Chinese Communist Children Who Witnessed the Great Patriotic War
(Translated by Adrian Chan-Wyles PhD)
Translator’s Note: This
is an English translation of the Chinese language article entitled ‘中共领导人子女追忆苏联卫国战争亲历(附图)’. During the 1930’s and early 1940’s, it
became a common practice for prominent members of the Communist Party of China,
to send their children for a comprehensive and free education in the Soviet Union. This
Soviet policy was facilitated through the auspices of the ‘International
Children’s Institutes’, where young people from around the world could attend
and receive a modern education, excel in gymnastics and sports, and learn a
trade, as well as study different languages, etc. What follows are the stories of five
different communist Chinese children who experienced life in the Soviet Union
during WWII. Story 1: Maxim Machine
Gunner 2: Soviet Intelligence Officer 3: Concentration Camp Survivor 4: Children
of the International 5: Sewing Expert.
It may surprise the reader to learn that Chinese people were involved in
the Great Patriotic War in the Soviet Union, and at least one ended-up in a
concentration camp in East Prussia.
(ACW 16.11.14)
Story 1: Maxim Machine Gunner - Li Te Te (李特特)
Personal Details: One such Chinese child who benefitted from this policy was Li Te Te (李特特) – the daughter of the prominent Chinese Communist Li Fu Chun (李富春) [1900-1975] – who in the early days met Mao Zedong and worked with him at the Peasant Movement Training Institute. Following the Revolution of 1949, Li would rise to high positions in the new government. Li Te Te was called ‘Roza’ in Russian, and at the age of 16, was sent to study at the Ivanovo International Children's Institute - Moscow. What follows are her recollections of her time in Moscow during the dark days of the Nazi German invasion of the USSR in 1941, and her experiences as a Soviet reservist soldier – qualified as a ‘Maxim Machine Gunner’.
During the 1941 October Revolution Victory Day Parade in Red Square, with the German forces heading toward Moscow, the communist Chinese children performed a gymnastics display as part of the commemoration - and Li Te Te relates with pride how she was stood not far from Stalin when he mounted the podium to give an inspiring speech of proletariat resistance to Nazi fascism – as saluting Red Army soldiers marched past on their way to the front. Not long after this, the Soviet authorities recruited the Chinese children into a reserve Red Army unit tasked with defending the Soviet motherland and Li Te Te immediately volunteered for service. When training, she carried exactly the same weight of twenty or thirty kilograms of equipment on her back, whilst ski-marching over hundreds of kilometres everyday. As a result, she was often in a state of exhaustion. After completing her training, Li Te Te was awarded with a ‘Maxim Machine Gunner" certificate, which meant that if there was a need, she could be sent to fight on the front-line.
Li Te Te was sent to work as a nurse in a military hospital. As the military situation worsened at the front, there was a steady stream of wounded soldiers being brought to the rear for treatment and care. Li Te Te helped the men to feed and to dress. She also collected the many amputated limbs for burial. Her descriptions of the make-shift hospital and lack of proper medical supplies and resources, is truly heartbreaking. She relates how one young Soviet soldier in her care had lost both arms and legs - and how he never complained, and once asked her to write a letter to his parents, telling them not to worry, because he was alright and that he would see them after the war. The conditions were terrible and the suffering immense. Even today, Li Te Te becomes upset when she thinks of the year she spent as a nurse in the Soviet Union. As the Nazi German forces were getting closer to Moscow, Li Te Te and her Red Army unit were tasked to build fortifications 60km Southwest of Moscow in freezing weather conditions with temperatures of minus 40 degrees Celsius. The ground was frozen solid, but the Chinese children dug with all their might to assist in the building of anti-tank trenches. Despite the suffering, Li Te Te and her colleagues were inspired by the slogan ‘Fight to the death to defend Moscow. Swear to defend Stalin!’
The Soviets held out for 6 more months, and then the Red Army decisively counter-attacked – pushing the Nazi Germans back. At this time, Li Te Te contracted typhoid and had a temperature of over 40 degrees Celsius. An old Chinese Bolshevik named Bao Luo Ting (鲍罗亭) – a good friend of Li Te Te’s parents and a former colleague of Sun Yat-sen – arranged with the Soviet authorities for her to be moved to a Kremlin hospital where she eventually recovered. Only later did she realise that she was close to death and stated that in her opinion, the Soviet people had given her a second life!
Story 2: Soviet Intelligence Officer
Personal details: Luo Xi Bei (罗西北) was the son of Luo Yi Nong (罗亦农) one of the early leaders of the Communist Party of China. His Russian name was Si Wei-Ya sha (四维-亚沙) – this name was used to disguise his true identity. He was 15 years old when he entered the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. He narrated the following story to his wife – Zhao Shi Jie (赵仕杰).
