China welcomes UNESCO listing of Nanjing massacre files

BEIJING - China on Saturday welcomed UNESCO's inscription of documents related to the Nanjing Massacre on its Memory of the World Register.

"China will ensure these valuable documents are protected and circulated, and make them play a positive role in remembering history, cherishing peace, looking into the future and safeguarding human dignity," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.

The files show the atrocities of Japanese troops in China, who killed 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers from Dec 13, 1937 to January of 1938.

The inscription was met with criticism by Japan, with Tokyo's foreign ministry questioning the authenticity of the documents, calling on UNESCO to be neutral and fair and for changes to be made to the process.

"Nanjing Massacre is a severe crime committed by Japanese militarism during World War II and is a historical fact recognized by the international community," Hua said, rejecting Japan's protest.

She said the files meet the evaluation criteria of Memory of the World Register, especially for authenticity and completeness, and the submission complied with UNESCO rules.

"Facts should not be denied and history not re-written," Hua said.

She urged Japan to reflect on its history, and to stop obstructing the work of UNESCO.

She added that Japan should regain trust from the international community with concrete action.