A movie with Japanese as humans – Zhang Lijia

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Yet another movie about the Japanese atrocities in Nanjing is causing an uproar in China, writes the LA Times . Celebrity author and Nanjing native Zhang Liji a tries to explain why giving the Japanese soldiers a human face is still a hard sell in China. The LA Times:

Nanjing native Lijia Zhang, a writer, said that many here believed the film glorified Japanese soldiers but that she had mixed emotions.

“I understand the hatred. The atrocities were incredibly brutal, but the Japanese were still human,” she said. “But for most Chinese what happened in Nanjing is still a running sore. This victim mentality is a form of narrow nationalism. It’s a pity.”

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Zhang Lijia is also a speaker at the China Speakers Bureau. If you want to share her insights at your conference or meeting, do get in touch.