(ACW 16.11.14)
Story 1: Maxim Machine Gunner - Li Te Te (李特特)
Personal Details: One such Chinese child who benefitted from this policy was Li Te Te (李特特) – the daughter of the prominent Chinese Communist Li Fu Chun (李富春) [1900-1975] – who in the early days met Mao Zedong and worked with him at the Peasant Movement Training Institute. Following the Revolution of 1949, Li would rise to high positions in the new government. Li Te Te was called ‘Roza’ in Russian, and at the age of 16, was sent to study at the Ivanovo International Children's Institute - Moscow. What follows are her recollections of her time in Moscow during the dark days of the Nazi German invasion of the USSR in 1941, and her experiences as a Soviet reservist soldier – qualified as a ‘Maxim Machine Gunner’.
During the 1941 October Revolution Victory Day Parade in Red Square, with the German forces heading toward Moscow, the communist Chinese children performed a gymnastics display as part of the commemoration - and Li Te Te relates with pride how she was stood not far from Stalin when he mounted the podium to give an inspiring speech of proletariat resistance to Nazi fascism – as saluting Red Army soldiers marched past on their way to the front. Not long after this, the Soviet authorities recruited the Chinese children into a reserve Red Army unit tasked with defending the Soviet motherland and Li Te Te immediately volunteered for service. When training, she carried exactly the same weight of twenty or thirty kilograms of equipment on her back, whilst ski-marching over hundreds of kilometres everyday. As a result, she was often in a state of exhaustion. After completing her training, Li Te Te was awarded with a ‘Maxim Machine Gunner" certificate, which meant that if there was a need, she could be sent to fight on the front-line.
Li Te Te was sent to work as a nurse in a military hospital. As the military situation worsened at the front, there was a steady stream of wounded soldiers being brought to the rear for treatment and care. Li Te Te helped the men to feed and to dress. She also collected the many amputated limbs for burial. Her descriptions of the make-shift hospital and lack of proper medical supplies and resources, is truly heartbreaking. She relates how one young Soviet soldier in her care had lost both arms and legs - and how he never complained, and once asked her to write a letter to his parents, telling them not to worry, because he was alright and that he would see them after the war. The conditions were terrible and the suffering immense. Even today, Li Te Te becomes upset when she thinks of the year she spent as a nurse in the Soviet Union. As the Nazi German forces were getting closer to Moscow, Li Te Te and her Red Army unit were tasked to build fortifications 60km Southwest of Moscow in freezing weather conditions with temperatures of minus 40 degrees Celsius. The ground was frozen solid, but the Chinese children dug with all their might to assist in the building of anti-tank trenches. Despite the suffering, Li Te Te and her colleagues were inspired by the slogan ‘Fight to the death to defend Moscow. Swear to defend Stalin!’
The Soviets held out for 6 more months, and then the Red Army decisively counter-attacked – pushing the Nazi Germans back. At this time, Li Te Te contracted typhoid and had a temperature of over 40 degrees Celsius. An old Chinese Bolshevik named Bao Luo Ting (鲍罗亭) – a good friend of Li Te Te’s parents and a former colleague of Sun Yat-sen – arranged with the Soviet authorities for her to be moved to a Kremlin hospital where she eventually recovered. Only later did she realise that she was close to death and stated that in her opinion, the Soviet people had given her a second life!
Story 2: Soviet Intelligence Officer
Personal details: Luo Xi Bei (罗西北) was the son of Luo Yi Nong (罗亦农) one of the early leaders of the Communist Party of China. His Russian name was Si Wei-Ya sha (四维-亚沙) – this name was used to disguise his true identity. He was 15 years old when he entered the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. He narrated the following story to his wife – Zhao Shi Jie (赵仕杰).
Not long after entering the Children’s Institute, the war
between the USSR and Nazi Germany broke out.
The Children’s Institute organised the students into collective labour
groups – where each was encouraged and guided in the learning of specific
skills. Luo Xi Bei showed a particular
interest in radio operation and was able to use a basic crystal-set. During the Great Patriotic War, Luo Xi Bei
participated in Soviet military training and organisation, and for a time was
responsible for delivering the notices to families informing them that their
sons and daughters had been killed fighting in the frontline. Understandably, many of the families burst
into tears when receiving these notices – and this experience unsettled the
young Luo Xi Bei. He cannot remember
exactly how many of these notices he delivered, but he recalls that some
families would not take the notices and refused to believe their relatives had
been killed in the war. His experiences
were made into a film in 1996 – where his part was played by the actor Luo Xiao
Man (罗小蛮) in the film entitled ‘Red
Cherry’ (红樱桃 –
Hong Ying Tao). Of course, some of the
details were altered through the exercising of artistic license.
