According to sources, chemical weapons abandoned by Japan have been found in more than 10 provinces in China, and about 2,000 Chinese citizens have been victimized in the era of peace. What is even more frightening is that there are still some undiscovered chemical weapons secretly buried and discarded by the Japanese army.
War damage continues
As of 19:00 on Aug. 10, 34 victims of the "8-4" poisoning incident had been admitted to the PLA 203 Hospital in Qiqihar. Li Guizhen due to contact with the gas barrel for the longest time, become the incident in the most serious condition of the people. According to the doctor, Li Guizhen's body burns have spread to 95% of the area, and there are symptoms of poisoning such as shallow breathing and blood hypoxia, and is still in danger. Li Guizhen's wife Liu Aiping said, the couple came to Qiqihar from Henan a few years ago to collect scrap for a living.August 4 this day, Li Guizhen to 200 yuan to buy five metal cans, in the waste collection station cutting, was leaking liquid burns. The youngest poisoner was a 9-year-old girl, Gao Ming, who was unfortunately poisoned while playing with other children next to a mound of dirt contaminated with the toxic agent. Her left foot was covered with yellow blisters and she had to rely on her mother's back to move around. Every time the medicine was changed, she would let out a heartbreaking cry. Little Gao Ming's parents are laid off, the family is very poor, mother Chen Shuxia borrowed 120 yuan that day to send the child admitted to the hospital, so far did not bother to buy a pound of fruit for the child. In the face of tears mother, understanding little Gao Ming blamed himself: "If I'm not naughty, do not play in the dirt, will not make mom sad."
Before this incident, there had been many incidents in the country in which Japan abandoned toxic agents to injure our citizens, causing about 2,000 victims, most of whom could not take care of themselves.
On Oct. 20, 1974, Li Chen, an employee of the Heilongjiang Provincial Waterway Bureau, and several other staff members were working on a ship when the suction pump actually sucked up a shell with a broken warhead, which continued to ooze black liquid outward and stained Li Chen's and other people's skin.
Because of the venom infestation, Li Chen's hands and the whole body full of small and large blisters, head blisters the size of an egg, hand blisters like a bunch of grapes, rupture of the blisters out of the yellow liquid. Because of repeated skin ulcers, Li Chen had to use clippers to repeatedly cut off the rotten flesh when he was hospitalized, and his hands were put into alcohol and saline soaking and disinfecting.
The recurring condition forced Li Chen to be hospitalized week after week. Until now, the after-effects have been tormenting him: often bleeding froth at the corners of the mouth, saliva purple, bitter mouth; weakness, sometimes difficult to breathe; scalp repeatedly erosion, the day when the heat seeps out of the liquid; between the fingers there is a new meat adhesion, sometimes from which the liquid seeps out. The family's life because of the loss of Li Chen's income has become extremely difficult, the second daughter in the second grade of middle school because of the inability to pay school fees were forced to drop out of school. Guilt, unbearable pain and suffering Li Chen had drunk 4 bottles of potent poison dichlorvos, fortunately was found in time, rescue 3 days and 3 nights, only to regain his life. (Subtitle) how to eliminate the hidden danger
Bu Ping, vice president of the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, an expert on the study of Japan's abandoned chemical weapons, used in the war to poison people and animals, the destruction of the ecological toxic substances called military toxic agents, artillery shells, rockets, missiles, landmines and so on, collectively referred to as chemical weapons. Chemical weapons are mainly gas bombs, but also include all kinds of weapons filled with smoke and incendiary agents. So far, there is no effective method or agent for treating poisonous agent aggression in the world, and therefore, once a person suffers from chemical weapon aggression, he or she either dies or suffers a considerable amount of pain. Due to the great harm of chemical weapons, it has become one of the weapons of mass destruction prohibited by the relevant treaties of the contemporary international community, along with nuclear and biological weapons, and the Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous, or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare was adopted in Geneva in 1925. At the same time, however, the Japanese army was quietly preparing for the manufacture of chemical weapons on Okunojima Island in Hiroshima Prefecture. in 1927, the Japanese army relocated all the inhabitants of the island, and spent two years constructing the entire island into a large-scale chemical agent and chemical weapon production factory, and began to manufacture chemical weapons from 1929 onward. The Japanese Navy, on the other hand, produced chemical weapons from 1943 at the Sagami Naval Factory in Hanawa, Kanagawa Prefecture.
Japan used chemical weapons against our country many times during the Second World War and threw them either in rivers, buried them underground or threw them in warehouses with other common weapons after the war. According to the statistics of the Chinese authorities, there are about 2 million chemical shells known to have been abandoned by the invading Japanese army in China, and about 700,000 even according to Japan's statistics.
