I've created a butterfly to get justice for the hundreds of thousands of women forced into sexual slavery during WWII: www.amnesty.org.au/comfort

In the run-up to the August anniversary of the end of World War II, Amnesty International is calling for justice for former 'comfort women' in Japan.
During the war, up to 200,000 women and girls were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military. These women and girls were kept in 'comfort stations' in China, Taiwan, Borneo, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Indonesia and many of the Pacific Islands.
Women were abducted, deceived or sold by extremely poor parents. The majority of woman were under the age of 20 and some were girls as young as 12. These women and girls were kept for months or years on end.
The women who made it home at the end of the war often kept silent about their experiences and suffered severe psychological and emotional trauma. Many survivors died without talking about what happened to them. In recent years, however, a number of women, now very elderly, have courageously been speaking out. They hope that justice can still be achieved in their lifetime.
The Japanese Government's apologies so far have been inadequate and the government has refused to accept any legal responsibility. Over the past few years there has been growing international pressure on the Japanese Government to accept responsibility and apologise for the abuses of 'comfort women'.
Sixty years on, this lack of justice for 'comfort women' is a human rights abuse. Given the age of the survivors, there is an urgent need to act on this issue. We must never forget the atrocities committed against these women. Japan still has the opportunity to right this terrible wrong.
We're calling on the Australian Government to pass a motion in the House of Representatives urging the Government of Japan to:
Accept full responsibility for the abuses of 'comfort women'
Officially apologise for the crimes committed against the women
Provide adequate compensation to 'comfort women' or their immediate families
Accurately describe the sexual slavery system in Japanese textbooks on World War II
Since 2007, the US, the Netherlands, the UK, Canada, the European Union (with 27 member countries), South Korea, Taiwan and three city councils in Japan have all passed similar motions. It's time for Australia to do the same.

Bagagem de vida

Quando meus pais me perguntaram se eu queria morar no exterior por um ano, aprender uma nova lingua e viver com uma familia estrangeira, eu nao pensei duas vezes ao responder. Eu tinha 13 anos. Aos 15 eu embarquei para os Estados Unidos com duas malas, muita vontade de aprender e uma coragem que ate hoje eu nao sei de onde tirei.
Existem certas experiencias na vida que nunca substituirao a experiencia de morar no exterior. Estar disposto a mudar de ambiente e ingressar numa nova cultura e aprender uma nova lingua requer coragem. O recomeco em local desconhecido, sem a familia e sem amigos e’ doloroso e cansativo. A procura por emprego e moradia nao e’ tarefa facil. E’ preciso motivacao diaria e muita forca de vontade para encarar todos os desafios inusitados no novo mundo (ou velho mundo, dependendo onde voce escolher, hehe).
Morar no exterior e’ muito mais do que apenas viajar, conhecer um novo lugar. Por que turista qualquer um pode ser. Mas ser turista permamente nao e’ pra qualquer um. Tomar a decisao de morar no exterior e’ abdicar da zona de conforto e recomecar uma nova vida; e todo recomeco e’ dificil, ainda mais quando o fazemos em ambiente desconhecido.
Hoje eu olho pra tras, para os 3 anos morando em diferentes locais e sinto meus ombros pesados – e’ da mochila que carrego nas costas, cheia de experiencias. Carrego comigo uma bagagem com uma enorme rede de amizades internacionais, vivencia em culturas diversas e uma troca de conhecimentos que eu jamais teria se nao tivesse morado fora do Brasil.
Somente quem vive ou viveu no exterior e’ que entende a importancia que esta experiencia traz para nosso crescimento pessoal e o seu valor hoje e futuramente.