In addition, Luo Xi Bei (together with some older students) donated blood to help the wounded for over six months, and although suffering from continuous hunger, he only rarely accepted rations in return for his blood donations. In August 1944, Luo Xi Bei graduated from the seventh grade, and as the Children’s Institute had a new President who initiated a new policy which meant that Luo and other mature students were discharged and were expected to fend for themselves. Upon leaving, each student was given bedding, a change of underwear, and a cotton coat. However, due to help from a Chinese teacher at the Children’s Institute – as well as assistance received from other kind Soviet people (and the Soviet system), he was able to secure basic food and lodgings locally. He had to share a small room that measured less than seven square meters with two other foreign students. This is how his ‘Red Journey’ (红色之旅 – Hong Se Zhi Lu) began. He successfully applied to be a student at the Ivanovo Electrical and Mechanical Engineering School. As food was limited, he sometimes accepted small amounts of food for repairing electrical devices as a means to fill his stomach. He even had to go to the market place and exchange his leather jacket he acquired before leaving China for a bag of potatoes – which he took back to his room and shared with his fellow students. When others heard of his plight, it was suggested that he (and others) should make their case known at a local Communist Party committee meeting. He successfully did this – and managed to regain material support from the Children’s Institute. After this, he would occasionally return to the Institute to acquire bread, butter, and sugar rations.
Shortly before the end of the Great Patriotic War, Luo Xi Bei secretly left Ivanovo and travelled to Moscow, where he was taken directly to attend a meeting at the USSR’s Ministry of State Security. Here, he was informed by a general about the situation in Northeast China and the Anti-Japanese War, and asked whether he was willing to participate in intelligence work for the liberation of the northeast. After Luo Xi Bei was told that he was expected to impersonate a Japanese person and act as a Soviet spy – he immediately agreed to participate. The background to this mission only became clear later. Originally the candidates considered for this mission were Mao An Ying (毛岸英), Liu Yun Bin (刘允斌) – the son of Liu Shao Qi (刘少奇) – Chen Zu Tao (陈祖涛) – the son of Chen Chang Hao (陈昌浩). However, as Mao An Ying had to return to Yan’an, only the remaining three were considered. In the end Luo Xi Bei was selected for the mission because of his outstanding academic success, and his ability to operate a radio. Other issues behind this selection was the fact that Luo Xi Bei’s father had been a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, and was a serving member of the Central Organisation Bureau – for these additional reasons, the selection of Luo Xi Bei was assured. He was sent to the Chita (赤塔) area of the Soviet Union to train in specialised radio transmission operations. In less than a month he reached the basic level of proficiency, but local news soon reported that the Japanese had surrendered. However, Luo Xi Bei did not give up his work as a Soviet spy. In October, 1945, he travelled through Manchuria to Qiqihar, where he made contact with local bandit groups that provided the Communist Party of China with important information about Guomindang (国民党) and its attempts to recover the area from Japanese control. Not long after arriving, the ‘Red Beards’ (红胡子 – Hong Hu Zi) – a faction comprised of Guomindang and bandit elements – acting as local police, searched Luo Xi Bei because of rumours he possessed a sophisticated radio set. However, Luo Xi Bei was able to conceal the radio set under a couch and so it was not discovered. This gave the impression that the rumours were false, but the Red Beards noticed that he did not possess a local accent and arrested him on the grounds that he might be a member of the (Communist) Eighth Route Army. However, Luo Xi Bei prevented the radio from being detected by walking out the door first, and successfully distracting the attention of his accusers. He then successfully argued during an interrogation that everything had been a misunderstanding and was later released. He quietly managed to leave the area without drawing further attention to himself.
After this, Luo Xi Bei disguised himself as a loyal Guomindang supporter and managed to enrol as a student at the prestigious Harbin Institute of Technology – where he routinely rubbed shoulders with the wealthy children of Guomindang officials – collecting important intelligence in the process. After completing his duties in this posting, Luo Xi Bei finally revealed his true identity at a branch meeting of the Harbin Institute of Technology – when the student body finally realised who he was.