These abandoned chemical weapons are not "storage" type, the appearance of the butter is not protected, corrosion is quite serious, can not use mechanical automation processing, and for many years in the ground, not only corrosion is serious, part of the leakage, which has the risk of explosion of explosives. In addition, chemical weapons abandoned in China are mainly vomitory and vesicant agents, and these two types of agents contain "arsenic", which is harmful to human body and pollutes the environment, and is difficult to decompose. As far as chemical weapons treatment technology is concerned, it is mainly divided into three processes: disintegration of artillery shells, harmlessness of toxic agents and environmental protection. Among them, the harmlessness of toxic agents require special technology and equipment, is still in the exploratory stage.
Bu Ping worriedly pointed out that there are still part of the Japanese army secretly buried and discarded chemical weapons have not yet been found, and those who have found the poisonous shells, because there is no effective means of disposal, is still a huge hidden danger. In the event of a leakage, it will certainly cause unimaginable harm and consequences to the lives and properties of local people and the ecological environment.
Japan has always denied the development and abandonment of chemical weapons in the post-war period, and only in 1991 did it admit the existence of this problem due to the facts and international pressure. on July 30, 1999, China and Japan *** with the signing of a memorandum on the destruction of poison gas weapons abandoned in China. In the memorandum, the Government of Japan made it clear that it would sincerely fulfill its international obligations and provide all necessary funds, technology, experts, equipment and other materials for the disposal and destruction of abandoned chemical weapons, which would in principle be completed by April 2007. But so far, only a very small number of gas bombs have been disposed of.
Responsibility cannot be evaded
The families of the victims of the "8-4" incident in which the Japanese army abandoned toxic agents and injured people have sent letters to the "Accident and Rescue Team," denouncing the crimes committed by the Japanese army and saying that they want to get a "statement" from the Japanese side in accordance with the law. The families of the victims have written a letter to the "Accident Rescue Team" denouncing the crimes of the invading Japanese army, saying they want to get a "statement" from the Japanese side according to law.
In fact, as early as a few years ago in Heilongjiang Province, 18 victims have indignantly raised the sword of law. According to international law, our courts can not accept the prosecution of the Japanese government, which means that the Chinese victims can only through transnational litigation to protect their legitimate rights and interests, while in the Japanese court Chinese lawyers can only be witnesses to testify. The victims filed lawsuits with the Tokyo District Court in two batches in December 1996 and October 1997, demanding that the Japanese government apologize and pay compensation.
Hiro Oyama, a prominent Japanese lawyer who defended the victims, said the lawsuit was a contribution to the future of mankind, that the plaintiffs were a tiny fraction of China's war victims, and that it was therefore representative in nature, and that a victory in their lawsuit would clearly promote the post-war compensation legislation that was filed in parallel with the lawsuit, and would thus bring relief to many victims.
Chinese lawyer Su Xiangxiang submitted 103 pieces of evidence to the court, irrefutably proving that the Japanese army abandoned gas bombs on Chinese citizens, the Japanese government has an inescapable responsibility for this, at the same time, Japanese historian Yoshimi Yoshiaki, who researched the chemical weapons, Suzuki Zhihiro, a veteran of the Chinese battlefield who had used the chemical weapons, and Murakami Hatsuichi, the former director of the Okunojima Poisonous Gas Museum, also testified in court. Witnesses also testified.
On May 15 this year, the five Chinese plaintiffs in the second batch of indictments waited for the Tokyo District Court's first trial verdict. The judgment acknowledged the fact that Japan abandoned chemical weapons in China at the end of its war with China and caused harm to the plaintiffs, but the Japanese government could not be held legally responsible on the grounds that there were obvious difficulties in recovering the abandoned gas weapons and investigating their existence.
This erroneous and unjust judgment has caused strong reactions. Hitsuya Yaguchi, a representative of the Japanese Citizens' Support Group for Chinese Victims, said at a reported rally after the verdict: "I have been engaged in education for more than 40 years, and in the classroom I teach my students that they must admit their mistakes when they have done something wrong, but our country does not admit its mistakes, and talks about crooked reasoning, or even unreasonable reasoning, and evades its responsibility. As a Japanese citizen, I don't know how to apologize and thank the victims in China."
On May 23, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhang Qiyue pointed out in response to a question from a reporter that the Japanese government has an unshirkable responsibility for resolving the issue of abandoned chemical weapons in China and emphasized that "the Chinese government has repeatedly clarified its position on the issue of Japan's abandonment of its chemical weapons in China to the Japanese government. We once again request the Japanese side to take a historically responsible attitude, treat the issue seriously and handle it appropriately." In response to the "8-4" poisoning incident, officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China are actively negotiating with the Japanese side. The Chinese side has asked the Japanese side for compensation for the cleanup of the site, medical care and personal injuries. The first 12 victims who sued the Japanese government will also wait for the judgment of the Tokyo District Court next month.
