Subin Nam

Consented or forced sex Work?: A comparative Study on the Prostitution System in colonial Korea and occupied Poland during World War II

Studies of the regulated prostitution system (公娼制) in Korea began with an increasing interest in historical background of the Japanese military's 'comfort women' system during World War II. However, this system, which was introduced in 1916, is normally cited to deny Japanese responsibility for the 'comfort women' issue, claiming that it was a "voluntary" commercial act by women. This not only led to a debate focused on the question of either compulsory or voluntary, which limits to a binary way of thinking, but also hinders in-depth research.

Therefore, in my project, I focus on shedding light on the prostitution system in relation to colonial characters. Since there are no longer enough documents, I would like to conduct comparative studies with German-occupied Poland during World War II, where prostitution policies were also introduced immediately after the occupation. By analyzing the racial, gender, and prostitution policies of the Japanese Empire and the Third Reich, I aim to highlight the universality and specificity of the colonial prostitution system. Specifically, to understand the circumstances and plight of women in colonial Korea and occupied Poland by looking at their "voluntary" actions in terms of "agency" that took place on a limited level. Ultimately, I would argue that the system itself was a violent and oppressive colonial practice put in place by the state for the purpose of armament and the occupier/colonizer, and that it had a significant impact on the emergence of the 'comfort women' system, particularly with the outbreak of war.

since 2021
Ph.D. in History, Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies, University of Bonn, Germany

2016–2020 
M.A in Comparative History of the Modern Era, Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany

2010–2014
B.A in History and History Teaching, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea

November 2022

• The meaning of "voluntary" in the state-regulated prostitution system in colonial Korea:
  International PhD Seminar on Slavery & Servitude, hosted by University of Hull’s Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation in cooperation with the Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies and University of Hull’s Wilberforce Institute for the Study of Slavery and Emancipation