Story 3 – Concentration Camp Survivor
Personal Details: Zhu Min (朱敏) was the daughter of Zhu De (朱德) and her Russian name was Chi Ying (赤英) – which translates as ‘Red Hero’. She was fourteen years old when she entered the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. Zhu Min narrated her story to her husband Liu Zheng (刘铮). When she arrived at the Children’s Institute, Zhu Min was medically examined and found to be suffering from asthma. As a consequence, she was sent to a sanatorium in the western Soviet area of Belarus to benefit from the clean air. Not long after arriving at the sanatorium, Nazi Germany launched her blitzkrieg attack against the USSR. The nursing home was over-run, and Zhu Min and other younger patients were deported to a concentration camp in East Prussia. When she arrived at the camp, she was told to strip naked and hand over all her possessions so that she could go through the ‘bath disinfection’ process. It was said that all new arrivals had to be cleansed in this manner to prevent the spread of infection and diseases. A German soldier stole the fountain pen given to her by her father, and kept it for himself. Whilst in the Children’s Institute, Zhu Min had been given a small badge with Lenin’s image upon it. She hid this badge in her mouth, and the guards did not discover its existence. In the Children’s Institute, the Chinese children were taught about Lenin and the great October Revolution of 1917, and respected Lenin very much. As a consequence, this badge gave her the mental (and physical) strength required to endure and survive her many severe hardships. Zhu Min still owns this badge today. Not long ago, Zhu Min wore this badge at the Russian government’s 50th anniversary celebrations, and at the 60th anniversary, the Russian government awarded her with a commemorative medal to wear next to her Lenin badge – everyone was very happy to witness this event.
Zhu Min spent three years in the concentration camp, where she had nothing to eat but small pieces of mouldy bread, and an inadequate supply of dirty water. She participated in hard labour every single day, and was routinely beaten. Whilst in detention she suffered from scrofula of the neck. Ulcers formed around her neck area which filled with blood and pus. She was eventually sent to the camp infirmary which was a dirty, disgusting, and frightening place. The ‘doctor’ cut her neck open (using a local anaesthetic) with unsterilized scissors that had been in contact with other patients – he then drained the blood and pus. A few days later, a tuberculosis ulcer formed. Today, Zhu Min still has a three centimetre long scar visible on her neck.
Due to malnutrition, Zhi Min lost much of her hair, and her belly began to bulge – as if she were pregnant – and she lost an inch in height. In addition, Zhu Min also faced continuous psychological torture. One day, when Zhu Min was with a small group of prisoners who were gossiping, a camp guard came over and said he wanted to photograph the females in the group. As the guard seemed pleasant, the women, for a moment, forgot about the camp and smiled when he took the pictures. Suddenly the guard became angry and said that the prisoners were laughing at him, and came over raising his whip!
Whilst in the concentration camp, Zhu Min kept her true identity secret – claiming that her father was a Chinese doctor who was visiting the USSR at the time of her capture. Many of the other prisoners grouped together in language groups – but Zhu Min was the only Chinese person in the camp and spent long days in linguistic isolation. As a consequence, she nearly lost the ability to speak her own language – even today she has some difficulty.
After the successful Soviet counter-offensive against the forces of Nazi Germany, Zhu Min’s concentration camp was liberated and she was returned to the safety of the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. However, as she began her journey back into the USSR, she was seconded into the Red Army where she acted as a nurse to many thousands of wounded Soviet soldiers. This gave the Soviet authorities time to confirm who she was by having Mao An Ying, (the son of Mao Zedong), vouch for her identity – which he did. This was required because Zhu Min had not stayed at the Children’s Institute for long, and not many people knew her – Mao An Ying did.
Not long after her return to the USSR, she received a message from her father – Zhu De – who was in Yan’an. The letter encouraged her to study hard, and told her that the defeat of the Japanese fascists might take longer than the defeat of Nazi Germany. He also said that she should return to China and assist in its reconstruction. However, her father had wrote this letter without knowing whether his daughter had survived the war.
Zhu Min is one of the inspirations behind the movie ‘Red Cherry’ (红樱桃 – Hong Ying Tao), where she has given her consent for her life story to be used in the plot – together with some artistic licence – particularly with regard to the notion that she was forcibly tattooed with a swastika.
Story 4 – Children of the International
Personal details: Li Duo Li (李多力) was the son of Li Fan Wu (李范五) and his Russian name was Ming Tuo (利亚) – he spent five years at the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. Here, Li Duo Li directly narrates his own experiences.
I was born in 1936 in Moscow. In 1941, and when the Germans attacked the Soviet Union, I was transferred to Ivanovo International Children's Institute. For the next ten years, the Children’s Institute was my home, and the President and the teachers acted as my parents. We were truly an internationalist family. Now in my home in Changping, there hangs a two meter oil painting. I asked an artist to paint a photograph I possessed that showed me and my friends happily playing at the Institute. The painting is entitled ‘Red River Tarka’ (红色的塔尔卡河 – Hong Se De Ta Er Ka He).
