www射-国产免费一级-欧美福利-亚洲成人福利-成人一区在线观看-亚州成人

US EUROPE AFRICA ASIA 中文
China / Cover Story

Working across the divide

(China Daily) Updated: 2014-07-17 07:11
Working across the divide

Former Chinese foreign minister Li Zhaoxing visits a cemetery of Chinese workers who served on the Western Front during World War I in Noyelles-sur-Mer of France on Tuesday. Li was in France to attend events that celebrate the 100th anniversary of WWI. TUO YANNAN / CHINA DAILY 

Renewed interest in Chinese workers' contributions during WWI helps shed new light on China-Europe relationship, reports Cecily Liu.

Many people have forgotten, or are even unaware, that 140,000 Chinese workers served on the Western Front during World War I. These workers' contributions as manual labor during the war were significant, scholars say. Most of them were volunteers, farmers in search of better wages. One hundred thousand of them formed the Chinese Labour Corps under British forces, and 40,000 were employed by French factories and farms.

Chinese intellectuals then believed that the contributions of the Chinese workers would even give China an added advantage during negotiations at the Treaty of Versailles following the war, but their hopes turned out to be futile.

After the war, the contributions of the Chinese workers were largely forgotten by both Chinese and Europeans.

It is only in the past decade that academic interest in the subject began to grow. Amid the run-up to the war's centenary events, many believe that the focus will help shed new light on how China should view its relationship with Europe.

"This is about our history meeting your history. I think that's important because having a common history creates an opportunity for meeting and discussion," said Dominiek Dendooven, a senior curator at the In Flanders Fields Museum in Ypres, Belgium.

"Secondly, this is an important part of our history and your history. It is a major influx of Chinese immigrants that directly links China and Belgium, and is an important moment in our history," Dendooven said.

To remember this part of history, In Flanders Fields organized an exhibition in 2010 which showed visitors the story of the Chinese workers' arrival in Europe, their lives there and what happened to them after the war ended.

The exhibition, from April to August 2010, spanned 450 square meters and attracted 70,000 visitors.

Author Mark O'Neill has also written a book about the forgotten Chinese laborers of World War I, which was published by Penguin as part of its collection of new books on the war.

Similarly, independent film producer Helen Fitzwilliam made a short film and wrote an article on this issue, which was presented at London think tank Chatham House in June.

A new book on Chinese overseas labor and globalization in the early 20th century, written by historian Paul Bailey, will be published in November.

Dendooven said the revival of interest on Chinese workers' roles during World War I started around 2004 and 2005, and coincided with the re-emergence of China on the world stage.

Bailey said one reason for Western countries' increasing willingness to revisit this part of history is the tourism element associated with historical events.

For example, the French government is keen to promote towns like Montague, where many of the Chinese workers lived, and where they later came into contact with Chinese students studying in France at the time.

Bailey said that it is also in line with the Chinese government's intention to depict China as a responsible rising global power in recent years.

"It fits in with this wider agenda of promoting China's globalization and positive interaction with the world," Bailey said.

Working across the divide
A unit of the Chinese Labour Corps passing through the ruined village of Vlamertinghe near Ypres, Belgium. [Photo provided to China Daily] 

Previous Page 1 2 3 Next Page

Highlights
Hot Topics
...
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲最大的视频网站 | 免费观看性欧美一级 | 成年人视频在线免费播放 | 依依成人综合网 | 香蕉久久高清国产精品免费 | 国产中文99视频在线观看 | 久久不见久久见免费影院www日本 | 国产原创视频在线 | 亚洲精品久久久久网站 | 欧美激情 自拍 | 欧美一级高清片欧美国产欧美 | 免费的a级毛片 | 精品国产自在在线在线观看 | 免费一级a毛片在线播 | 亚洲三级小视频 | 99成人精品| 欧美黄网站免费观看 | 奇米影视7777久久精品 | 国产午夜爽爽窝窝在线观看 | 国外免费一级 | 欧美成人免费高清视频 | 爱爱爱久久久久久久 | www中文字幕在线观看 | 国产高清专区 | 538prom精品视频在放免费 | 欧美三级不卡视频 | 男操女视频 | 亚洲欧美一区二区久久 | 日韩精品免费一区二区三区 | 狠狠狠狠狠 | 亚洲产国偷v产偷v自拍涩爱 | 99精品这里只有精品高清视频 | 玖玖香蕉视频 | 欧洲亚洲综合一区二区三区 | 久久99久久精品国产只有 | 亚洲欧洲一级 | 一区二区三区四区视频在线观看 | 欧美日韩 在线播放 | 亚洲成人偷拍自拍 | 国产91精品露脸国语对白 | 亚洲精品第一国产综合野 |