Six individuals, including descendants of foreign nationals who helped protect civilians during the Nanjing Massacre, have been recognized as "inheritors of historical memories of the Nanjing Massacre" at the Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders.
Among the newly appointed inheritors is Thomas Rabe, grandson of John Rabe, president of the Nanjing Safety Zone established in November 1937. His Nanjing Diary is recognized as an important historical document on the massacre, during which approximately 300,000 people were killed over a span of six weeks.
"It's very important here to talk about the past here and to think about what we can do in the future. The past should not stimulate hatred between different countries, but different countries must recognize what happened and we can do something better in the future," said Rabe.
The memorial hall launched the inheritor campaign three years ago to preserve survivor accounts as their numbers decline. There used to be 100 registered survivors of the Nanjing Massacre as of September 2017. But now, only 26 registered survivors are still alive and their average age is about 95.
Jiang Wei, a teacher and granddaughter of survivor Liu Guixiang, also joined the campaign.
"As a teacher myself, I will teach students to face and reflect upon this part of history, and transfer the weighty history to the power of reason, to make them realize they should study for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and work hard for world peace," said Jiang, granddaughter of Nanjing Massacre survivor Liu Guixiang.
The total number of official inheritors of historical memories of the Nanjing Massacre has now reached 38. They help keep the history alive by serving as memorial hall narrators, giving lectures, publishing articles, and even creating songs to share the stories.
China names six more inheritors of Nanjing Massacre memories
China names six more inheritors of Nanjing Massacre memories