I was only five years old when the war broke-out, and I am left with the impression that as we lived near an airport, piercing air-raid sirens went off nearly every night. When the sirens went-off, we would automatically follow the teacher and desperately run to the dugout shelter in the woods. In the morning, when we emerged from the shelter, we would witness the devastation that the Nazi German bombs had caused the night before. Everything had been blown to pieces, and shrapnel was strewn over the ground. Despite the best and selfless efforts of the Soviet government, and the Soviet people, we would only receive around 100 grams of bread per person, per day. For growing children who had to participate in heavy labour involved in digging bomb shelters and logging every day, this simply was not enough. To remedy this situation, the children would grow vegetables, and raise cows and pigs to overcome the food shortage. Two or three times a week, my friends and I would walk ten kilometres to plant seeds of potatoes, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Overtime my legs started to become very sore.
I also participated in the carpentry and maintenance teams at the Children's Institute, making our own beds, tables and chairs. In this way the wood-working craft was not lost. For us children this work became a labour of love, and this habit of self-reliance has followed me all my life. In my mind, the textile mill I worked in was my "Mama" and my fellow workers were my brothers and sisters. One day in 1945, whilst working in the textile factory, a kindly aunt came to my side with three other foreign children. She said, "Your parents are not around. From now on, I am your mother, and the workers of the factory are your brothers or sisters." From then on at festival time, we four foreign students always received delicious gifts of sugar sweets from the textile workers.
For the Soviet Union, and the Soviet people, I will always have deep feelings, I apply this cherished emotional feeling into my stamp collecting hobby. I created a stamp album entitled ‘Historical Development of the USSR’s Aerospace Programme’ (苏联航天事业发展史 – Su Lian Hang Tian Shi Ye Fa Zhan Shi), and this stamp collection has won numerous awards in China. My greatest wish is to travel to Russia in 2011 – the 50th anniversary of Gagarin’s space flight – to exhibit my stamp collection. This would be a fitting expression of respect for my second country and the high regard in which I hold it.
Story 5 – Sewing Expert
Personal details: Liu Ai Qin (刘爱琴) was the daughter of Liu Shao Qi (刘少奇). Her Russian name was ‘Aegean’ (爱琴 – Ai Qin), which was an approximate pronunciation of her Chinese name. She was fourteen years old when she entered the Ivanovo International Children's Institute. Liu Ai Qin narrates her own story.
During August, 1939, my father asked me and my brother Liu Yun Bin (刘允斌) whether we would be willing to go and study in the USSR, and then later return with our knowledge and help rebuild China. We agreed and the next day we said good bye to our father. We took the car from Yan’an to Lanzhou where we met with Zhou En Lai (周恩来) and Deng Ying Chao (邓颖超) – who acted as aunt and uncle to us - together with Zhou En Lai’s adopted daughter named Sun Wei Shi (孙维世), as well as Chen Cheng Hao (陈昌浩), the son of Chen Zu Tao (陈祖涛), Gao Gang (高岗), the son of Gao Yi (高毅), and Chen Bo Da (陈伯达), the son of Chen Xiao Da (陈小达).
We stayed in Xinjiang for a time, and then flew by aeroplane into the Soviet Union before taking the train to Moscow – where we entered the Ivanovo International Children's Institute. At the beginning, everything at the Ivanovo International Children's Institute was very happy with fun and games all day long, but this changed in 1941, after Nazi Germany invaded the USSR. Older foreign men joined the army at that time, and served on the front lines – whilst younger students had physical examinations to become cadets, standing ready to join the army. Girls performed logistical tasks, and contributed something for the frontline through their work. Such activities included harvesting, potato collection, logging, nursing the sick and wounded, and the sewing of quilted jackets, white capes, and gloves to be worn by the Soviet soldiers engaged in winter warfare.
There were five or six sewing machines that we operated around the clock – taking it in turns to work shifts throughout the night and day. I got up very early to work on the machines, hoping that the gloves I made were worn by Soviet soldiers who killed the enemy as they drove them out of the USSR. I turned out so many garments that they could not be counted. We also worked at embroidery and handicrafts to assist the morale of the frontline troops, and to earn some money so that we could buy goods for the sick and wounded.
I was eventually called-up for the Red Army Reserve, but at first our teacher said I looked too young and would not let me go on guard duty. I did not agree with this and discussed it with my teacher, explaining that I wanted to join the older students during the night patrols. I said that although I looked young, I had courage and was not afraid of the Nazi Germans. After listening to my argument, my teacher finally agreed to let me go on night patrol with the other students. At this time Stalin called upon all Soviet people to stand united and fight against fascist aggression. As Chinese people living in the Soviet Union, we felt it our duty to stand firm with the Soviet people! This was very important for me personally, as I had not been able to fight the Japanese invaders in China – but I could make up for this by fighting fascism in the Soviet Union!
©opyright: Adrian Chan-Wyles (ShiDaDao) 2014.
