New historical artifacts have been donated to the Memorial Hall of the Victims in the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders, offering fresh insights into the atrocities committed during the 1937 Nanjing Massacre.
The donated items include the wartime diary of Nishijo Eikaku, a Japanese soldier who witnessed the horrific events firsthand. The diary provides a personal account of the carnage that unfolded as Japanese forces occupied Nanjing. In addition, a collection of 324 photographs capturing the Japanese occupation of Nanjing and other locations in 1937 has been handed over to the memorial hall.
Daito Satoshi, a donor from Japan, contributed the photo collection along with Japanese documents detailing wartime air defense facilities in Shanghai and Nanjing. These materials offer valuable historical evidence and are expected to enhance scholarly research and public understanding of this dark chapter in history.
Significantly, the memorial hall also received photographs and documents concerning “comfort women,” including a blueprint for renovating a “comfort women” station in Shanghai and medical examination forms from a Japanese military field hospital. These items shed light on the systematic exploitation faced by countless women during the war.
Research indicates that approximately 400,000 women across Asia were forced into sexual slavery as “comfort women” by the Japanese army during World War II, with nearly half of them being Chinese. The new evidence is poised to deepen the comprehension of the suffering endured and to serve as a somber reminder of the atrocities of war.
The addition of these artifacts to the memorial hall underscores the ongoing efforts to preserve historical truth and to promote peace through awareness and education. Scholars and visitors alike will have the opportunity to engage with these materials, fostering a more profound understanding of the past.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
