Roque delivered a speech at the Nanjing Peace Forum. (Data map) Shen Ran photographed
Editor's note: The Nanjing Massacre committed by the Invading Japanese Army in 1937 is a dark page in human history. 84 years have passed, the historical truth will not be covered up by time, and mankind's belief and adherence to peace is like a fire through time and space, across regions and passed down from generation to generation. No matter where they are in the world, no matter what age they are, they turn the belief in transmitting the flame of peace into action, and they turn the hope of maintaining peace into a watchman, and they are the watchmen of peace through time and space.
Nanjing, China News Network, December 12 Title: The German translator of the opera "Rabe's Diary": Let the brilliance of humanity turn into a bright light to illuminate the future of mankind
Reporter Zhong Sheng
To this day, the German Roque still recalls the ending song of the opera Rabe's Diary from time to time. "That song celebrates peace and happiness and tells us that the glory of humanity in the Nanjing Massacre, which knows no borders, will be transformed into a beacon to illuminate the future of mankind."
In 2004, Roque, who was studying in the United States, was recommended by Chinese teacher zhang Chunru's book "Nanjing Massacre". At that time, Roque did not expect that he would one day be so closely related to the Nanjing Massacre and make it one of his research topics.
Soon after, Roque set foot on the land of Nanjing and became an international student at Nanjing University, during which time he visited the Memorial Hall of the Compatriots Killed in the Nanjing Massacre of the Japanese Invasion of China, and he was shocked by the mass graves of white bones. But what puzzled Roque was that "when I visited, I always had a feeling of 'numbness' in my heart." Just like when I visited the concentration camps in Germany where the Jews were slaughtered."
Today, when Roque looks back on the experience, he understands the origin of this emotion: "In Germany, many of the older generations who had experienced the suffering of war, including my grandparents, were reluctant to mention what happened in the past, which made there a separation between generations in the inheritance of historical memory. Our younger generation knows what happened in the past, but we can't understand the war wounds of the past very well. And only by being aware of this trauma can we get closer to that history. ”
His study abroad life in Nanjing passed in a flash, but what he saw and felt in the memorial hall always haunted Roque's mind, making him want to understand the Nanjing Massacre more deeply. When he was studying at Oxford University in the United Kingdom and traveling in Japan, Roque never forgot to interview Chinese and Japanese students to understand their views on each other's countries, their understanding of the Nanjing Massacre, and the historical facts of the Nanjing Massacre overseas. The trauma of war, represented by the Nanjing Massacre, became the direction of his research, and this history became clearer in his heart.
In 2007, the Nanjing Massacre Victims Memorial Hall was reopened to the public. On December 13 of that year, Roque, who had returned to Nanjing, participated in a ceremony to present flowers to the victims of the Nanjing Massacre. "The moment I put down the flowers, a wave of sadness hit me." At this time, Roque was no longer a "stranger" to the Nanjing Massacre, and the "numbness" he had once felt no longer existed.
During his days of studying and working in Nanjing, Roque became a UNESCO Chair researcher in peace studies at Nanjing University, studying the Nanjing Massacre while spreading the idea of peace.
In 2014, China legislated the establishment of December 13 as the National Day of Commemoration for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre, and the commemoration of the victims of the Nanjing Massacre was elevated to the national level. In this regard, Luo Ke said that China's establishment of the National Memorial Day can make the trauma of the Nanjing Massacre known to more young people, pass on the memory, and let the world better understand the Nanjing Massacre.
Labe and International Safety Zone Memorial Hall of Nanjing University. (File photo) Yang Bo photo
In 2019, the large-scale original opera "Rabe's Diary" set against the background of the Nanjing Massacre was officially unveiled and toured abroad. In order to facilitate foreign audiences to understand the content of the opera, in April of that year, Nanjing University was commissioned to translate the opera "Rabe's Diary" into German within a month, and Roque became one of the translators.
Because of the tight time, during the translation, Roark and other translators ate and lived in the office, and only had 5 hours of sleep a day. He said: "I am proud of what Rabe has done, not because he and I are German, but because he did what a person should do in Nanjing, which is like a hell on earth, showing the brilliance of human nature." This great spirit transcends nationality, race, time and space, and is also what our Chair of Peace Studies is committed to sowing and spreading. ”
As soon as the translation work was over, Roque went to Germany to attend the conference. During the conference, he shared with the participants his experience and impressions of translating the opera "Rabe's Diary". "Some people listened to my introduction and immediately went to watch. They said they were impressed by the opera, which was covered by the German media. I think this is a good attempt to spread the historical facts of the Nanjing Massacre to the world, and I am honored to be a part of it. ”
This year marks the 84th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre. For the tragedy of 84 years ago, the people of Chinese still remember it vividly, and strive to pass on the spirit of inheriting historical memory and safeguarding world peace to the next generation and spread it to the world. Many peace-loving overseas people, including Roque, also participated, spreading the Chinese people's prayer for peace. On December 4, Roque's UNESCO Chair in Peace Studies at Nanjing University participated in the 2021 China-Japan Peace Studies Online Exchange Conference. Peace scholars and young students from China and Japan discussed the "Relay of East Asian Peace Studies Dialogue" to leave a mark of peace and promote peace forever. (End)