Chinese research urges international studies on Japan’s WWII medical atrocities

BEIJING, July 9 (Xinhua) — Scholars worldwide should recognize and seriously engage with the latest research findings on Japan’s notorious World War II (WWII) germ warfare division, Unit 731, to improve historical understanding and prevent the recurrence of such tragedies, according to a study published Monday.

Titled “Global research on Unit 731 medical atrocities: from the 1950s to the 2020s,” the paper was co-authored by scholars from the Exhibition Hall of Evidences of Crime Committed by Unit 731 of the Japanese Imperial Army in northeast China’s Harbin and the University of Toronto. It was published in the international journal Medical History.

Unit 731 was a top-secret biological and chemical warfare research base established as the nerve center for Japanese biological warfare in China and Southeast Asia during WWII. At least 3,000 people were used in human experiments conducted by Unit 731, and more than 300,000 people in China were killed by Japan’s biological weapons.

Yang Yanjun, a researcher at the Exhibition Hall and corresponding author of the paper, said Unit 731 is a classic case of the degeneration of medicine in the context of war, and one particularly important for scholars, politicians, and global-minded citizens alike to remember, record, understand, and reflect upon. Yet during the past 80 years since the war ended, the world outside of China and Japan has remained relatively unaware of the medical atrocities committed by Unit 731, he added.

To provide an overview of Unit 731 research and to encourage further international collaborations, the study drew on a rich collection of published research, historical documents and news reports from China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the United States and European countries, offering a comprehensive outlook at the medical crimes, responsibilities and post-war impacts of the military division.

Despite notable academic achievements globally over the past decades, the Japanese academia has demonstrated a gradual loss of research interest in Unit 731 over recent years, which may be attributed to the loss of senior scholars and a lasting social sentiment refusing to reflect on the country’s WWII history, the study noted.

Further research is much needed on the historical understanding, post-war damage, post-war reflection and ecological impact of Unit 731, and many Chinese studies are still neglected by the international academia, the study concluded.

“Today, the international community has largely reflected on the Doctors’ Trial during the Nuremberg Trials and Nazi Germany’s medical crimes. However, the awareness of Japan’s wartime medical atrocities remains insufficient,” Yang said.

He called on scholars worldwide to further enhance the academic rigor and objectivity of studies on the medical crimes committed by Unit 731, and help foster a correct historical understanding in the international community.