Until now, Hong Kong’s story in the Second World War usually has been told as that of the British forces and their defeat on Christmas Day, 1941. But there’s another story -- that of the Chinese guerrillas harassing the occupying Japanese, playing a crucial part in escapes from prisoner-of-war camps and rescuing Allied airmen.

This neglected part of the war is Chan Sui-jeung’s topic for a pioneering book, East River Column: Hong Kong Guerrillas in the Second World War and After, arising from his many contacts with participants in the guerrilla warfare. The author will speak on January 21 (7:15 to 9 p.m.) in the special collections section of the main library at the University of Hong Kong. The session (conducted in English) will be moderated by Dr Peter Cunich from HKU’s Department of History.

Born in Hong Kong, Chan comes from a family with a 200-year history in the city. He’s a 1959 HKU graduate. For two decades, he has been an honorary research fellow with the Centre of Asian Studies at the University of Hong Kong. As a district officer for Sai Kung (in Hong Kong’s New Territories) from 1980 to 1984, he met many veterans of the East River Column.

Reading Club
University of Hong Kong Libraries

(January 12, 2009)



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