Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
NANJING, May 15 (Xinhua) — Nanjing Massacre survivor Xie Guiying, born in September 1924, passed away on Thursday at the age of 100, bringing the total number of registered survivors of the tragedy to 26, according to the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Museum in east China’s Jiangsu Province.
The Nanjing Massacre occurred after the Japanese occupation forces captured the city of Nanjing, then the capital of China, on December 13, 1937. Over a period of six weeks, the invaders killed about 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers. The tragedy is considered one of the most barbaric episodes of World War II.
In 1937, before Japanese troops entered Nanjing, where Xie Guiying’s family lived, her mother took her and her siblings and fled the city, leaving her father to guard their home. After Japanese troops entered Nanjing, they killed Xie Guiying’s father.
After these events, the girl’s mother was left to take care of the children alone. Xie Guiying almost died three times. There is a clearly visible scar on her forehead from hitting her head on a rock, which appeared when Japanese soldiers dragged her along the ground.
During her lifetime, Xie Guiying often attended events held at the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Museum, hoping that the public would always remember this historical disaster.
“Our country is now becoming stronger and our life is better, and we owe this to the Chinese Communist Party,” she said.
Six Nanjing Massacre survivors, including Xie Guiying, have died since the beginning of this year, and the number of people who can share personal memories of the Nanjing Massacre is dwindling.
In 2014, the National People’s Congress of China declared December 13 as National Remembrance Day for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre.
The testimonies of Nanjing Massacre survivors, preserved by the Chinese government, are recorded in both written and video form. In 2015, these documents were added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. –0–