Original Chinese Language Source Article
In addition, Luo Xi Bei (together with some older students) donated blood to help the wounded for over six months, and although suffering from continuous hunger, he only rarely accepted rations in return for his blood donations. In August 1944, Luo Xi Bei graduated from the seventh grade, and as the Children’s Institute had a new President who initiated a new policy which meant that Luo and other mature students were discharged and were expected to fend for themselves. Upon leaving, each student was given bedding, a change of underwear, and a cotton coat. However, due to help from a Chinese teacher at the Children’s Institute – as well as assistance received from other kind Soviet people (and the Soviet system), he was able to secure basic food and lodgings locally. He had to share a small room that measured less than seven square meters with two other foreign students. This is how his ‘Red Journey’ (红色之旅 – Hong Se Zhi Lu) began. He successfully applied to be a student at the Ivanovo Electrical and Mechanical Engineering School. As food was limited, he sometimes accepted small amounts of food for repairing electrical devices as a means to fill his stomach. He even had to go to the market place and exchange his leather jacket he acquired before leaving China for a bag of potatoes – which he took back to his room and shared with his fellow students. When others heard of his plight, it was suggested that he (and others) should make their case known at a local Communist Party committee meeting. He successfully did this – and managed to regain material support from the Children’s Institute. After this, he would occasionally return to the Institute to acquire bread, butter, and sugar rations.
Shortly before the end of the Great Patriotic War, Luo Xi Bei secretly left Ivanovo and travelled to Moscow, where he was taken directly to attend a meeting at the USSR’s Ministry of State Security. Here, he was informed by a general about the situation in Northeast China and the Anti-Japanese War, and asked whether he was willing to participate in intelligence work for the liberation of the northeast. After Luo Xi Bei was told that he was expected to impersonate a Japanese person and act as a Soviet spy – he immediately agreed to participate. The background to this mission only became clear later. Originally the candidates considered for this mission were Mao An Ying (毛岸英), Liu Yun Bin (刘允斌) – the son of Liu Shao Qi (刘少奇) – Chen Zu Tao (陈祖涛) – the son of Chen Chang Hao (陈昌浩). However, as Mao An Ying had to return to Yan’an, only the remaining three were considered. In the end Luo Xi Bei was selected for the mission because of his outstanding academic success, and his ability to operate a radio. Other issues behind this selection was the fact that Luo Xi Bei’s father had been a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, and was a serving member of the Central Organisation Bureau – for these additional reasons, the selection of Luo Xi Bei was assured. He was sent to the Chita (赤塔) area of the Soviet Union to train in specialised radio transmission operations. In less than a month he reached the basic level of proficiency, but local news soon reported that the Japanese had surrendered. However, Luo Xi Bei did not give up his work as a Soviet spy. In October, 1945, he travelled through Manchuria to Qiqihar, where he made contact with local bandit groups that provided the Communist Party of China with important information about Guomindang (国民党) and its attempts to recover the area from Japanese control. Not long after arriving, the ‘Red Beards’ (红胡子 – Hong Hu Zi) – a faction comprised of Guomindang and bandit elements – acting as local police, searched Luo Xi Bei because of rumours he possessed a sophisticated radio set. However, Luo Xi Bei was able to conceal the radio set under a couch and so it was not discovered. This gave the impression that the rumours were false, but the Red Beards noticed that he did not possess a local accent and arrested him on the grounds that he might be a member of the (Communist) Eighth Route Army. However, Luo Xi Bei prevented the radio from being detected by walking out the door first, and successfully distracting the attention of his accusers. He then successfully argued during an interrogation that everything had been a misunderstanding and was later released. He quietly managed to leave the area without drawing further attention to himself.
After this, Luo Xi Bei disguised himself as a loyal Guomindang supporter and managed to enrol as a student at the prestigious Harbin Institute of Technology – where he routinely rubbed shoulders with the wealthy children of Guomindang officials – collecting important intelligence in the process. After completing his duties in this posting, Luo Xi Bei finally revealed his true identity at a branch meeting of the Harbin Institute of Technology – when the student body finally realised who he was.
