The Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission made a brief report on “HaoQiChangLiu” today. The China Martyrs Commemoration and Promotion Association was originally a mass organization directly under the General Political Department of the Central Military Commission (now under the management of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Veterans Affairs). Its Executive Vice President is held by the Secretary-General of the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission.

“Remember History, Uphold the Original Aspiration; Pass on the Torch to the Future —— Changzhou Municipal Research Association of the History of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression Grandly Holds a Symposium Commemorating the 80th Anniversary of the Victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War”

Rivers and mountains bear witness, and years stand as a name. As the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War is approaching, on the morning of August 28, the Changzhou Municipal Research Association of the History of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression grandly held a symposium themed “Inheritance of the Spirit of the War of Resistance”. Before the symposium, the participating representatives collectively visited the themed photo exhibition “Promote the Spirit of the War of Resistance, Pay Tribute to the Martyrs of the War of Resistance”. Each precious historical photo and each touching story of heroes spoke silently but powerfully of the great course of the Chinese nation’s unyielding and tenacious struggle during that fiery war era. The condensed version of the “HaoQiChangLiu” anti-Japanese war epic long scroll was also exhibited simultaneously.

Li Fengshan, Executive Vice President of the China Martyrs Commemoration and Promotion Association (referred to as “Martyrs Promotion Association” for short), and Zhu Hongkun, Honorary Vice President, attended the symposium. More than 70 people, including anti-Japanese war veterans Zhou Changgen, Xia Wengui, Pan Jinyu, Xia Xisheng, Jiang Yaohuan, Feng Zelian, Xu Yuanfu, six representatives of martyrs’ families, and members of the research association, gathered together to review the eventful years, deeply cherish the memory of martyrs, inherit the spirit of the War of Resistance, and gather the power for forging ahead.

At the symposium, Zhu Hongkun, Honorary Vice President of the Martyrs Promotion Association and Lifetime Honorary President of the Changzhou Municipal Research Association of the History of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, said in his speech that the Chinese people had gone through 14 years of arduous War of Resistance and achieved the first complete victory against foreign aggression since modern times. This great victory will always inspire us to firm our beliefs, stay true to our original aspiration, and forge ahead courageously on the new journey of the new era.

Two anti-Japanese war veterans nearly 100 years old, Zhou Changgen and Xia Xisheng, affectionately recalled the eventful years when they fought against the invaders amid the hail of bullets. Although they are advanced in age, they still spoke with great passion, which was deeply moving, demonstrating the profound patriotic feelings and firm ideals and beliefs of the older generation of revolutionaries.

Li Fengshan, Executive Vice President of the Martyrs Promotion Association, said at the symposium that he was grateful for being invited to attend the symposium. He hoped that the Changzhou Municipal Research Association of the History of the War of Resistance would adhere to the important speeches of General Secretary Xi Jinping as the fundamental guidance, maintain the correct research direction, continue to work hard in caring for anti-Japanese war veterans and other aspects, and make new contributions. On behalf of the China Martyrs Commemoration and Promotion Association, he also expressed high respect to the anti-Japanese war veterans and the families of martyrs attending the symposium, and wished them good health and a long life, as well as a happy life!

“HaoQiChangLiu” is a traditional Chinese painting created by more than 50 painters including Jiang Bibo, Ou Zhiyu, Ma Yidan, and Zhang Chunxin.

The initiative of “HaoQiChangLiu” originated from the “Chongqing Huangshan Anti-Japanese War Memorial Park” plan drafted by the creative team in 1998 and titled by Mr. Wang Daohan, the first president of the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits. The creation officially started in 2004 (the 59th anniversary of the victory of World War II) and was completed in 2010 (the 65th anniversary of the victory of World War II). With a letter request from Mr. Lien Chan, Chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang, and personal approval from Mr. Hu Jintao, then General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, the scroll was first exhibited at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei from July 7 to 31, 2010. On August 15, 2015 (the 70th anniversary of the victory of World War II), it was exhibited in Washington, the United States.

Adhering to a neutral stance from the civil society, “HaoQiChangLiu” does not judge right and wrong based on success or failure, nor argue over gains and losses due to political disputes. Instead, it verifies historical facts from multiple perspectives. Covering politics, military affairs, diplomacy, culture, and the people in an all-round way, the scroll records and depicts the history of China’s battlefield in the World Anti-Fascist War in the traditional form of Chinese painting, with pictures on the left and text on the right, in traditional vertical typesetting of traditional Chinese characters, and read from right to left. “HaoQiChangLiu” was titled by Mr. Lien Chan, then Chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang. The scroll consists of seven parts: the prologue “Motherland”, Volume 1 “Years of Rivers and Mountains”, Volume 2 “Great Wall of Flesh and Blood”, Volume 3 “Spiritual Fortress”, Volume 4 “Faith, Justice and Peace”, Volume 5 “Blue Sky and Clear Sea”, and the epilogue “Vision · Prayer”. The scroll is 2.1 meters high and more than 1,200 meters long. Among them, more than 1,000 figures are painted in life size with biographies; the text content, including rubbings, prefaces, introductions, postscripts, biographies, records of events, documents, poems, and odes, amounts to hundreds of thousands of words; 168 lion-shaped stone seals are engraved, with a total weight of nearly 4 tons; nearly 4,000 large-sized rice papers were used during the creation, and the total mounted area exceeds 22,000 square chi (a traditional Chinese unit of area).

Cultural scholar Wang Kang serves as the chief planner and overall coordinator of “HaoQiChangLiu”, Wang Tuhuo and Wang Qiang as planners; Jiang Bibo as the artistic director; and famous painters including Jiang Bibo, Ma Yidan, Zhang Chunxin, Ou Zhiyu, Li Li, Lou Shan, Zong Honggang, and Li Yu participated in the painting.