Canada ALPHA Study Tour 2005

1. Canada ALPHA Study Tour 2005

2. Readings • The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang • Factories of Death by Sheldon Harris • Human Rights in the Asia Pacific 1931-1945

3. Trip Itinerary • Shanghai July 11-14 • “comfort women” • Yiwu July 14-17 • biological warfare • Nanjing July 17-20 • Nanjing Massacre • Beijing July 20-24 • forced labour

4. Chong Shan Village • village was hit with Bubonic Plague by Unit 731 • Madam Wang Xuan with a villager • map of the village with a list of victims

5. Chong Shan Village • Sign over the entrance to the village • Some villagers are involved in court cases in Japan seeking redress

6. Ancestral Shrine at Chong Shan • During the war, Japanese soldiers occupied this shrine • Victims who fell ill were confined here • Japanese doctors performed vivisections

7. Ancestral Shrine at Chong Shan • Listening to Wang Xuan describe what happened during the war • Around the corner is a room in which bodies were kept

8. Ancestral Shrine at Chong Shan • Memorial for victims

9. Memorial for victims in Chong Shan

10. Wang Family Shrine

11. Wang Family Shrine • Mr. Wang Bing Rong • Was 17 when the plague came • Contracted plague, but survived because his mother gave him strong alcohol to drink instead of water

12. Cartoons by students

13. Cartoons by students

14. Wang Family Shrine • The shrine will become a museum • Photo exhibits on the wall were sent from ALPHA

15. Xia Yi Village • Village was hit by Anthrax • This survivor contracted the disease at 8 years old • Her wounds have not healed and she stays in bed most of the day

16. Xia Yi Village • When this survivor contracted anthrax, her face rotted • She cannot see well with left eye • Fell due to dizziness and cracked her spine

17. Xia Yi Village • The lady has rotten nose and palate • The man contracted rotten leg • No initial medical attention was available

18. Unit 731 Lawsuit • Madam Wang Xuan is the chief plaintiff in the Unit 731 lawsuit • Aug 1997: lawsuit filed in Tokyo District Court • Aug 2002: verdict confirmed Japanese army’s use of biological warfare in China, but rejected plaintiffs’ demand for compensation

19. Unit 731 Lawsuit • May 2003: appeal went to Tokyo High Court • July 19, 2005: appeal was defeated. • Plaintiffs hope to appeal at Supreme Court

20. Forced Labour • Mr Zhao Cong Ren • Forced labourer in Japanese mines • Coerced into going to Japan when he was a teenager

21. Forced Labour • Mr. Lui Qian • Taken to Japan when he was 22 • Leg was broken when a soldier threw an axe at him for “slacking off”

22. Forced Labour Lawsuit • Madam Kang Jian serves as expert assistant to plaintiffs • March 26, 2004: Niigata District Court awarded 11 plaintiffs (Chinese forced labour victims) a damage of 8 million Yen each, jointly paid by Japanese Government and Niigata Rinko Group   • Sept 27, 2004: Japanese Government and the corporation appealed and raised objection to the use of a lawyer from China as expert assistants. • Tokyo High Court accepted the objection and considered “no need currently.” • Aug 26, 2005: decision will be made on whether Madam Kang can assist.

23. Education • Professor Bu Ping, along with other Chinese, Korean, and Japanese scholars wrote a book on the Asia Pacific War • Wanted to write an accurate textbook • Reaction to the textbook approved in Japan in 2001 • Historical perspective similar to pre-war perspective