s2360

简体中文

Sequence number:s2360
Date of letter:1993-05-20
Address of author:Yongqing County, Langfang City, Hebei Province
Date of event:1942-01
Location of event:Daqing River, Hebei Province
Name of author:Yin Baorong
Name(s) of victim(s):Yin Baorong

Type of atrocity:Slave Laborers（SL）
Other details:In January 1942, the Japanese invaders mopped up Daqing River area in Hebei, and caught many labors including me. The Japanese soldiers escorted the captured people to Japan to do hard labor. We dug caves every day, did not have enough to eat, and were often cursed and beaten. Some committed suicide; some ran away, and some were beaten to death by the Japanese foreman. During the four years as Slave Laborerss, we suffered all kinds of tortures from the Japanese foreman. I strongly urge the Japanese government to apologize and compensate for this.

Petition

　　I am one of the most heavily persecuted victims of Japanese invasion into China; I strongly demand the Japanese government to offer compensation for my loss.

　　China only abandoned war compensation between governments, but it has never given up civilian damage compensation. Looking back at my unforgettable pains, it was in January 1942, when the Japanese Invasion Army was conducting a mopping-up campaign in the north of Daqing River in Hebei Province, they captured a lot of slave labors, whom were sent to Tanggu Concentration Camp. I was also captured. Later I was sent to Tsukino Village, Tone County, Gunma Prefecture in Japan, and forced to dig cave in the mountain gully (according to rumor it was for building hydraulic power station). The cave was supposed to be 30 li(1 li equals approximately 0.5 kilometers) long. Chinese slave labors were forced to engage in hard labor to dig cave each day, but they were fed with swine feed, bran ball, and were constantly hungry. In winter we had no cotton-padded coats, and in summer no unlined garments. Instead each one was issued a loincloth, and Chinese slave labors were asked to work in naked body. The Japanese foreman wielded sticks and whips to beat Chinese slave labors like beating cattle and horse, and cursed Chinese as “Bakayarou”, bastards. Many Chinese slave labors were beaten to death by the Japanese foreman, some slave labors found the hardship intolerable, some committed suicide, and others tried to escape, among them some were captured, and were gnawed to death by hounds. The Japanese foreman said, “You Chinese had no way to escape! You would become food for our Japanese hounds.” A lot of Chinese slave labors were maltreated to death there. Some lost eyesight in both eyes, others were killed when working in the cave, and only over 130 persons survived. In March 1946, with the help from the US Army, we returned to Qingdao City; among the more than 400 people in our batch of people being captured, only over 130 persons returned. With arrangements made by the Red Cross Society, we returned to hometowns. I strongly demand the Japanese government to offer compensation.

　　1. I worked as slave labor in Japan for four years, and suffered four years of hardship, so there should be four year’s salary as compensation, totaling USD40000.
　　2. Four years of mental anguish should be compensated with USD 5000.
　　3. My left leg was disabled after being smashed by rocks when digging cave and setting off dynamite, so there should be a disability compensation of USD 30000.

Reference:
　　Li Zhongyuan (handprint): Laocun Village, Sanshengkou Town, Yongqing County, Hebei Province.
　　Liu Shuge (name seal): Shangwuzhuang Village, Sanshengkou Town, Yongqing County, Hebei Province.

Slave labor victim: Yin Baorong
May 20. 1993