The Good Man of Nanking

by John Rabe

  This morning at 11:00 the Chairman of the Committee, Mr. John H. D. Rabe, the Inspector-General, Mr. Eduard Sperling and Dr. M. S. Bates called upon General Tang Sheng-chih concerning the question of moving military establishments out of the area proposed for the Safety Zone. In reply General Tang made the following three comments as explanatory of the letter he sent to the Committee on December 3rd.

  If the proposed Safety Zone is clearly marked, the military will see to it that no new military establishments come in.

  Furthermore, no military works including anti-aircraft guns will be continued in the area and all guns and armed men will be excluded.

  Supplementary and service establishments, which comprise neither armed men nor active military units, will, of course, move out when it becomes necessary.

  At a meeting this afternoon, the Committee decided to go ahead on the basis of these comments. The Zone will be marked with flags at a time to be agreed upon with General Tang in order to familiarize the people and military men with the boundaries of Zone. But the Committee will not declare the Zone in final effect until formal notification has been given by the Committee to both sides. That notification will not be given until all the conditions agreed upon have been fulfilled.

  DOCUMENT 10

  14 December 1937: Important Notice to

  the Refugees in the Safety Zone

  From now on people should stay off the streets as much as possible.

  At the most dangerous moment, everyone should get in houses or out

  of sight.

  The Safety Zone is for Refugees. Sorry, the Safety Zone has no power

  to give protection to soldiers.

  If there is any searching or inspection, give full freedom for such

  search. No opposition at all.

  DOCUMENT 11

  International Committee of the Nanking Safety Zone 10

  Letter to the Japanese Embassy, Nanking

  For the kind attention of Mr. Kiyoshi Fukui, Second Secretary

  17 December 1937

  Dear Sirs:

  In view of the statement of Consul-General Katsuo Okazaki yesterday afternoon that the International Committee had no legal status, some explanations of our position seem to be in order.

  Vis-à-vis your Japanese authorities we are not claiming any political status whatever. But on December 1, Mayor Ma of the Nanking Municipality turned over to our Committee nearly all the functions of the City government for the emergency of transitions: police, supervision of essential utilities, fire department, housing regulation, food supply, and sanitation. Consequently, when your Army victoriously arrived in the city on Monday noon, December 13, we were the only administrative authority carrying on in the city. Of course, that authority did not extend outside of the Safety Zone itself, and involved no right of sovereignty within the Zone. . . .

  The following morning, December 15, we were favored by calls by Mr. Tokuyasu Fukuda of the Imperial Japanese Embassy, and by Mr. Sekiguchi with cards from the Captain and Officers of the H.I.J.M.S. Seta at our headquarters. We presented our letter of December 14, referred to above, to Mr. Fukuda and assured Mr. Sekiguchi that we would be glad to cooperate in starting the electricity works. At noon, we had the pleasure of meeting the Head of the T’eh Pei Kwan Chang (specially delegated official) at the Bank of Communications and from him received a formal, oral statement in answer to our letter of December 14. In his reply, among other points, he said that they would station guards at the entrances to the Zone; that the civilian police could patrol within the Zone provided they were armed only with batons; that the Committee could use the 10,000 tanof rice it had stored and move in the other stores of rice assigned to it by the former City Government; and that it was essential to repair the telephone, electricity and water works as soon as possible.

  But no answer was given to point 4 in our letter of the 14th excepting to say that people should return to their homes as soon as possible.

  On the basis of this reply, we encouraged our police to go ahead with their duties, assured the people they would be well-treated now that we had explained to the Japanese officers, and started to move rice.

  But since then any truck that appeared on the streets without a Westerner on it has been commandeered; the Red Swastika Society (working under our direction), which started trucks Tuesday morning to pick up dead bodies in the Zone, had its trucks either taken or attempts made to take them and now yesterday 14 of their workers were taken away. Our police were interfered with and yesterday 50 of them stationed at the Ministry of Justice were marched off, “to be killed” according to the Japanese officer in charge, and yesterday afternoon 46 of our “volunteer police” were similarly marched off. These volunteers had been organized by our Committee on December 13 when it looked as though the work to be done in the Zone was greater than the uniformed police—who were on day and night duty—could take care of. These “volunteer police” were neither uniformed nor armed in any way. They simply wore our armbands. They were more like Boy Scouts in the West who do odd jobs in helping to keep crowds in order, clean up, and render first aid, etc.

  On the 14th our four fire trucks were commandeered by Japanese soldiers and used for transport.

  The point we have been trying so hard to get across to your Embassy and to the Japanese Army is that we were left to carry on the City Government services for the civilian population of Nanking until the Japanese authorities could establish a new City Government or other organization to take over these functions in the city. But unfortunately your soldiers have not been willing to let us continue with our maintenance of order and services for the civilian population in the Zone. This resulted in a breaking down of our system for maintaining order and for providing necessary services which we had carried on up till the morning of December 14. In other words, on the 13th when your troops entered the city, we had nearly all the civilian population gathered in a Zone in which there had been very little destruction by stray shells and no looting by Chinese soldiers even when in full retreat. The stage was all set for you to take over that area peacefully and let the normal life therein continue undisturbed until the rest of the city could be put in order. Then the full normal life of the city could go forward. All 27 Westerners in the city at that time and our Chinese population were totally surprised by the reign of robbery, rapine and killing initiated by your soldiers on the 14th.

