Japan Forgotten Colonists

Cardinal Richelieu

In the 1930′s, the Japanese government encouraged thousands of its citizens to settle in Manchuria, it was labelled the new America. Most who went were poor farmers in Japan, and their lives in Manchuria weren’t much easier.

When the Soviets invaded Manchuria in 1945, these civilians were left to fend for themselves with most of the male population already fighting at the front with the Imperial Forces. When the war ended 1.7 million Japanese civilians remained trapped in Manchuria and largely forgotten.

These unprotected civilians were abandoned by fleeing Japanese forces and became easy targets for attack. Many of those who eluded the fighting died of disease, malnutrition, and “compulsory group suicides” while seeking to return to Japan. In order to save the lives of their children as well as their own lives, thousands of mothers faced the agonizing decision, in their words, to “leave,” “give up,” “abandon,” “sell,” or “entrust” their loved ones to Chinese families.



http://www.discovernikkei.org/en/journal/2011/8/16/escape-from-manchuria/

How far along did the Germans get with the colonization of Eastern Europe?

HavingCrack

Are there many descendents of these Japanese settlers still living in Manchuria today (even those raised by Chinese families) or were they largely wiped out post 1945?

The Chinese Civil War would have raged over much of the same ground in latter years also which probably further decimated the remaining Japanese.

Cardinal Richelieu

HavingCrack wrote: »

Are there many descendents of these Japanese settlers still living in Manchuria today (even those raised by Chinese families) or were they largely wiped out post 1945?

The Chinese Civil War would have raged over much of the same ground in latter years also which probably further decimated the remaining Japanese.

An estimated 20,000 civilians remained in Manchuria after the Soviets had carried off POWs to help rebuild the Soviet Union. On a side note, the Soviets transferred some of the Japanese soldier POWs to the Chinese communist party to help train communist forces and repair Japanese manufactured weapons. Most of remaining Japanese civilians in Manchuria could repatriate to Japan in the 1970s when China reopened relations with Japan but they had to leave their Chinese families behind. Japan loosened up regulations in the 1980s to allow them to bring their Chinese families when Japan was suffering from a labour shortage. In 2005 an esimated 100,000 chinese of Japanese descent lived in Japan.

ejmaztec

Cardinal Richelieu wrote: »

An estimated 20,000 civilians remained in Manchuria after the Soviets had carried off POWs to help rebuild the Soviet Union. On a side note, the Soviets transferred some of the Japanese soldier POWs to the Chinese communist party to help train communist forces and repair Japanese manufactured weapons. Most of remaining Japanese civilians in Manchuria could repatriate to Japan in the 1970s when China reopened relations with Japan but they had to leave their Chinese families behind. Japan loosened up regulations in the 1980s to allow them to bring their Chinese families when Japan was suffering from a labour shortage. In 2005 an esimated 100,000 chinese of Japanese descent lived in Japan.

I wonder how many ethnic Japanese members of Chinese intelligence arrived in Japan?

Cardinal Richelieu

ejmaztec wrote: »

I wonder how many ethnic Japanese members of Chinese intelligence arrived in Japan?

I suspect your correct, they already were caught six years ago trying to blackmail the head of the encrypted communications section of the Japan's Shanghai consulate. The man was being pressured by Chinese agents to hand over sensitive intelligence or be exposed for sexual activities, the Chinese lured him into the old Russian "honey trap". The Japanese diplomat committed suicide instead, while also alerting his superiors.