යුද සම​යේ සිහින සැබෑ කළ චීන කිරි මවුන් හදාවඩාගත් ජපන් දරුවා

The story of Japanese war orphan Saburo Yokoyama

The story of Japanese war orphan Saburo Yokoyama who was left over by Japan's WWII "pioneer groups" in northeast China but finally survived the harsh time with the dedicated help of his Chinese foster father displays humanity transcending historical animosities and echoes a resounding call for peace.

Yokoyama, born in Nara in Japan in October 1943, came to Jilin Province in northeast China with his family in 1944, along with a large number of other Japanese, as a "pioneer group" - part of Japan's aggressive expansion plan into northeast China alongside its militarist expansion in 1931-1945, which wreaked havoc across China.

"In April 1936, before Japan was prepared for its full-scale invasion of China, they (the Japanese government) believed that the time for sending settlers to northeast China was ripe. So they devised a plan to relocate one million households, aiming to move five million settlers to China within two decades starting from 1937. This was, in fact, a blatant act of colonial aggression," said Che Jihong, a researcher at Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences.

The "pioneer groups" seized lands from locals at dirt-cheap cost or through coercion, wantonly exploiting the Chinese people as collaborators of Japanese militarism.

However, as soon as Japan was defeated in 1945, the "pioneer groups" were abandoned by the Japanese military, with many of them, including Yokoyama's family members, left succumbing to cold, hunger, and diseases.

"In the first half of 1945, my father was impressed by the Japanese military and never returned. Without my father, we had no one to rely on. After settling in China, my grandparents passed away successively, leaving all the four siblings of my family orphaned," said Yokoyama.

Struggling without protection and support of guardians, Yokoyama and his three siblings faced dire circumstances. He believes the root cause of his family's tragedy was the war of aggression waged by Japanese militarists.

"Regarding Japan's invasion of China, I share the same feelings and views as the Chinese people. They brought disasters to the Chinese people. What did they do? They caused a disaster that was unforgivable by humanity," he said.

The two-year-old Yokoyama would then be adopted by Wang Xishun, a man who relocated from eastern province Shandong to the northeast to escape famine. He was given a Chinese name Wang Yufu.

"At that time, out of humanitarian considerations, the Chinese government allowed and supported Chinese people to adopt helpless Japanese orphans like us. As a result, my sister and my two brothers were all adopted by Chinese people," said Yokoyama.

Back then, Yokoyama suffered from diseases such as diarrhea and became emaciated due to long-time malnutrition. His foster father had to seek help from every wet nurse in the village to save him.

"At that time, I was so weak and needed milk, which was not available. It was not like today that you can buy different kinds of milk. I drank the milk of all the wet nurses in the village, so I was raised by the milk of the Chinese people," said Yokoyama.

Yokoyama's foster father had no children of his own, and treated Yokoyama as his natural son. He chopped firewood and tilled land to support Yokoyama.

"He was less than 1.6 meters tall, and weighed less than 50 kilograms, but he could carry a load of 60 kilograms. Even with mobility impairment, he managed to feed the family," said Yokoyama.

As Yokoyama's foster father aged, his health conditions kept worsening, and his idea of returning to Shandong, as a Chinese tradition to end one's life journey where it began, grew even stronger. In the winter of 1950, at the age of 54, Wang took the seven-year-old Yokoyama back to his hometown of Beigushan village in Shandong's Zibo City.

There, Yokoyama's foster father worked as a peddler to support his education, build a home for him, and eventually help him start his own family.

"Even though everyone knew I was Japanese, there was no animosity or discrimination. On the contrary, they welcomed me warmly. The Chinese people are truly kind-hearted," said Yokoyama.

Under the nurturing care of his foster father, Yokoyama became a teacher, and dedicated 30 years of his life to teaching in a rural village in his foster father's hometown.

Over his 30-year tenure as a teacher, Yokoyama taught nearly 10,000 students in Beigushan, most of whom came from ordinary farming families in the village.

"He has contributed to society, regardless of his nationality. He has contributed to China, contributed to the people. He is a good person, a good teacher," said Wang Jihe, one of Yokoyama's many students.

