Unit 731 Human Experiment Facility By: Whitney Archer

I remember learning in public school about the German Holocaust that claimed the lives of many Jewish victims. This event took place from 1933 to 1945 when Hitler became the leader of the National Socialists German Workers Party. In School we read books such as Hana’s Suitcase  that was written from a young Jewish girls perspective during the Holocaust. The Novel has forever been stuck in my thoughts after reading her horrific experiences.  I bring the German Holocaust up in my blog to introduce my topic for the day, Unit 731.

Unit 731 was a facility based in Pingfang district of Harbin, The largest city in the Chinese state of Manchukou. This Facility was used for biological and chemical warfare research designed by the Imperial Japanese army during the second Sino-Japanese War(1937-1945).  Here is where thousands of men, women, and children were held as prisoners to be ultimately murdered. Most the captives were of Chinese decent, however there were also Russian, Mongolian, and North Korean people who were held as prisoners of war. These people endured painful human experiments from doctors and scientists associated with the imperial Japanese Army. These human experiments were intended to perfect the Japanese biological weapons program. These experiments included such tests as  infecting the the human body with the imperial plague and than dissecting the bodies to gain knowledge on how the organs react to the lethal disease. They would also freeze limbs causing sever frost bite , amputate body parts sowing them to another part of the body, set explosives near live prisoners and many more torturous human experiments.  The events that took place at this facility is unimaginable and shares a close resemblance to the events that took place during the German Holocaust. Often people refer to Unit 731 as the “Asian Auschwtz”.

Tourist are welcome to visit Unit 731 where one of the buildings are now converted into a museum documenting the history of the facility. The museum has displays that replicate some of the tortures and events that happened with in its walls, though not much evidence is left of the actual experiments that took place during the war. This  is a tragic story in human history and it is important for people to educate others on Unit 731. The Victims that have been taken will forever be remember.

For tourist who would like to visit Unit 731, museum information is posted below.

Hours of Operation: 8-11:30am and 1-4pm

Location: West of the train tracks, Pingfang Qu,

Transportation: Bus: no. 338 or 343 from Kunlun Hotel (20km/12 miles; 45 min.; ¥2.50) to Xinjiang Dajie; 10-min. walk from the stop

Telephone: 0451/8680-1556

 Admission: ¥20 ($0.21 Canadian)

Read More:

http://www.frommers.com/destinations/harbin/A32764.html#ixzz2gQbinvdH

http://www.targeted-individuals-europe.com/?q=node/7

For a documentary on Unit 731 visit this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgtIyNRv3g8