  All that we are asking in our protest is that you restore order among your troops and get the normal life of the city going as soon as possible. In the latter process we are glad to cooperate in any way we can.

  But even last night between 8 and 9 p.m. when five Western members of our staff and Committee toured the Zone to observe conditions, we did not find a single Japanese patrol either in the Zone or at the entrances! Yesterday’s threats and marching off of our police had driven all our police from the streets. All we saw were groups of two and three Japanese soldiers wandering about the streets of the Zone and now, as I write, reports are pouring in from all parts of the Zone about the depredations of robbery and rape committed by these wandering, uncontrolled soldiers. This means that nothing has been done about our requests in our letter of yesterday, December 16, namely, point 2, that stray soldiers be kept out of the Zone by guards at the entrances.

  Consequently, as a first step in turning over to your authorities the maintenance of order in the Zone, we suggest:

  That the Imperial Japanese Army set up a system of regular military police to patrol the Zone both day and night with full authority to arrest soldiers found looting, entering houses, and committing rape or carrying off women.

  That the Japanese authorities take over the 450 Chinese police assigned to us by the former Chinese Nanking City Government and organize them to maintain peace and order among the civilian population. (This order has never once broken down in the Zone.)

  In view of the number of fires in the city yesterday and last night, fortunately not in the Zone, we suggest that the Fire De
partment be reorganized under your authorities and the four trucks be returned by your soldiers to such service.

  We further respectfully beg to suggest that as soon as possible you kindly bring an expert in Municipal Administration to Nanking to manage the life of the civilian population until a new city government can be formed. (There is nothing left of the former city government excepting the police and firemen in our Zone and three clerks. All others left the city. Your army has taken the physical structure of the city of Nanking and the poorer sections of its population, but most of the trained, intelligent and active people have all moved further west.)

  May we again reassure you that we have no interest in continuing any semi-administrative function left to us by the former Nanking City Government. We earnestly hope that you will kindly take up these functions as quickly as possible. Then we will become simply a relief organization.

  If the depredations of the last three days continue, this relief problem is going to be multiplied rapidly. We organized the Zone on the basis that every family should make private arrangements for housing and food in order to reduce the administrative load suddenly placed on our ad hocorganization. But if the present situation continues, in a few days we are going to have large numbers of people facing starvation; their private supplies of food and fuel are running out; money, clothing and personal articles have been taken from many of them by wandering Japanese soldiers; and little normal business or other activity can be carried on because people are afraid either to open shops or appear on the streets.

  On the other hand, since the morning of December 14, our supply trucks have been practically at a standstill. Before your troops entered the city we concentrated on getting supplies into the Zone and expected to carry out distribution later because the people had been urged to bring a week’s supply of food with them. But in order to keep some of our camps from going without food over a day, Western members of our staff and committee have had to haul bags of rice to those places in their private cars after dark!

  Besides the starvation facing the people if these services cannot be extended quickly, there is the stirring up of the people. Some families have had their houses entered, robbed and their women raped as much as five times in one night. Is it any wonder that the next morning they move out and try to find a safer place?

  And yesterday afternoon while three officers of your Army Supply Department were asking us to help get the telephone service started, a small number of telephone workers wearing our insignia were turned out of their houses in the Zone and are now scattered to unknown places in the Zone. If this process of terrorism continues, it will be next to impossible to locate workers to get the essential services started.

  It is hard to see how starvation may be prevented among many of the 200,000 Chinese civilians if order is not restored at once among the Japanese soldiers in the city.

  Assuring you that we will be glad to cooperate in any way we can in caring for the civilian population of this city, I am

  Most respectfully yours, JOHN H. D. RABE Chairman

  DOCUMENT 12

  List of Foreign Nationals in Nanking on 21 December 1937.11

  DOCUMENT 13

  I have tried for a couple of days to refrain from troubling you further. However, many difficulties occur every day, and today they are worse than usual. New parties of stray soldiers without discipline or officers are going everywhere, stealing, raping, and taking away women. Some cases follow:

  Just now soldiers forcibly entered the university and towed away a truck used to supply rice to refugees.

  In our Sericulture Building alone there are on the average more than ten cases per day of rape or of abducting women.

  Our residences continue to be entered day and night by soldiers who injure women and steal everything they wish. This applies to residences in which Americans are now living, just the same as to others.

  Soldiers frequently tear down the proclamations put up by your military police.

  This morning an American member of our staff was struck by an officer who suddenly approached him and angrily tried to tear off the arm band supplied by your Embassy.

