Date of letter:1993-08-19
Address of author:Deqing County, Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province
Date of event:1942-01-02
Location of event:Lihuang County (Jinzhai County), Lu’an City, Anhui Province
Name of author:Xu Jiyao
Name(s) of victim(s):Many people in Lihuang County, including Xu Jiyao’s younger brother and his father
Type of atrocity:Other Massacres, Others, Murders（OM, OT, MU）
Other details:In January 1942, thousands of Japanese soldiers suddenly launched a brutal large-scale bloody campaign in Lihuang County. A lot of innocent civilians were massacred by the Japanese soldiers. My father and my younger brother were brutally stabbed several times to death by the Japanese soldiers. Our house and belongings were burned to ashes by them. As a victim living with lifelong disability, I require the Japanese government to give the most reasonable factual compensation for all the victims.
Comrade Tong Zeng:
Hello.
I hereby, enclosed in this mail the individual persecution processes of Xu Jiyao and Zhan Wenhui,, two written materials of S/N: No. 13-14, once again I resolutely demand the Japanese government to make rapid and earnest compensation for the heavy losses. Make sure try your best to facilitate forwarding these documents to the Japanese government, for which I feel immensely grateful.
Regards
Thank you!
PS: Two written materials on persecution process with S/N: 13-14
Xu Jiyao
53 Zhaojia Lane, Chengguan Town, Deqing County, Zhejiang Province
93.8.21
Tel: 425059 424528
Postal code: 313200
Japanese Army owed us deep debt of blood. Demanding compensation once again
I’m Xu Jiyao, a retired staff member of Zhejiang Province Deqing County Post Office, now 70, currently residing at 53 Zhaojia Lane, Deqing County, Zhejiang Province
During the WWII in the Japanese Army’s violent invasion period, all my family members were victimized with severe sufferings. The misery, pain and anguish we experienced are indeed beyond description, the huge debt of three deaths and one heavy injury committed by the Japanese Army must be atoned for.
On January 2, 1942, several thousand Japanese soldiers secretly detoured from Tengjiabao in Hubei Province to launch a sudden and extremely savage large-scale blood-thirsty mopping-up action on Lihuang County, Anhui Province. Owing to the cunning measures of the Japanese Army, all the common residents were caught unaware, several thousand unarmed innocent people were savagely massacred by the Japanese Army, the fleeing villagers, men or women, were killed indiscriminately by the Japanese Army with gunshot for long distance or bayonet at close range, even disabled children, women and babies were not spared from these death outcome.. Along the way, they burned all houses along their passages. The flame soared into the sky, a perfect example of the “Burn All, Kill All, and Loot All” policy for creating large-scale terror, which seriously violated laws of war and humanitarian principle. In this time’s mopping-up operation, the Japanese Army killed my 7-year-oldbaby disabled brother, whose limbs were deformed and body was frail, the bullet pierced through his brain, and he died on the spot. I myself was hit on the neck by a bullet from Japanese soldiers, going through the top of my head, face and right shoulder several parts of my body thus were wounded by ricocheting shells. The gunshot wound was so severe and I collapsed in a pool of blood. My father Nianci and 17-years-old younger brother Yougen were all stabbed to death by Japanese soldiers. My father was stabbed seven times by Japanese soldiers in succession. His upper torso was pierced at multiple places, as he struggled before death and his body was covered with both blood and mud. My brother Yougen was stabbed by the Japanese soldiers so forcefully in the chest that a big hole appeared in the chest, which was too horrible to witness. Three large thatched houses built by my family and all furniture, clothing and quilts locked inside the houses were set to fire by the Japanese Army and reduced to ashes. After this calamity, only four out of seven members of my family survived, and I became permanently disabled. In an instant the family and home was totally dismantled.
Recently, the newly appointed Japanese Prime Minister Hosokawa expressed the view that the war waged by Japan in the WWII is an invasion war, which is wrong, and he expressed deepest mourning and consolation towards victims of Asian countries in the WWII. His attitude is unequivocal and positive, all my family members and I who have received heavy damage strongly demand the incumbent new government not to shirk responsibility, and should quickly further take real action to give honest and most reasonable loss compensation to us innocent individual victims.
Personally written by Xu Jiyao, victim and surviving family member
(name seal)
August 19, 1993
Testifier: Zhang Wenbao, retired post and telecommunications staff, currently residing at Hefei City Post and Telecommunications Dormitory, Anhui Province. Now still alive.
Zhu Yunsheng, retired post and telecommunications cadre, currently residing at Post and Telecommunications Dormitory, Zhong’er Street, Wuhu City, Anhui Province. Now still alive.
Claim
My hometown is Daixi Town, Huzhou City, my father is Zhan Zhizheng, my mother is Fei Ruie (now deceased due to illness), in 1937 the Japanese Army implemented “Burn All, Kill All, Loot All” policy during invasion into China, which directly resulted in heavy human casualty and property loss of my family. My grandfather Zhan Wanqing was savagely killed. Since then the whole family ran away to other towns, with broken family and lost of human life.
Daixi Town was located at the road side of the highway from Hangzhou to Nanjing, on December 20, 1937, the Japanese Army committed killing, burning and looting in Daixi Town, the Straight Street was the first main street leading into Daixi Town, and it bore the brunt of burning crime, within a matter of several hours, this street of several hundred meters was burned down to ashes. My home lost 360 sqm of houses. My grandfather was too slow in escaping and was burned to death by the Japanese Army, plus a 120 sqm garden, furniture, living articles, clothing, gold and silver jewelry, valuables totaling RMB 500,000 yuan in value (all houses were made of wood material), separate compensation should be paid for lost lives.
Victim’s surviving son, Zhan Yongqing, 63, retired worker of Daixi Cooperative
Daughter, Zhan Wenhui, 55, retired staff of Deqing Post Office
Testifier: Fei Xinghua
Address: Daixi Town Youshi Village Health Station, age 76, male
Attached is the floor plan of the house
1993.7.13
