Symposium stresses recognizing China's WWII efforts

Historians have called for the acknowledgment of China's role in World War II and the historical process of Taiwan's restoration at an international academic forum on Sunday, stating that the wartime experiences of the Chinese people deserve greater international attention and recognition.

Hosted by Peking University, the two-day international symposium was titled "The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in a Global Perspective". Nearly 100 scholars from the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, the United States and Europe participated in the forum, which began on Sunday.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45) and the World Anti-Fascist War, the restoration of Taiwan, as well as the founding of the United Nations.

Event organizers stated that the goal of the forum is to foster a more balanced and multidimensional view of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression while emphasizing humanity's shared pursuit of peace and resistance to aggression.

Hans van de Ven, a professor at the University of Cambridge, emphasized China's significant role in World War II and the great sacrifices it made, yet noted that this suffering has not received the international recognition it deserves. He advocated for correcting this imbalance.

"I'm thinking more and more about this: China as a leader of the national movement in Asia — we know a little bit about it, but much more work can be done," he said.

Lu Fang-sang, a researcher at Academia Sinica in Taiwan, noted that China's contribution to World War II remains "underrepresented" in international studies. Although China played a vital role in the Allied victory, its wartime experience has long been marginalized in global research, he said.

He emphasized that studying the history of China's war of resistance within a global context is a positive direction and that both sides of the Taiwan Strait should enhance the sharing of historical materials and cooperation in this regard.

Liu Wei-kai, a professor of history at Chengchi University in Taipei, highlighted that Taiwan people never stopped resisting Japanese aggression after being occupied, through armed struggles and civic movements. "Taiwan's restoration to China was a historical fact," he said.

Liu also criticized the Democratic Progressive Party's policy of de-Sinicization in Taiwan's education system, noting that this shift risks leaving younger generations disconnected from their cultural roots and unaware of the shared history of the Chinese people.