TAIPEI, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--President Ma Ying-jeou said in early July that it is an unbreakable truth that the anti-Japanese struggle from 1937 to 1945 was led by the government of the Republic of China under the leadership of the former President Chiang Kai-shek, and that the Chinese communist fighting forces had limited participation.
The president made the comment while viewing an exhibition of oil paintings featuring battle scenes from the Sino-Japanese war and historical photos, which is being held at the Central Gallery of the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the victory over Japan.
Ma said that visitors to the exhibition should be able to learn through viewing the paintings and photos of events during the eight-year war that the nation fought against Japanese aggression.
Take for example the first large-scale engagement fought in Shanghai and the surrounding region between August and October in 1937; the battlefield was often described as a human flesh mincer. Victory was achieved only after the tremendous sacrifice of lives and hardships, he said.
He mentioned that the Chinese communist fighting force, which was first named the Eighth Route Army and later the New Fourth Army, had participated in the 1937 Battle of Shanghai, while the army of the National government led the fight.
In fact, former Chinese communist party leader Hu Jintao in his message on the 60th anniversary of victory over Japan in 2005 had admitted that during the eight-year anti-Japanese war, major battles were taken on by the National government's army, while the Chinese communist forces were engaged in warfare behind the enemy lines, according to Ma.
He pointed out that Hu was right to say that the National government's army encountered the major battles, as to the warfare behind the enemy lines, not only the Chinese communist forces, but also the National government soldiers were involved.
Refuting some reports by media on the Chinese mainland that the anti-Japanese struggle was led by the Chinese communist force, President Ma said that truth should be honestly revealed.
