On the afternoon of July 7, 2019, a 17-member delegation "Polar UK China Tour", organized by the China-UK Summit, visited our memorial hall and had a discussion with us. Twelve of them were young students from University of Oxford. Curator Zhang Jianjun introduced the history of the Nanjing Massacre to the young people who came from afar.

Curator Zhang Jianjun (center, left row) introducing the history of the Nanjing Massacre to the young people from the "Polar UK China Tour" delegation

"Polar UK China Tour" is a high-level and in-depth cross-cultural exchange and experience program for Chinese and British youths. The China-UK Summit team invites elite young people from the University of Oxford and other famous universities in the world to visit China and deepen their understanding through profound researches, exchanges, sharing and cultural experiences.

After the symposium, everyone visited the Exhibition of Historical Facts on the Nanjing Massacre.

During the symposium, curator Zhang especially introduced the section of humanitarian relief in the exhibition. He said that 82 years ago, John Rabe, Minnie Vautrin, John Magee, Robert Wilson and other international friends risked their lives staying in Nanjing and protected 250,000 Chinese refugees. Their great act of love showed the glorious power of the mankind.

During the visit, the young men from the world's top universities stopped for a long time at John Rabe’s statue and his monument.

"Never Let This Tragic History Repeat Itself."

After visiting the Exhibition of Historical Facts on the Nanjing Massacre, all the members of the delegation came to the memorial site to observe a moment of silence and offer white chrysanthemum to the massacre victims.

Hugh Findlay, head of the delegation, led to write down some words on the guest book. "Having the opportunity to visit the place where the Japanese atrocities were recorded, I feel it is the responsibility of each of us to remember and disseminate this history," he wrote. Then all the members signed below.

Among the young people in the delegation are members of the National Executive Committee of the Labor Party, chairman of the National Student Union of the Labor Party, members of the Executive Committee of the Conservative Party of the University of Oxford, and the next elected chairman of the Conservative Party of the University of Oxford.

Hugh Findlay said that when he was a student, he knew most of the second world war in Europe and little about the Nanjing Massacre. "When I came to Nanjing, I came to the memorial hall as the first stop. I have seen the exhibitions here. They have an international perspective, showing not only the history of China's fight against foreign invaders, but also many international elements. He added that as representatives of the youth British political parties, each of them had a responsibility not to let this painful history repeat itself.