Hong Kong legislators and families of World War II guerrilla veterans on Friday called for increased official and community efforts to commemorate the city’s wartime history, honoring its anti-invasion valor, and promoting patriotism among the younger generation.
Their remarks were made during a seminar at the Legislative Council complex marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1931-45).
Participants observed a minute of silence to pay tribute to the victims of the Silver Mine Bay massacre — one of many documented war crimes committed during Hong Kong’s 44-month Japanese occupation, which began on Dec 25, 1941.
Lau Chi-pang, a historian, legislator and associate vice-president of Lingnan University, recounted details of the massacre, which took place from Aug 19-26, 1945. Following Japan’s surrender on Aug 15, Japanese troops in Lantau Island’s Silver Mine Bay attacked local residents, accusing them of harboring guerrillas from the Communist Party of China-led Dongjiang Column.
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About 300 of the bay’s 500 residents were arrested; 11 were killed, and many others injured. The invaders looted goods and set homes and shops on fire.
Lau said that three Japanese soldiers involved in the attack were later tried by a local military court and hanged, while nine others received prison sentences ranging from two to 10 years.
“They slaughtered innocent civilians. This is not what an army or soldier should do in war,” he said.
Brave Chan Yung, a lawmaker and Hong Kong deputy to the National People’s Congress, suggested that the SAR government incorporate relevant historical materials and multimedia resources into the school curricula from kindergarten through university to help young people systematically understand history.
Chen Kailun, daughter of Lantau-based guerrilla leader Chen Liangming, said Hong Kong’s outlying islands were not spared from the war’s devastation despite their remote locations.
She added that places like Cheung Chau and Lantau bore witness to Hong Kong’s unyielding resistance, with its people’s patriotic spirit enduring “through blood and fire”.
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“History teaches us that in times of national crisis, when the entire country rose to fight for survival, Hong Kong compatriots were never absent,” she said. “From the war years to today’s era of peaceful development, patriotism has always been the spiritual foundation of Hong Kong’s people.”
Contact the writer at lilei@chinadailyhk.com