Story 3 – Concentration Camp Survivor
Personal Details: Zhu Min (朱敏) was the daughter of Zhu De (朱德) and her Russian name was Chi Ying (赤英) – which translates as ‘Red Hero’. She was fourteen years old when she entered the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. Zhu Min narrated her story to her husband Liu Zheng (刘铮). When she arrived at the Children’s Institute, Zhu Min was medically examined and found to be suffering from asthma. As a consequence, she was sent to a sanatorium in the western Soviet area of Belarus to benefit from the clean air. Not long after arriving at the sanatorium, Nazi Germany launched her blitzkrieg attack against the USSR. The nursing home was over-run, and Zhu Min and other younger patients were deported to a concentration camp in East Prussia. When she arrived at the camp, she was told to strip naked and hand over all her possessions so that she could go through the ‘bath disinfection’ process. It was said that all new arrivals had to be cleansed in this manner to prevent the spread of infection and diseases. A German soldier stole the fountain pen given to her by her father, and kept it for himself. Whilst in the Children’s Institute, Zhu Min had been given a small badge with Lenin’s image upon it. She hid this badge in her mouth, and the guards did not discover its existence. In the Children’s Institute, the Chinese children were taught about Lenin and the great October Revolution of 1917, and respected Lenin very much. As a consequence, this badge gave her the mental (and physical) strength required to endure and survive her many severe hardships. Zhu Min still owns this badge today. Not long ago, Zhu Min wore this badge at the Russian government’s 50th anniversary celebrations, and at the 60th anniversary, the Russian government awarded her with a commemorative medal to wear next to her Lenin badge – everyone was very happy to witness this event.
Zhu Min spent three years in the concentration camp, where she had nothing to eat but small pieces of mouldy bread, and an inadequate supply of dirty water. She participated in hard labour every single day, and was routinely beaten. Whilst in detention she suffered from scrofula of the neck. Ulcers formed around her neck area which filled with blood and pus. She was eventually sent to the camp infirmary which was a dirty, disgusting, and frightening place. The ‘doctor’ cut her neck open (using a local anaesthetic) with unsterilized scissors that had been in contact with other patients – he then drained the blood and pus. A few days later, a tuberculosis ulcer formed. Today, Zhu Min still has a three centimetre long scar visible on her neck.
Due to malnutrition, Zhi Min lost much of her hair, and her belly began to bulge – as if she were pregnant – and she lost an inch in height. In addition, Zhu Min also faced continuous psychological torture. One day, when Zhu Min was with a small group of prisoners who were gossiping, a camp guard came over and said he wanted to photograph the females in the group. As the guard seemed pleasant, the women, for a moment, forgot about the camp and smiled when he took the pictures. Suddenly the guard became angry and said that the prisoners were laughing at him, and came over raising his whip!
Whilst in the concentration camp, Zhu Min kept her true identity secret – claiming that her father was a Chinese doctor who was visiting the USSR at the time of her capture. Many of the other prisoners grouped together in language groups – but Zhu Min was the only Chinese person in the camp and spent long days in linguistic isolation. As a consequence, she nearly lost the ability to speak her own language – even today she has some difficulty.
After the successful Soviet counter-offensive against the forces of Nazi Germany, Zhu Min’s concentration camp was liberated and she was returned to the safety of the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. However, as she began her journey back into the USSR, she was seconded into the Red Army where she acted as a nurse to many thousands of wounded Soviet soldiers. This gave the Soviet authorities time to confirm who she was by having Mao An Ying, (the son of Mao Zedong), vouch for her identity – which he did. This was required because Zhu Min had not stayed at the Children’s Institute for long, and not many people knew her – Mao An Ying did.
Not long after her return to the USSR, she received a message from her father – Zhu De – who was in Yan’an. The letter encouraged her to study hard, and told her that the defeat of the Japanese fascists might take longer than the defeat of Nazi Germany. He also said that she should return to China and assist in its reconstruction. However, her father had wrote this letter without knowing whether his daughter had survived the war.
Zhu Min is one of the inspirations behind the movie ‘Red Cherry’ (红樱桃 – Hong Ying Tao), where she has given her consent for her life story to be used in the plot – together with some artistic licence – particularly with regard to the notion that she was forcibly tattooed with a swastika.
Story 4 – Children of the International
Personal details: Li Duo Li (李多力) was the son of Li Fan Wu (李范五) and his Russian name was Ming Tuo (利亚) – he spent five years at the Ivanovo International Children’s Institute. Here, Li Duo Li directly narrates his own experiences.
I was born in 1936 in Moscow. In 1941, and when the Germans attacked the Soviet Union, I was transferred to Ivanovo International Children's Institute. For the next ten years, the Children’s Institute was my home, and the President and the teachers acted as my parents. We were truly an internationalist family. Now in my home in Changping, there hangs a two meter oil painting. I asked an artist to paint a photograph I possessed that showed me and my friends happily playing at the Institute. The painting is entitled ‘Red River Tarka’ (红色的塔尔卡河 – Hong Se De Ta Er Ka He).
