From AWA to AJWRC
The history of the AJWRC goes back to the Asian Women’s Association (AWA) which was founded in 1977 by a group of Japanese women who organized protest actions against sex tours of Japanese men to the neighbouring Asian countries. As a women’s movement not to take part in Japan’s military and economic domination over other Asian countries, the AWA actively took up vital issues for women in Japan and in Asia, including sex tourism and trafficking, women and development, migration, nationalism, war & militarization, and violence against women.
In order to strengthen AWA’s organizational capacity to actively engage in the global feminist movements, the AJWRC was founded in December 1994 as a NGO with ECOSOC consultative status by the late Yayori Matsui, the renowned feminist activist and journalist. Since this time, the AJWRC has been actively working to advocate for women’s rights and social justice in wide range of issues. It is closely working with its sister organizations as well as other women’s groups and civil groups in Japan and abroad.
Key events of AWA
| 年 | 内容 |
|---|---|
| 1977 | Foundation of the Asian Women’s Association (AWA) “women’s university” (series seminar on women in other Asian countries) and publication of “Asian Women’s Liberation” started. Campaign for political prisoners in other Asian countries |
| 1980 | Campaign against Japanese men’s “sex tour” to other Asian countries Campaign against militarization |
| 1981 | Support to families of political prisoners in Korea |
| 1987 | Working group on women, human rights and development established |
| 1989 | Tachiyori Support Center for Migrant Women started Participation in PP21 Asian Women’s Forum Friends of Thai Women formed |
| 1990 | Symposium on women and development |
| 1991 | Machiya Japanese Language School for Migrant Women started Symposium on Women in Development and Aid Protest against sex tour to the Philippines Participation in the network for the “comfort women” |
| 1993 | Petition campaign for the UN Conference on Human Rights 15th anniversary of AWA Workshop on migrant women at PP21 conference |
| 1994 | Coordination of the Asian Women’s Tribunal on Women’s Human Rights Organization of the 1st East Asian Women’s Forum AJWRC was established |
For the history of AJWRC since 1995, please see Record OF AJWRC.