The history nobody knew

By Ye Jun (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-09-22 14:13

On Feb 4, 1945, the first Allied troops entered Kunming, Yunnan province, from Ledo, India, after the Japanese had blocked transport of international supplies by land for two years. Courtesy of Ge Shuya

He was the first historian to discover the location of the "24-zig" in Guizhou in 1995. The steep mountain road, named after its 24 zigzag turns, first appeared in a picture in the American National Geographic magazine. The picture was widely regarded as a symbol of the doggedness shown by Chinese people and their American allies in the War. Before Ge's discovery, however, it had always been thought to be in northern Myanmar or Yunnan.

In China, Joseph Stilwell, Claire Lee Chennault (1893-1958) and the Flying Tigers are household names - they are considered heroes who helped the Chinese fight against Japanese invaders. However, what happened in Yunnan during the War remained little known.

In Nov 1984, Ge, an ambitious graduate from Yunnan Normal University, visited a mausoleum in Tengchong county by sheer chance. He was surprised to see the devastated tombstones of more than 8,000 Chinese and American soldiers who died helping to recover Tengchong from the Japanese. The cemetery was destroyed by Red Guards during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76).

As a history major, Ge felt shocked that none of the books he had read mentioned this episode at all. "Tens of thousands of Chinese soldiers lost their lives fighting Japanese, and nobody knew!" He says. "As a rebellious youth, I was determined to probe into that."

Ge visited each stop on the Burma Road and interviewed more than 100 witnesses and survivors of World War II. His work has led him to meet quite a few American friends, including John Easterbrook, Joseph Stilwell's grandson, plus "Tex" Hill and Peter Wright, both Flying Tiger pilots. His acquaintances even include Japanese soldiers who fought in the war in Yunnan.

In Nov 1991, Ge organized a meeting between Chinese and Japanese veteran soldiers in Kunming. As an old Chinese man related his stories of the war, an old Japanese man couldn't help supporting him with hands, and hugging him.

"Although it was an extremely difficult and complicated moment for both of them, I saw the old Chinese soldier shed tears on the shoulder of his Japanese counterpart," Ge says.

Partly with Ge's help, the stories of brave Chinese Kuomintang soldiers fighting in World War II are widely reported.

Today, old Chinese expatriates, American and Japanese veterans, as well as journalists, have revisited the former sites of Stilwell Road. "Each section of the road, each mountain peak, wood or stream, could tell a shocking and weepy story," says Ge.

"Most people who lived or fought here have passed away. But the intrepidity of our fathers' generation at the Road is an epitome of the indomitable spirit of the Chinese in difficult times. That spirit will live forever."

(China Daily 09/22/2008 page10)

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