Top officials commemorate Nanjing Massacre victims

Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng

The Macau SAR government held a memorial ceremony yesterday to mourn the 300,000 victims of the Nanjing Massacre.
Nearly 300 people commemorated the event at the Security Forces Higher School in Coloane.
High-ranking officials including Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng; Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Edmund Ho; Vice Director of the Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau Zhang Rongshun; and the Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Wang Dong.
A minute of silence was observed for the victims of the 1937 massacre.
Also, teachers and students joined the memorial ceremony.
“It’s very meaningful because it lets the student understand that the Nanjing Massacre was not only a tragedy in Chinese history but also a catastrophe in human history. I hope everyone can learn a lesson and remember this war and treasure peace,” a local teacher told the press, as cited by TDM.
Meanwhile, the people of Nanjing also observed a minute of silence, and sirens were heard across the city to mourn the 300,000 victims of the Nanjing Massacre.
Despite the winter chill, thousands of people clad in dark attire attended the seventh national memorial ceremony for the massacre victims in Nanjing, east China’s Jiangsu Province, with white flowers pinned to their chests to convey their condolences. Attendees included massacre survivors, local students, and foreign visitors.
At exactly 10:01 a.m., sirens began to blare, and drivers across the city stopped their cars and sounded their horns. Pedestrians paused for a minute of silence in remembrance of the victims.
More than 80 teenagers read out a declaration of peace and citizen representatives struck the Bell of Peace. White doves, symbolizing hope for peace, were released to fly over the square of the Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese invaders.
China’s national flag flew at half-mast in the square.

HISTORY NOT
TO BE FORGOTTEN
Xia Shuqin, 91, was one of the massacre survivors present at yesterday’s memorial ceremony.
She was only eight when Nanjing fell to the Japanese invaders. She lost seven of her family members in the mass killing and barely managed to live after suffering multiple knife wounds.
Touching the names of her families engraved on a memorial wall yesterday, she said though it has been more than 80 years, the trauma of losing beloved family members still haunts her.
“I’m here today to mourn not only for my family but also for all the lost lives in the massacre,” she said.
The number of registered survivors has decreased to 73 so far this year.
In a bid to better spread the history, the Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese invaders has been recruiting international volunteers since 2008 to explain the history to foreign visitors and translate the memorial hall’s historical materials.
In October this year, a total of 73 foreign volunteers from countries including the United States, Iran and South Korea went on duty in the memorial hall.
“This place serves as a reminder for the future, a lesson that must never be forgotten, no matter how painful or sad it is to remember,” said Jonathan Gragert, one of the volunteers from the United States.
“It is the responsibility of every man, woman, and child to remember the horror that happened here so that such an event can never happen again,” said Gragert, who teaches at a Nanjing university. MDT/AP