Villagers call on Japan to atone for massacre

"We were encircled by the Japanese in the morning. They forced us to walk through the small door into the compound at bayonet point. Some young men were bayoneted to death when they refused to enter the yard," he said.

"I was shocked when I entered; there were a lot of Japanese soldiers standing on the walls, holding machine guns. Straw and firewood had been piled everywhere and doused with gasoline, leaving just a narrow path for us to use," he recalled.

"Following the line, I walked towards a toilet block as the gunshots began. The troops were firing everywhere. Several people were shot down right beside me, and I thought I would surely die too. The door of the block was open, so I rushed in. Other people poured in quickly, filling the cramped space completely, so I squatted down and was squeezed deep inside that little building packed with people.

"I kept my eyes closed for the entire time. I was terrified that the Japanese would discover me. My ears were full of the noise of flames, gunshots, screams, and the cries of those outside. About 20 people crowded inside the building. We all held our breath and pretended to be dead," he said.

"The massacre lasted most of the day. Late in the afternoon, we heard people calling out 'The Japanese have gone. Is anyone still alive?' We waited for a while and then came out, stepping on the corpses of hundreds of people who had died in front of the doors," he added.

Pan Ruihua, 86, survived by hiding in a pigsty. "I came out of the sty when I heard people calling for survivors. I was stunned by what I saw. People had died in different grotesque positions, and there were corpses everywhere, some of them still burning. I rushed out as fast as I could, and the scene was really frightening," he recalled.

"Many of the children I had played with were dead. I even saw pregnant women who had been burned. Their bellies had been ripped open and the fetuses were exposed. I don't like to remember those things. I will have nightmares tonight," he said, taking out a handkerchief to wipe away the tears.

Compensation efforts

So far, 30 groups across China have attempted to claim compensation for the atrocities committed by the Japanese army during World War II, but none has succeeded. Japan says the Chinese government waived the right to claim reparation in a statement in the Sino-Japanese Joint Communique of 1972, which sought to normalize relations between the two countries.

"The excuses are rootless because war compensation is composed of government and individual compensation. That means that both the Chinese government and citizens can sue, but the Japanese government makes no distinction between the government and individual Chinese citizens and is refusing to acknowledge the claims. However, individuals do have the right to sue for compensation, according to international law," said Tong Zeng, president of the China Federation of Demanding Compensation from Japan.

"We will send lawyers to Panjiayu to collect historical documents, gather evidence, and prepare indictments in the coming months. Unlike previous suits against Japan that were heard in foreign courts, we plan to submit Panjiayu's case in a Chinese court. It will be a new attempt for us, and also a big challenge for the local courts. I do hope they will rule that our case is a claim by individuals for compensation from Japan, according to the law governing the legal rights of the Chinese people, but it's an arduous task and really requires official support," he said.