Scattered War Relics Allied in Northeast China for Better Protection

The relics from the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in China's Northeast are so scattered about that people seeks more centralized controls for their preservation, People’s Daily reported on Aug 15.

Northeast China has many relics sites of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. However, they are separately dotted, bringing a lot of trouble to their protection. This past June, representatives from institutions at 15 sites decided to form an alliance for more united effort, and in the meantime, set up a common website.

They also established a rotating presidency, with the current one being Wang Zhiqiang, the head of the Imperial Palace Museum of Manchukuo in the city of Changchun, Jilin province, who says, "Relics of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression below the provincial level lack the protection of those at the State and provincial level and some are slowly disappearing because they are in remote places."

Adding to this, the head of the Jilin Provincial Party Historical Research Center, Wang Yitian, notes that the government is thinking about better ways to protect them because, "Some of the institutions don't even have enough funds for that."

Wang also suggests combining historical resort tourism with natural tourism, because, "This can get sufficient funds for relic protection and can realize education and entertainment at the same time."

Even though the alliance is still just a social organization with limited influence, it is a good start, Wang believes, and adds, "It provides resource sharing in our protection work and keeps the historical memory closer to more people."