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Some folks forget Japanese invasion
By Cheng Yunjie and Liang Saiyu |
August 10, 2011, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ALTHOUGH hundreds of miles apart, Tanjiaqiao Township and Fangzheng County have both slipped into controversy after Internet users shamed residents of both regions for kowtowing to money and forgetting the humiliation China suffered during Japan's invasion of China in the 1930s and 1940s.
At the Purentan Scenic Area, located in Tanjiaqiao Township in east China's Anhui Province, Chinese tourists were photographed wearing clothes similar to uniforms worn by Japanese soldiers who invaded China some 80 years ago. In a photo widely forwarded by microbloggers, a dozen tourists were dressed like Japanese soldiers, complete with look-alike vintage guns and a military motorcycle.
Lu Ye, a project designer with the Jiufu Tourism Development Co, said that a 20-minute interactive drama detailing a historic attack by the Chinese army against Japanese invaders was being organized at the scenic spot. The intention of the drama was to educate young Chinese about the country's history, Lu said.
"As professional cast members have yet to be recruited, we only had the props ready. The youngsters in the photo were tourists who came here to participate in a match-making party on July 30. When they heard that we were to stage an interactive drama, they put on the props with the assistance of our tour guides for fun," Lu said.
"After seeing that photo on Wednesday morning, I realized the seriousness of our mistake. I feel sorry for hurting the feelings of the public. The drama in question has never been staged," said Luo Fayi, general manager of the Puren Tourism Co, the operator of the scenic area.
Sources with local cultural and tourism authorities confirmed that no interactive performances are allowed to be staged in the area without an official endorsement.
Despite the operator's apology, discontent and criticism are widespread online. "It made me want to vomit, seeing these young people so merrily recreating our painful history. The scenic area operator must be money-hungry to turn a national scar into entertainment," said an Internet user using the screen name "diguoliangmin" ("Good citizen of a great power") on bbs.voc.com.cn, a popular Chinese news portal.
(To be continued tomorrow. The authors are writers at Xinhua news agency.)
At the Purentan Scenic Area, located in Tanjiaqiao Township in east China's Anhui Province, Chinese tourists were photographed wearing clothes similar to uniforms worn by Japanese soldiers who invaded China some 80 years ago. In a photo widely forwarded by microbloggers, a dozen tourists were dressed like Japanese soldiers, complete with look-alike vintage guns and a military motorcycle.
Lu Ye, a project designer with the Jiufu Tourism Development Co, said that a 20-minute interactive drama detailing a historic attack by the Chinese army against Japanese invaders was being organized at the scenic spot. The intention of the drama was to educate young Chinese about the country's history, Lu said.
"As professional cast members have yet to be recruited, we only had the props ready. The youngsters in the photo were tourists who came here to participate in a match-making party on July 30. When they heard that we were to stage an interactive drama, they put on the props with the assistance of our tour guides for fun," Lu said.
"After seeing that photo on Wednesday morning, I realized the seriousness of our mistake. I feel sorry for hurting the feelings of the public. The drama in question has never been staged," said Luo Fayi, general manager of the Puren Tourism Co, the operator of the scenic area.
Sources with local cultural and tourism authorities confirmed that no interactive performances are allowed to be staged in the area without an official endorsement.
Despite the operator's apology, discontent and criticism are widespread online. "It made me want to vomit, seeing these young people so merrily recreating our painful history. The scenic area operator must be money-hungry to turn a national scar into entertainment," said an Internet user using the screen name "diguoliangmin" ("Good citizen of a great power") on bbs.voc.com.cn, a popular Chinese news portal.
(To be continued tomorrow. The authors are writers at Xinhua news agency.)
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