Date of letter:1993-03-23
Address of author:Laizhou City, Shandong Province (formerly Ye County, Shandong Province)
Date of event:1944-04-04（lunar calendar）
Location of event:Laizhou City, Shandong Province (formerly Ye County, Shandong Province)
Name of author:Qu Fengqi
Name(s) of victim(s):Qu Beihai (Qu Fengqi’s father), Qu Wentong, Qu Wenkui
Type of atrocity:Murders, Others（MU, OT）
Other details:My father was a primary school teacher. He hated the atrocities of the Japanese soldiers, was unwilling to become a slave and took part in Anti-Japanese activities. In 1944, my father was caught by the Japanese soldiers and taken to their stronghold where he was cruelly tortured, with his two legs torn by wolf dogs and his ten fingers burned. After three months of torture, he was eventually stabbed to death. The following day after my father was taken away, all the belongings in my home were looted by the Japanese soldiers. Mother was also tortured by the Japanese soldiers. My family broke up due to the Japanese army. The debt of blood owed by the Japanese soldiers must be repaid. I strongly urge the Japanese government to compensate for this.
Lawyer Tong,
I am a family member of a victim of Japan’s invasion of China. I was born in Minzhu Village, Shahe Town, Laizhou City (originally Caijia Village, Shahe Town, Yenan County, Shandong Province), and now work in the Laizhou No.5 Middle School as a teacher.
Since the invasion of Ye County in 1938, the Japanese army committed unforgivable crimes against local people by massively massacring innocent people, robbing property and burning houses. In Shahe alone, one of its bases, the Japanese army shot innocent villager Qu Tongxi, beat Qu Wenkui to death, killed my father Qu Beihai and caused the death of my younger brother.
Japan’s invasion of China has caused great losses to the Chinese nation. Every Chinese person with a consciousness will not forget this history of blood, tear and humiliation. The Japanese government must publicly apologize to the Chinese people and compensate the Chinese victims. This is the common goal of family members of all victims and the responsibility of this generation.
The description of my family’s suffering during Japan’s invasion of China is provided below. My father Qu Beihai was born in Caijia Village, Shahe Town, (former) Yenan County, Shandong Province and worked in Shahe Primary School as a teacher in 1943. As my father hated the atrocities of the Japanese army and didn’t want to betray the motherland, he often taught the students patriotism in school, actively attended anti-Japanese publicity activities and boycotted the enslavement propaganda of the Japanese army. His action aroused suspicion of the Japanese puppet army. So on lunar April 4, 1944, the Japanese army captured my father to their base and tortured him by letting dogs tear his legs apart and scorching his ten fingers, but my father didn’t stop cursing them. The Japanese army became furious, so they cruelly killed my father on around lunar April 7, 1944. Back then, my father was only 22.
The second day after my father’s arrest, the Japanese puppet army sealed our house and didn’t allow us to go out. They rummaged in our house and took away all valuable property. The Japanese puppet soldier Cao Daqiao put a military sword on my mother’s neck and forced her to answer whether my father was an Eighth Route Army soldier and who my father often contacted. After my mother refused to answer, he slapped my 3-month-pregnant mother down on the ground and kicked her with leather shoes until she blacked out. Similar inspection activities were carried out from time to time by the Japanese puppet army for almost a year, seriously disturbing our life. In the days of fear, my younger brother was born early in July and died on the fifth day after his birth due to infantile convulsion.
The death of my father and younger brother caused great mental damage to my mother and tore my family apart. How could my widowed mother and I live on our own? My mother lost all hope and wanted to take her own life in despair several times. If not for me, the only child of the family, my mother might not survive.
Lawyer Tong, the above is the painful history of my family caused by the Japanese invaders. I have the right to demand the Japanese government to give back my father, my younger brother and my happy family!
Lawyer Tong, the Japanese army must repay the debts they owed to us. The history of humiliation of the Chinese nation should be ended. I sincerely hope you can make the Chinese people proud and pursue justice for the dead compatriots.
Wish you luck with work.
Best regards,
Laizhou No. 5 Middle School, Shandong
Qu Fengqi
March 23, 1993