  Other buildings not mentioned above are daily entered several times each, by soldiers who utterly disregard your proclamations, looking for women and for loot.

  Despite this disorder caused entirely by soldiers, we have no guard whatever and no military police have been seen near us.

  With thanks for your continued interest,

  M. S. BATES

  DOCUMENT 14

  International Committee of the Nanking Safety Zone to

  Mr. Fukui of the Japanese Embassy (Excerpts)

  Nanking, Ninhai Lu, 18 December 1937

  Dear Sirs:

  We are sorry to trouble you again but the sufferings and needs of the 200,000 civilians for whom we are trying to care make it urgent that we try to secure action from your military authorities to stop the present disorder among Japanese soldiers wandering through the Safety Zone.

  There is no time or space here to go into the cases that are pouring in faster than we can type them out.

  But last night Dr. Bates of our Committee went to the University of Nanking dormitories to sleep in order to protect the 1,000 women that fled there yesterday because of attacks in their homes. He found no gendarmerie on guard there nor at the new University library building. When at 8 p.m. Mr. Fitch and Dr. Smythe took Rev. W. P. Mills to Ginling College to sleep in a house near the gate (as one or more of us have been doing every night since the 14th in order to protect the 3,000 women and children, yesterday augmented to 4,000 by the panic), we were seized roughly by a searching squad and detained for over an hour. The officer had the two women in charge of Ginling College, Miss Minnie Vautrin and Mrs. Chen, with a friend, Mrs. Twinem, lined up at the gate and kept them there in the cold and the men pushed them around roughly. The officer insisted there were soldiers in the compound and he wanted to find them and shoot them. Finally, he let us go home but would not let Rev. Mills stay so we do not know what happened after we left.

  This combined with the marching off of the men at the Ministry of Justice on December 16 (see separate “Memorandum”), among which were several hundred civilian men to our positive knowledge and 50 of our uniformed police, had made us realize that, unless something is done to clear up this situation, the lives of all the civilian men in our Zone are at the mercy of the temperament of searching captains.

  With the panic that has been created among the women who are now flocking by the thousands to our American institutions for protection, the men are being left more and more alone. (For instance, there were 600 people in the old Language School at Siao T’ao Yuen up till December 16. But because so many women were raped there on the night of December 15, 400 women and children moved to Ginling college, leaving 200.) These public institutional buildings were originally listed to accommodate 35,000 people; now, because of panic among the women, this has increased to 50,000, although two buildings have been emptied of men: the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Court.

  If this panic continues, not only will our housing problem become more serious but the food problem and the question of finding workers will seriously increase. . . .

  The second man on our Housing Commission had to see two women in his family at 23 Hankow Road raped last night at supper time by Japanese soldiers. Our associate food commissioner, Mr. Sone (a Theological Professor), has had to convey trucks with rice and leave the 2,500 people in families at his Nanking Theological Seminary to look out for themselves. Yesterday, in broad daylight, several women at the Seminary were raped right in the middle of a large room filled with men, women, and children! We 22 Westerners cannot feed 200,000 Chinese civilians and protect them night and day. That is the duty of the Japanese authorities.

  Yesterday we called your attention to the fact that 50 uniformed police had been taken from the Ministry of Justice, and that 46 “volunteer police” had also been marched off. We now must add th
at 40 of our uniformed police stationed at the Supreme Court were also taken. The only stated charge against them was made at the Ministry of Justice where the Japanese officer said they had taken in soldiers after the place had been searched once, and, therefore, they were to be shot.

  As pointed out in the accompanying “Memorandum on the Incident at the Ministry of Justice,” Western members of our committee take full responsibility for having put some civilian men and women in there because they had been driven out of other places by Japanese soldiers.

  Yesterday, we requested that the 450 uniformed police assigned to the Zone be now organized into a new police force for the city under Japanese direction. At the same time, we trust the above mentioned 90 uniformed police will be restored to their positions as policemen and that 46 volunteer police will either be returned to our office as workers, or we be informed of their whereabouts. We have on file a complete list of the 450 uniformed police assigned to the Zone, so can help you in this process.

  Trusting that you will pardon our venturing to make these suggestions, and assuring you of our willingness to cooperate in every way for the welfare of the civilians in the city,

  I am

  Most respectfully yours,

  JOHN H. D. RABE

  Chairman

  DOCUMENT 15

  List of the Cases of Disorder

  by Japanese Soldiers in the Safety Zone

  According to Rabe’s diary, by 5February the Safety Zone Committee had forwarded to the Japanese embassy a total of 450cases of disorder by Japanese soldiers that had been reported either directly or indirectly after the American, British, and German diplomats had returned to their embassies. These are a few the cases from this list.

  Six street sweepers of the second division of the Sanitary Commission of the Safety Zone were killed in the house they occupied at Kulou and one seriously injured with a bayonet by Japanese soldiers on December 15th. There was no apparent reason whatever. These men were our employees. The soldiers entered the house.