12 volumes of documents from Japanese defeat in China available to public in August

Sealed for 70 years, files related to China's acceptance of the Japanese surrender in 1945 will be available to the public for the first time in August.

The Chinese Theater's Acceptance of Surrender Files - consisting of 12 volumes - will be published on Aug 13 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the world's triumph over fascism and victory in China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1937-45).

The books, compiled by Nanjing Publishing House and Second Historical Archives of China, will include about 4,800 pages of original files related to the Japanese army's surrender in 16 Chinese regions.

"Except for the foreword, all 12 books are made up exclusively of the original files," said Guo Biqiang, a researcher at Second Historical Archives of China. "It's the first time that the main surrender files will be presented to the public in their original form."

According to the archives, more than 1.28 million Japanese soldiers disarmed and surrendered in the 16 regions.

"The number of soldiers who surrendered shows the contribution China made to the world's anti-fascist war," said Fan Liwen, deputy editor-in-chief of Nanjing Publishing House. "Most of the Japanese troops were dealt with by Chinese soldiers."

China set up 100 venues and named officials to manage the surrender process following Japan's official public announcement of surrender on Aug 15, 1945.

Except for the main surrender document, which was signed at a formal ceremony on Sept 9, 1945, in Nanjing, then the capital of China, all original surrender files are kept at the Second Historical Archives of China. The main document is housed in Taiwan.

Japanese troops made certain demands before signing. One was that they not be required to hand over personal swords claimed to be family heirlooms. The Chinese government insisted all weapons be forfeited.

The files also show that members of the Japanese delegation bowed in apology to the Chinese victims in a surrender ceremony held in the Forbidden City's Hall of Supreme Harmony.

"No criticisms or comments are made in the books," Fan said. "A page is just a piece of the original files. We'll let the files speak for themselves."

Copies of the files have already been placed in the Second Historical Archives of China database to give the public access online.

Contact the writer at cangwei@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 06/10/2015 page5)