Post by Admin on Mar 11, 2021 2:51:31 GMT
3.5. Prostitute savings
The amount that a prostitute earned beyond her up-front
advance varied. Even by the contractual terms themselves, that
amount depended on the revenue a prostitute generated. Scholars
routinely suggest that that brothel owners must have cheated
their prostitutes – and no doubt some did. People cheat each other
in any industry.
Crucially, however, many brothel owners did indeed pay their
prostitutes beyond that large up-front advance. The receptionist
with the diary noted that the comfort women kept savings
accounts. He noted that he regularly deposited money on their
behalf in them. And he noted that he regularly sent money back
to their homes on their behalf, and received telegrams confirming
receipt (KIH, 2016a; Choe, 2017a,b). Indeed, some comfort women
earned and saved enough to establish comfort stations of their own
(Park, 2014: 111).
Of all the Korean comfort women who left accounts, Mun Okju
seems to have done well most flamboyantly. She writes in her
memoir (KIH, 2016b):
I saved a considerable amount of money from tips. . . . I knew
that all the soldiers put their earnings in the saving accounts
in the field post office, so I decided to put my money in the
saving account. I asked a soldier to make a personal seal and put
500 yen in the account. . . . I became the owner of the savings
passbook for the first time in my life. I worked in Daegu as a
nanny and a street seller from the childhood but I remained poor
no matter how hard I worked. I could not believe that I could
have so much money in my saving account. A house in Daegu
cost1,000 yen at the time. I could let my mother have an easy life.
I felt very happy and proud. The savings passbook became my
treasure. . . .
It was fun to go shopping by rickshaw. I can’t forget the
experience of shopping in a market in Rangoon. There were lots of
jewelry shops because many jewels were produced in Burma,
and ruby and jade were not expensive. One of my friends collected
many jewels. I thought I should have a jewel myself, so I
went and bought a diamond.
I became a popular woman in Rangoon. There were a lot more
officers in Rangoon than near the frontlines, so I was invited to
many parties. I sang songs at parties and received lots of tips.
The amount that a prostitute earned beyond her up-front
advance varied. Even by the contractual terms themselves, that
amount depended on the revenue a prostitute generated. Scholars
routinely suggest that that brothel owners must have cheated
their prostitutes – and no doubt some did. People cheat each other
in any industry.
Crucially, however, many brothel owners did indeed pay their
prostitutes beyond that large up-front advance. The receptionist
with the diary noted that the comfort women kept savings
accounts. He noted that he regularly deposited money on their
behalf in them. And he noted that he regularly sent money back
to their homes on their behalf, and received telegrams confirming
receipt (KIH, 2016a; Choe, 2017a,b). Indeed, some comfort women
earned and saved enough to establish comfort stations of their own
(Park, 2014: 111).
Of all the Korean comfort women who left accounts, Mun Okju
seems to have done well most flamboyantly. She writes in her
memoir (KIH, 2016b):
I saved a considerable amount of money from tips. . . . I knew
that all the soldiers put their earnings in the saving accounts
in the field post office, so I decided to put my money in the
saving account. I asked a soldier to make a personal seal and put
500 yen in the account. . . . I became the owner of the savings
passbook for the first time in my life. I worked in Daegu as a
nanny and a street seller from the childhood but I remained poor
no matter how hard I worked. I could not believe that I could
have so much money in my saving account. A house in Daegu
cost1,000 yen at the time. I could let my mother have an easy life.
I felt very happy and proud. The savings passbook became my
treasure. . . .
It was fun to go shopping by rickshaw. I can’t forget the
experience of shopping in a market in Rangoon. There were lots of
jewelry shops because many jewels were produced in Burma,
and ruby and jade were not expensive. One of my friends collected
many jewels. I thought I should have a jewel myself, so I
went and bought a diamond.
I became a popular woman in Rangoon. There were a lot more
officers in Rangoon than near the frontlines, so I was invited to
many parties. I sang songs at parties and received lots of tips.