Chinese and Japanese lawyers have issued a joint declaration
urging the Japanese government to take full responsibility for the
Chinese people who were harmed by chemical weapons abandoned by
invading Japanese troops during World War II.
The All-China Lawyers' Association (ACL), the China Foundation
for Human Rights Development and a Japanese delegation of lawyers
who have helped Chinese victims of chemical weapons issued the
declaration in Harbin, capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang
Province, on Tuesday.
The declaration says that currently, relevant government
departments of China and Japan are discussing how to destroy all
the chemical weapons abandoned by invading Japanese troops as soon
as possible. But the Japanese side has moved too slowly in
destroying and retrieving the weapons. Hidden risks are threatening
and harming the health and lives of innocent Chinese civilians, the
declaration says.
It urges the Japanese government to apologize to the Chinese
victims and move quickly to collect and to deal with chemical
weapons properly.
The declaration also asks the Japanese government to guarantee
further treatment and provide everyday necessities for the
victims.
Liu Yong, who is in charge of the ACL team claiming compensation
from the Japanese government, said that he hoped the declaration
would press the government to be more active in its handling of the
issue.
"The declaration also expresses our gratitude to Japanese
lawyers who offered free assistance to Chinese victims of chemical
weapons," Liu said.
After Japan surrendered in 1945, its forces buried and dumped
large quantities of chemical weapons in China. The country's
official statistics show that more than 2,000 Chinese people have
been harmed by such weapons.
Fifty-one Chinese citizens harmed by Japanese chemical weapons
have had a medical checkup over the past three days.
According to Chinese and Japanese lawyers who helped arrange the
checkups, the condition of these victims was not promising.
Initial check-up results show that their eyesight is
deteriorating gradually, they have suffered damage to their skin
and their breathing has been affected. Some people's immune system
has been weakened and they are more susceptible to disease, said Li
Xiaojun, vice president of the No. 2 Hospital of Heilongjiang
Province, where the checkups were conducted.
A member of the delegation of Japanese physicians said that
currently, many of these victims could be cured, but they should be
treated quickly.
(Xinhua News Agency March 23, 2006)
