Date of letter:1992-10-18
Address of author:Baoding City, Hebei Province
Date of event:Not mentioned
Location of event:Not mentioned
Name of author:Cheng Qingyun
Name(s) of victim(s):Cheng Qingyun’s grandfather and father
Type of atrocity:Slave Laborers, Others, Biological/Chemical Warfare（SL, OT, BC）
Other details:I admire Mr. Tong’s action very much. Thank you for your efforts on the compensation for the victims. My family is also a victim; my grandfather was beaten cruelly by the Japanese soldiers, resulting in mental disorders. My father was caught to do hard labor for 14 months and suffered inhumane treatment. My mother was hurt in the year when the Japanese soldiers retreated and died of illness. The Japanese soldiers spread the bacteria when they withdrew. Almost all the villagers got infectious diseases. I hope that these clues can help Mr. Tong.
Comrade Tong Zeng:
First of all, I’d like to send you my highest regards and gratitude for working hard on the compensation for Chinese victims of the World War II and their family members.
I wrote a letter about this issue to the Shenyang Municipal Government and Hebei Provincial Government respectively. The Hebei Provincial Government hasn’t replied to me, while the Foreign Affairs Office of the Shenyang Municipal Government replied that the Chinese government gave up the rights to claim for compensation.
I have read the article “History Is Not Forgotten” on Youth Digest (Issue 10) of this year, which described the records of the Chinese people demanding damage compensation from Japan. I am very glad after reading it and I admire you so much that you have submitted a proposal to the National People’s Congress and sent a letter to the Japanese Prime Minister regarding this matter. Thus I am writing to express my respect and ask for your advice.
I am Cheng Qingyun, female, 57. I retired as a judge of the Court of Xinshi District, Baoding in December 1990.
My family members were victims of Japan’s war of aggression against China, so I am willing to participate in the program of signing in favor of demanding compensation against Japan.
My family members’ suffering is briefly described below.
My grandfather was so brutally beaten by Japanese soldiers that he went insane and lost the ability to work and live on his own. My father was captured to be a forced laborer for 14 months and suffered from inhuman treatment. Later, he escaped home. Both of them have passed away. The saddest thing is that my mothered died of illness. All my family caught a cold the year when Japan retreated and my mother died of it (she was only 29 then). Seven days after her death, one of my infant brothers died. I don’t know how exactly it happened because I was only 10 at that time. I only remember that nearly every family in the village had an infectious disease and over 30 villagers died. I remember the adults saying “The Japanese left, but the bacteria they spread remained. If you see any good-looking things outside such as patterned paper, don’t take them home.”
I don’t know about the exact situation. It’s said that several villages in the south of Sujiatun, Shenyang suffered from an infectious disease. I guess we can figure it out if we can talk with local old people or check the enemy’s records.
The above facts are all I know. I’m glad to keep in touch with you.
Best regards,
Address: Room 302, Group 2, Building 12, First Retired Cadres Community, Hongyang Road, Baoding
Phone: 234969
Cheng Qingyun (Personal seal)
October 18, 1992
