Japanese settler memorial idea hit
Source: Xinhua |
August 3, 2011, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
A CHINESE county's move to erect a monument to Japanese settlers who died in northeast China during World War II has triggered debate over the local government's intentions.
The news has been forwarded 90,000 times and attracted 21,000 comments on Sina's microblog weibo. Most of the posts were against the move by Fangzheng County in Heilongjiang Province.
According to Hong Zhenguo, vice head of Fangzheng County, the county has invested 500,000 yuan (US$76,923) to set up two monuments.
"One is for the Japanese settlers and the other is for the Chinese who adopted Japanese children," he said, adding that both projects had been approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
A weibo user nicknamed "deep blue sea" questioned if the move was aimed to attract Japanese investment to the county.
"What's the difference between inviting investment in this way and begging? Do we need to forget history and compromise dignity to get several bucks from the invaders?" the user wrote.
Another identified as "twisted fried dough" said, "we should face up to history, rather than licking the shoes of the Japanese for so-called 'friendship.'"
The term "Japanese settlers" is applied to those Japanese who came to northeast China after 1905. According to Wang Xiliang, a research fellow with the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, the Japanese had drafted a plan to migrate 5 million people to China over 20 years.
"Most of the immigrants were poor farmers," he said. "They robbed and acquired land forcefully."
After Japan surrendered in 1945, about 1 million Japanese had immigrated to China.
"At that time there were about 15,000 Japanese settlers in Fangzheng County," said Wang Weixin, director of the foreign affairs office of the county government.
Due to the long journey (back to Japan) and spread of epidemics, more than 5,000 Japanese settlers died in the county," Wang said.
"Their remains were collected by local people and buried," he said.
In 1963, a cemetery, approved by the late Premier Zhou Enlai, was established in the county for the Japanese settlers.
The news has been forwarded 90,000 times and attracted 21,000 comments on Sina's microblog weibo. Most of the posts were against the move by Fangzheng County in Heilongjiang Province.
According to Hong Zhenguo, vice head of Fangzheng County, the county has invested 500,000 yuan (US$76,923) to set up two monuments.
"One is for the Japanese settlers and the other is for the Chinese who adopted Japanese children," he said, adding that both projects had been approved by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
A weibo user nicknamed "deep blue sea" questioned if the move was aimed to attract Japanese investment to the county.
"What's the difference between inviting investment in this way and begging? Do we need to forget history and compromise dignity to get several bucks from the invaders?" the user wrote.
Another identified as "twisted fried dough" said, "we should face up to history, rather than licking the shoes of the Japanese for so-called 'friendship.'"
The term "Japanese settlers" is applied to those Japanese who came to northeast China after 1905. According to Wang Xiliang, a research fellow with the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, the Japanese had drafted a plan to migrate 5 million people to China over 20 years.
"Most of the immigrants were poor farmers," he said. "They robbed and acquired land forcefully."
After Japan surrendered in 1945, about 1 million Japanese had immigrated to China.
"At that time there were about 15,000 Japanese settlers in Fangzheng County," said Wang Weixin, director of the foreign affairs office of the county government.
Due to the long journey (back to Japan) and spread of epidemics, more than 5,000 Japanese settlers died in the county," Wang said.
"Their remains were collected by local people and buried," he said.
In 1963, a cemetery, approved by the late Premier Zhou Enlai, was established in the county for the Japanese settlers.
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