Yokoyama's foster father passed away at the age of 89 in 1985. Since Yokoyama's retirement in 1999 at the age of 56, he has received repeated appeals from his Japanese relatives, beckoning him to reconnect with his estranged Japanese kin.

At the end of 1999, the 56-year-old Wang, after his retirement, had received repeated appeals from his Japanese relatives, beckoning him to reconnect with his estranged Japanese kin.

With the assistance of Chinese authorities, Yokoyama reunited with his family in Osaka, Japan, after a hiatus spanning over half a century.

"I was very moved. It was not easy. His foster father even struggled to feed himself, but still did everything he can to raise a child left over by the enemy, and I don't think it was easy for a commoner like him to raise such a young child," said Etsuko Yokoyama, the wife of Yokoyama's cousin.

"He is of Japanese descent, and the Chinese people bring up a Japanese child as if he was their own child. We are really grateful deep from our heart," said Kiyoshige Yokoyama, Yokoyama's cousin.

Determined to leverage his unique experiences, Yokoyama launched initiatives to foster greater understanding and friendship between China and Japan during his stay in Japan.

"Soon after I went to Japan, I joined a calligraphy group organized by the Japanese. What I write most in Japan is the world of 'harmony,' family harmony, social harmony, world peace, these three lines of words," said Yokoyama.

"Mr. Wang is great. He has been setting up a bridge between China and Japan, which is really remarkable and I admire him very much. As along as it is related to China and beneficial to China, he is very enthusiastic to introduce us and make connections," said Hironori Kitamura, Yokoyama's friend.

Yokoyama worked hard filming a documentary that chronicled the story of Chinese foster parents and Japanese war orphans. The documentary, featuring Yokoyama's foster father and him, was widely watched in Japan following its broadcast on national television networks.

"Saburo showed his filial piety before his foster father passed away, which is so good. Saburo is lucky to be able to return the favor. If the situation had been reversed, and if a Japanese had been in such a situation, I didn't think the Japanese would have done better than that. In contrast, the Chinese helped a lot of Japanese war orphans. We are really grateful," said Takehiro Shimomura, Yokoyama's friend.

Deeply convinced that both Chinese and Japanese are peace-loving people, despite differences in national conditions and cultural backgrounds, Yokoyama hopes to do more to support friendly exchanges between the two peoples in his lifetime.

Residing in Japan for 25 years, Yokoyama's heart remains tied to China. He annually donates to causes like earthquake relief, pandemic response, and educational support, with gifts totaling nearly 160,000 yuan (over 20,000 U.S. Dollars) over the years.

"Honestly speaking, we don't take him as a Japanese. He is like a relative. After returning from Japan, he donated a computer room to our school, so that our children can broaden their view and have an international vision," said Bai Hai, principle of Yulu School of Yuanquan Central School.

China has helped more than 4,000 Japanese war orphans return to Japan and reconnect with their families since the founding of the People's Republic of China (in 1949), according to Che Jihong, a researcher at the Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Social Sciences.

Most of them are grateful to the Chinese people for their upbringing. Some of them share their own stories to thank Chinese people for their generosity and compassion, and to promote friendly exchanges between the two sides.

"The Japanese orphans and Chinese foster parents remind us not to forget the history and to promote peace and development, which is a common aspiration of both Chinese and Japanese people," said Che.

"Once a war breaks out, there will be tens of thousands of victims. The Japanese people should take the war of aggression in the past as a lesson," said Shimomura.

At the age of 81, Yokoyama's health is in decline. Uncertain how many times he can return to China in the future, he hopes to take every opportunity to spread the idea of peace and friendship between China and Japan with his own words and deeds.

"The war turned me into an orphan, but I lived in the warm embrace of my foster father since I could remember. Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, China defeated the invaders, was liberated, and became a land of peace. Although I returned to Japan, my heart is still here, and I'm always grateful to the great Communist Party of China and the great Chinese people," said Yokoyama.

This year marks the 79th anniversary of Japan's unconditional surrender on Aug 15, 1945, which brought an end to World War II.

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