With hard evidence, the Japanese government cannot escape its responsibility.
Chinese hurt by Gulf War
Tianjin Daily (2002-12-18)
The Gulf War, which took place in the far-off Middle East, directly hurt some Chinese citizens 13 years ago, and their wounds not only exist to this day, but are still deepening.
"Is there anyone worse off than me? Is there anyone who suffers more than us as a group? For the war, we have cut our hearts out for 13 years." Sun Bo said.
On Jan. 4, 2003, heavy snow dressed Yantai on the Jiaodong Peninsula in an endless white world.
"Instead, I was dirty. Due to nuclear radiation from depleted uranium shells and other now-unknown names of weapons I was subjected to during the Gulf War, I was no longer a normal human being, and my chromosomes had mutated, and I was getting worse. Other Chinese who were working with me in the Gulf at that time had similar symptoms of illness. Now we are in regular contact and encourage each other to keep on living." Sun Bo said.
Lost Dreams of the Gulf
Sun Bo has published a 100,000-word book manuscript, Last Dreams of the Gulf. Sun Bo literally left his dreams in the Gulf, not even realizing that his life had been completely destroyed by that war.
In July 1989, Sun Bo went to work in the Chinese Embassy in Kuwait, and since then, with the change of the war in the region, moved to other countries, in the United Nations has not yet declared a formal cease-fire in the Gulf War, was transferred to Kuwait in March 1991 to participate in the reconstruction of the destroyed Chinese Embassy, and became one of the first batch of six Chinese diplomats to return to Kuwait. He worked there until February 1992 thereafter.
The personnel department of the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation issued a letter of attestation on September 26, 1995, which reads: Sun Bo did a lot of work for the emergency evacuation of our personnel in Kuwait, and did his duty to ensure that the property of the state and the personnel in Kuwait was not lost, and went out of his way to complete the various tasks assigned by the state. He has made efforts for the restoration and development of economic and trade relations between China and Kuwait under difficult conditions and accomplished various tasks.
He risked his life to collect materials in an environment where wars are still frequent, bombs explode right next to him, and landmines are densely packed, and was once held in armed custody by Iraqi soldiers; and later helped more than 240 Chinese from CSCEC evacuate safely and in a timely manner. ......
It was these actions that completely exposed Sun Bo to nuclear radiation. Sun Bo was the one who cleaned up the battlefield and collected the most material among the Chinese working in Kuwait at the time, which made him the most serious of the group with signs of related illnesses. The lively young man is now a sick man who can't stay away from treatment for a moment.
Jiang Yaping, a Xinhua reporter who was in the Gulf at the time, had the same ailment: "Though my problem was not as serious as Sun Bo's, I gradually showed signs of related illnesses affecting my health after returning to China."
Two other journalists, Tang Shizeng and Wang Jiyu, described themselves as lucky: "The situation is not so serious now."
Painful survival
Severe chromosome mutations, severe damage to the body's immune, nervous, endocrine, respiratory and reproductive systems -- the China Union Hospital, the People's Liberation Army's Academy of Military Medical Sciences, and medical experts who have treated China's institutions and individuals such as Wang Mianzhi, a medical authority who sees major leaders, have made similar diagnoses for Sun Bo.
"In April 1991, a month after returning to Kuwait, I began to feel severely ill, with tightness in my chest, coughing, severe pain in my head, and loss of emotional control. Subsequently, this discomfort intensified." Beginning in 1997, Sun Bo's vomiting worsened and he had difficulty breathing. "I often had moments when I couldn't control myself, and would even slap myself, and I couldn't feel the pain anyway." Sun Bo said.
"Those of us who came back were all unwell, and then we realized that our symptoms were actually the same, and then later, when we saw some reports from the United States about veterans suffering from Gulf War Syndrome, we realized that it was Gulf War Syndrome that we had."
Sun Bo's father is now suffering from cerebellar atrophy, his mother's eyes crying almost can't see anything, can't have children, the marriage also broke down the year before Sun Bo not only can't do the filial piety of the son, but also let his parents worry.
"I can't engage in normal work now." Here, Sun Bo hesitated for a moment, "My sexual function has been completely lost. I'm a human being too, but now I can't get any enjoyment materially or spiritually anymore."
This is where Jiang Yaping, Wang Jiyu and Tang Shizeng sympathize most with Sun Bo. "He indeed has nothing left to enjoy."
