Emeritus Professor, the University of Tokyo.