I was only five years old when the war broke-out, and I am left with the impression that as we lived near an airport, piercing air-raid sirens went off nearly every night. When the sirens went-off, we would automatically follow the teacher and desperately run to the dugout shelter in the woods. In the morning, when we emerged from the shelter, we would witness the devastation that the Nazi German bombs had caused the night before. Everything had been blown to pieces, and shrapnel was strewn over the ground. Despite the best and selfless efforts of the Soviet government, and the Soviet people, we would only receive around 100 grams of bread per person, per day. For growing children who had to participate in heavy labour involved in digging bomb shelters and logging every day, this simply was not enough. To remedy this situation, the children would grow vegetables, and raise cows and pigs to overcome the food shortage. Two or three times a week, my friends and I would walk ten kilometres to plant seeds of potatoes, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Overtime my legs started to become very sore.
I also participated in the carpentry and maintenance teams at the Children's Institute, making our own beds, tables and chairs. In this way the wood-working craft was not lost. For us children this work became a labour of love, and this habit of self-reliance has followed me all my life. In my mind, the textile mill I worked in was my "Mama" and my fellow workers were my brothers and sisters. One day in 1945, whilst working in the textile factory, a kindly aunt came to my side with three other foreign children. She said, "Your parents are not around. From now on, I am your mother, and the workers of the factory are your brothers or sisters." From then on at festival time, we four foreign students always received delicious gifts of sugar sweets from the textile workers.
For the Soviet Union, and the Soviet people, I will always have deep feelings, I apply this cherished emotional feeling into my stamp collecting hobby. I created a stamp album entitled ‘Historical Development of the USSR’s Aerospace Programme’ (苏联航天事业发展史 – Su Lian Hang Tian Shi Ye Fa Zhan Shi), and this stamp collection has won numerous awards in China. My greatest wish is to travel to Russia in 2011 – the 50th anniversary of Gagarin’s space flight – to exhibit my stamp collection. This would be a fitting expression of respect for my second country and the high regard in which I hold it.
Story 5 – Sewing Expert
Personal details: Liu Ai Qin (刘爱琴) was the daughter of Liu Shao Qi (刘少奇). Her Russian name was ‘Aegean’ (爱琴 – Ai Qin), which was an approximate pronunciation of her Chinese name. She was fourteen years old when she entered the Ivanovo International Children's Institute. Liu Ai Qin narrates her own story.
During August, 1939, my father asked me and my brother Liu Yun Bin (刘允斌) whether we would be willing to go and study in the USSR, and then later return with our knowledge and help rebuild China. We agreed and the next day we said good bye to our father. We took the car from Yan’an to Lanzhou where we met with Zhou En Lai (周恩来) and Deng Ying Chao (邓颖超) – who acted as aunt and uncle to us - together with Zhou En Lai’s adopted daughter named Sun Wei Shi (孙维世), as well as Chen Cheng Hao (陈昌浩), the son of Chen Zu Tao (陈祖涛), Gao Gang (高岗), the son of Gao Yi (高毅), and Chen Bo Da (陈伯达), the son of Chen Xiao Da (陈小达).
We stayed in Xinjiang for a time, and then flew by aeroplane into the Soviet Union before taking the train to Moscow – where we entered the Ivanovo International Children's Institute. At the beginning, everything at the Ivanovo International Children's Institute was very happy with fun and games all day long, but this changed in 1941, after Nazi Germany invaded the USSR. Older foreign men joined the army at that time, and served on the front lines – whilst younger students had physical examinations to become cadets, standing ready to join the army. Girls performed logistical tasks, and contributed something for the frontline through their work. Such activities included harvesting, potato collection, logging, nursing the sick and wounded, and the sewing of quilted jackets, white capes, and gloves to be worn by the Soviet soldiers engaged in winter warfare.
There were five or six sewing machines that we operated around the clock – taking it in turns to work shifts throughout the night and day. I got up very early to work on the machines, hoping that the gloves I made were worn by Soviet soldiers who killed the enemy as they drove them out of the USSR. I turned out so many garments that they could not be counted. We also worked at embroidery and handicrafts to assist the morale of the frontline troops, and to earn some money so that we could buy goods for the sick and wounded.
I was eventually called-up for the Red Army Reserve, but at first our teacher said I looked too young and would not let me go on guard duty. I did not agree with this and discussed it with my teacher, explaining that I wanted to join the older students during the night patrols. I said that although I looked young, I had courage and was not afraid of the Nazi Germans. After listening to my argument, my teacher finally agreed to let me go on night patrol with the other students. At this time Stalin called upon all Soviet people to stand united and fight against fascist aggression. As Chinese people living in the Soviet Union, we felt it our duty to stand firm with the Soviet people! This was very important for me personally, as I had not been able to fight the Japanese invaders in China – but I could make up for this by fighting fascism in the Soviet Union!
©opyright: Adrian Chan-Wyles (ShiDaDao) 2014.
Original Chinese Language Source Article