Jiang Yaping, on the other hand, suffered severe pain in his muscles and bones all over his body, "When it hurt, I knelt on the ground and ground my knees." He said. Photojournalist Tang Shizeng's body immunity is now so low that it has affected his normal field work.
Ding Wen, then Xinhua's chief correspondent in the Gulf, and Cao Pengling, then a military attaché at the embassy in Kuwait, both now suffer from cancer.
Once a spiritual support
There was a time when Sun Bo found a new spiritual support.
Because of his health, Sun Bo was transferred from his diplomatic post back to his hometown of Yantai, where he worked and recuperated.
After being transferred to Yantai University in 1993, Sun Bo taught 28 classes a week when his health permitted, once the most in the university's foreign language department. "I did 18 years of work in eight years, and that's what the university gave me." Sun Bo spoke of his accomplishments with a rare, accomplished smile.
There is no greater devastation to a workaholic than to disenfranchise him from his job. Sun Bo is now unable to work at any job, and this spirituality based on achievement has been shattered.
"I'm OK, the pain is still tolerable." Jiang Yaping said, "But the blind physician who gave me a massage once told me that he had never seen a back muscle so hard that it was like a piece of iron plate, and in this case, it would be a lie to say that it didn't affect specific work." Tang Shizeng, on the other hand, made it clear that since his physical condition is not as good as it used to be, he rarely has the chance to go to the places he wants to visit for interviews now.
Value of the body
"The only thing that supports me is that I feel that now this body of mine has value in itself." Sun Bo has always wanted to give his body to the relevant medical research department without compensation, and he is even afraid of not being able to wait for that day, and has now thought about donating his body.
Sun's new dream is to turn himself into an "experiment": "There aren't many of us in China who have been victimized by modern weapons, but this group of people has great research value. If we can get relief or even find a cure for the 'Gulf War Syndrome' by studying this group of people, how valuable will it be in terms of strategy?"
"But I've bounced around a lot of hospitals and medical research institutes, and none of them have been able to realize my dream. What a precious amount of data on how my body has changed over the years, but right now, there's no systematic record at all. It would be of no value at all to just die. We as a group are valuable to the treatment of this disease, and the value of our existence is being ignored!"
"Mr. Wang Mianzhi, Sr. used to say that we should not ignore the new symptoms of the disease that appear in our group, and we should do new things, and if we ignore it, it is a dereliction of duty. In the Gulf War, 80% of the weapons were used for the first time, and it is necessary for our country to make a study on this. Regrettably, however, up to now, our group still has not received the attention of the relevant departments, and even in the course of our treatment, there is a leader of a high-level research department who says that we are not sick, do not lean on the 'Gulf War Syndrome', as if our group is taking advantage of the disease, and we feel incredibly furious! " Sun Bo has been indignant about the misunderstandings he once suffered on his quest for medical care.
Jiang Yaping, for his part, said: "When we were treated together in Beijing in March 2001, Sun Bo expressed his idea to the Chinese Academy of Military Medical Sciences (CAMS), and in March 2001, the CAMS gave those of us who had noticeable changes in our bodies after the Gulf War -- me, Sun Bo, Ding Ding, and I -- the chance to get treatment for our illnesses. -I, Sun Bo, Ding Wen, Cao Pengling and Wang Jiyu, did a free medical checkup, and one result was very telling: all five of us had chromosomal mutations. Chromosome mutation only occurs in 2 out of 1,000 in the general population. Among the five of us, Ding Wen and Cao Pengling also have cancer. The experts know that I have a disease, but they can't diagnose what it is. It is precisely because it cannot be diagnosed that we as a group are worth being studied, which is also the point of view of the old Mr. Wang Mianzhi."
Sun Bo heads to the Gulf again
Sun Bo is now waiting for a visa to travel to Kuwait at his own expense for treatment and also to physically preach peace.
"Some countries in the Middle East, as well as the United States, are very good at treating Gulf War Syndrome, but not publicly. If I and our group could be used as an experiment, I think our country would also have a breakthrough on Gulf War Syndrome. After this idea was rejected in March 2001, I have also been actively contacting many research organizations, but still no response. There are also many friends who are helping me to contact them, all hoping that this idea of mine will be realized." Sun Bo said.
"To individual attention I am a breakthrough, the central leadership, Shandong provincial party committee leaders have done special instructions on my matter, I am very grateful. The instructions are clear, but implementation-wise, I'm in a hurry, and I've been waiting for those instructions to be better implemented now. the instructions were given on Nov. 18, 2001, but I wish they had been implemented a little faster."
"It's simple, I want to live and do things." Sun Bo said.