CHINA

In 1905, at the end of the Russo-Japanese War, Japan replaced Russian as the dominating force in the Manchurian region of China. At that time, Manchuria, which is north of the Great Wall, was comprised of three provinces: Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang. It is currently referred to as Northeast China by the People's Republic of China. A weak Ch'ing dynasty "pretended that it maintained nominal control over Manchuria, but in reality foreign overlords and local warlords exercised effective rule" (Harris 1994: 8). Thousands of Han Chinese from the south thronged to the area in search of work on railroads, factories, and farms (Harris 1994).

In 1919 Tokyo's War Ministry, in an attempt to protect its interest in southern Manchuria, established the Kwantung Army, which essentially was unregulated by Japanese officials. The Japanese felt that if they could acquire all of Manchuria, eventually, all of China would become part of Japan. In 1931, the Japanese began their takeover and by the end of 1932, they ruled all of Manchuria (Harris 1994).

The new regime and its police who have been compared to the German Gestapo brutalized the natives. Japanese scientists saw in Manchuria, a place where tests could be conducted that would not be allowed in mainland Japan. Scientific experiments and testing with relation to warfare began soon after the takeover. Many tests centered around biological warfare (Harris 1994).

The war between Japan and China began in 1937. More to come...........

Map of locations of Japanese "Death Factories"

For more information on Japan's invasion of China please visit these links:

• Japanese Army's Atrocities -- Nanjing Massacre - A very good site for both information and links.

• Nanking Massacre: The Forgotten Holocaust - A fairly comprehensive site.

• Japanese War Crimes: Nanjing Massacre - Another comprehensive site.

• This is a good site for a Chinese history lesson. You may have to start at the homepage to work your way to the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre.

• Alliance for Preserving the Truth of Sino-Japanese War (APTSJW) - a Northern California based grassroots organization dedicated to preserving the truth of the painful history of the Sino-Japanese War.

• Nightmare in Nanking - An article by Sue De Pasquale that appeared in the November 1997 issue of Johns Hopkins Magazine.