By Kim Hwaya

Women worldwide are using social media to protest Japan's decision to remove "The Statue of Peace," which symbolizes the comfort women, from the Aichi Triennale 2019, the country's largest international arts festival.

Rosaria Iazzetta, a professor of sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples, Italy, on Aug. 4 uploaded photos of women posing like the statue on her Twitter page and said, "Let's pose as a statue. Let's call it 'being a statue of non-freedom of expression.'"

On her Instagram account, she also wrote, "The comfort women existed and can't be delete from history [sic]! Solidarity and freedom to the artists, who are the only ones talking the true [sic]," adding the same pictures.

In addition, Mexican photographer and essayist Carol Espíndola on Aug. 6 uploaded a photo of herself posing like the statue on her Instagram account. "Let's join the protest against the shutdown of the 'Statue of Peace' exhibition in Nagoya, Japan. This picture expresses a resistance not only for Korean comfort women but also for hundreds of female victims in wars," she wrote.



Comments such as "I totally agree with you," "This is a really good idea" and "I support you and all women participating in this performance" on social media show the growth of voices against censorship of the statue.

On Aug. 3, the triennale shut down an exhibition of the statue. A combined 72 artists who attended the festival on Aug. 6 signed and released a statement blasting the action.

fayastory@korea.kr