Both sides of Straits celebrate anti-fascist victory

President Xi Jinping presents a flower basket at a ceremony in Beijing marking the anniversary of China's victory over Japan in World War II. [Photos by Pang Xinglei and Guo Xulei / Xinhua]

This year marks the 70th anniversary of China's victory in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, which is significant for Chinese people across the world. That explains why Taiwan and the Chinese mainland have separately organized or will organize activities to celebrate the occasion.

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of the victory, Taiwan held a defense capability exhibition on Saturday, and the mainland will organize a military parade on Sept 3 which some Kuomintang veterans have been invited to attend.

The Communist Party of China and Kuomintang both made contributions to the eight-year-long war against the Japanese aggressors. The different descriptions of the roles and contributions of the two parties have not stopped either side of the Straits from holding activities to commemorate the historical event.

International relations and situations have always changed with the passage of time, but all such changes have had their origin in people's motivation to protect national interests, which can sway geopolitical relations. For example, Japan and the United States were irreconcilable foes during World War II, but today they are close military allies. That could be attributed partly to the Cold War confrontation between the US and the Soviet Union following the end of World War II and the shift in the US' policy - from crippling Japan to using it as a tool to contain socialist Soviet Union and China.

China suffered heavily under Japanese invasion. So, it is natural for both sides of the Straits to organize events to celebrate the 70th anniversary of their victory against Japan and announce to the whole world that the once-bullied Chinese people have now come of age. Such a show of patriotism will surely be understood by people across the world.

But Chinese people should be cautious against a worrisome phenomenon emerging in Taiwan. The 50-year Japanese colonial rule over Taiwan has had some ideological impact on the island. Some elderly residents believe the war against Japan has nothing do to with them, and some youngsters, especially those under the influence of "Taiwan independence" or pro-Japan elements, don't seem to care about the 70th anniversary of the victory in the war against Japanese aggression. Some Taiwan residents whose fathers or grandfathers were once enlisted in the Japanese army are even apathetic or repulsive to such commemoration.

This after effect of Japan's decades-long colonial rule over Taiwan underscores the importance of making the younger generations of Taiwan residents aware of historical facts.

The invitation of some Kuomintang veterans to the mainland's Sept 3 military parade is a positive step the CPC has taken on the roles of the two parties in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and it is hoped that more Taiwan residents, especially who or whose family members once served the Japanese army, will be invited to attend the event.

It is good to see the mainland authorities include some Kuomintang generals and soldiers who sacrificed their lives fighting against the Japanese in the list of martyrs. It is important that academic institutions on both sides of the Straits conduct scientific studies to dig out objective facts. It is also important that such studies be based on historical facts and be free of ideological preferences.

The holding of activities commemorating the victory against Japanese aggression on both sides of the Straits will be of great significance even if they receive little attention from the rest of the world.

Despite its status as one of the four major powers in the world's anti-fascist war, China's role in World War II has not been fully recognized, largely because of the Cold War and Western and Soviet historians' failure to acknowledge the importance of the "China theater" in World War II.

But the fact is that China was the first country to go to war against fascism and the war against fascism lasted the longest in the "China theater". China was not only a leading force fighting Japan and a key member of the fascist alliance, but also served as an important link in the world's anti-fascist alliance.

The author is a chair professor with Taipei-based Chinese Culture University.