We continue the intriguing story of the heroes from China who saved a priceless heritage from extinction and became the historic English-Chinese Dictionary of Anglo-American Law.
China’s forgotten luminaries
Mr. Sheng Zhenwei: Author and dean of Soochow University
Sheng Zhenwei (1900-1997), the first Chinese dean of Soochow University and later the law school dean, authored the titles Evidence Law and The Trial System of Anglo-American Law. He was later labeled a “counter-revolutionary” and sentenced to 10 years of forced labor in Gansu. He was released after six years because of Soong Ching-Ling’s intercessions. In the 1980s, he was rehabilitated.
Gen Wenbin: Court Translator and researcher
Gao Wenbin (1921-), who served as a translator of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East and secretary to the Chinese prosecutor, is said to be the only surviving person in the world of the 1946-1948 Tokyo Trial (International Military Tribunal for the Far East).
During that time, he found evidence among the voluminous documents that sent Kenji Doihara and Seishiro Itagaki, who might otherwise have escaped their crimes, to the gallows. After 1952, Mr. Gao was labeled a “counter-revolutionary” and was sent to jail for 28 years with hard labor repairing the embankment at Poyang Lake.
He carried soil baskets dozens of times a day and was so tired that he could not hear the sound of gongs for work in the morning. In the early 1980s, he was rehabilitated. The authorities wanted to compensate him for his losses. He replied: “Can I make up for the best years of my life with money?” In the end, he refused.
Mr. Yu Weiyi: Lawyer who was beaten and escaped to Japan
Yu Weiyi (1922-2004), during the Japanese occupation of Shanghai, immersed himself in his studies and studied for a master’s degree. Following the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, he worked as a lawyer and engaged in legal education. After 1949, he stayed at the U.S. military base in Japan to work because some of his classmates who participated in the Tokyo trial were beaten during various political movements. He was also beaten, and for a time, his life was in danger.
Mr. Zhou Chenwen: Law lecturer at Hangzhou University
In 1969, Zhou Chengwen returned to his hometown in the Huzhou countryside to work as a village clerk. In the late 1980s, he was hired to teach at the then-Hangzhou University and became an expert in drafting foreign-related legal documents in Zhejiang Province. “The English he writes is just like what is printed in the newspaper.” He lived in a unity household for a long time, sharing the kitchen and bathroom, and each room was only seven or eight square meters.
Dr. Wang Yuhua: Doctor of Law
Wang Yuhua (1923-), a doctor of law from Indiana University in the United States, worked in street food stores for many years before teaching at Nanjing University in the 1980s.
Mr. Xu Kaishu: Professor at Soochow University
Xu Kaishu (1916-1999) was a professor at Soochow University following the end of the Anti-Japanese War. After 1979, as an exceptional researcher at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, he devoted himself to reconstructing Shanghai’s legal system. When he died in 1999, some people knew he had been a middle school teacher for 30 years.
Mr. Pan Handian: Professor
One day in early October 2002, in the small dictionary editorial office of China University of Political Science and Law, Mr. Pan Handian, a professor at the university, told reporters that He was 81 years old and one of the few lucky graduates of Soochow University who pursued a law education. He was fortunate to have escaped the societal and political disasters because he came into contact with Soviet law earlier.
When Mr. Pan talked about the emotional impact of it all, he even wept as he spoke for his teachers and department friends who had suffered the ravages of the times. “They are innocent.”
Mr. Ni Zhengy: Doctor of Law at Stanford
“Anglo-American law, with a history of more than 1,000 years, is one of the two major legal systems in the world in parallel with civil law”, said Ni Zhengyi (1906-2003), a graduate of Soochow University School of Law, a doctor of law from Stanford University in the United States, and a former judge of the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
The judicial procedures used by the International Court of Justice and the United Nations are based on Anglo-American law; the basic rules of international trade are likewise governed by Anglo-American law. “We have mistranslated many things because there was no Anglo-American dictionary in China.”
It has been learned that the World Trade Organization (WTO) accession negotiations between China and the United States reached a deadlock many times and had a great deal to do with the fact that both sides communicated from two very different traditions and legal systems.
Mr. Lu Shengzu: Rigorous work ethic and dedication
The older adults who participated in the editing and reviewing of the English-Chinese Anglo-American Law Dictionary poured themselves into their workload with a highly rigorous academic attitude. One example was cited by Xue Bo: “Just to review one dictionary entry, United States of America Law, Mr. Lu Shengzu wrote more than 2,000 words and a six-page note. As a result, the nearly 90-year-old man suffered from cerebral spasm and was admitted to hospital.”
Mr. Zhou Nan’s hands shook so much that he could no longer write clearly. He commissioned his wife, who was in her 80s and had a bachelor’s degree in economics since the 1930s, to transcribe the corrected manuscripts individually. To revise an entry, Mr. Lu Jun invited another old gentleman to his home to discuss legal topics, and in front of Xue Bo, the two older men got into a heated debate.
Mr. Wang Yuhua’s eyesight deteriorated by then, and he has to use natural light to read the manuscript. He did not have a balcony at home, so every time he read the manuscript, he had to go to his daughter’s house some kilometers away. Mr. Pan Handian was still reviewing manuscripts with a urine bag hanging on 48 hours before his operation.
What made these significantly older adults devote themselves to this cause? For the vast majority of them, whether the dictionary got published or not, the work was already behind them, even if it may or may not get published later. They were happy to help regardless. Mr. Pan Handian told reporters: “No matter what, I should do it. As a professor of comparative law, if there is a need for such a thing in China, of course, I want to do it,”
When Mr. Pan’s mother died in the War of Resistance against the Japanese Aggression, she left him two messages: “You must be a Chinese who is beneficial to society, righteous and upright, and worthy of your parents.” Mr. Pan is committed to introducing contemporary foreign jurisprudence and devoting himself to the work of Anglo-American law dictionaries.
Almost no one asked for an attribution
Xue Bo repeatedly mentioned to reporters the scene of the first meeting of the older adults in Shanghai. In 1997, more than a dozen older adults from Soochow gathered in the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences conference room on Huaihai Road. Shanghai was already very hot in May; the conference room was not air-conditioned and stuffy, but the older adults had a lively discussion.
After the meeting, Xue Bo wanted to find a better restaurant, but the older adults disagreed. “It’s very good, it’s very good,” everyone said so, and finally, they entered a fast food restaurant and got a boxed lunch for 10 yuan per person. The older adults enjoyed the food very much.
Almost no one asked for attribution, although they all knew that publishing the dictionary would be an event that would go down in history. When Mr. Pan Handian and Xue Bo visited Mr. Lu Jun, Mr. Lu held the two of them by the hand and told them many times not to leave his name behind for what he did when he was younger. Also, Mr. Lu even donated 600 Yuan (US$84.30), which was supposed to be his fee for this work, to the editorial department.
They carry the motto of Soochow University: “Nourish the spirit of universal truth; Emulate the perfect man of the ages.”
A rich spiritual legacy
During the past 30 years of being controlled and exiled, virtually every one of the elderly contributors has been deeply hurt in their hearts. In addition to their precious time lost, the worst injustice was the deprivation to society of their talent and wisdom. Scholars make a career out of learning, teaching, and publishing, yet they have been forced to stop their studies, research, and contributing their wisdom for nearly 30 years.
The dedication of these “old” people sang a new hymn to life. “They are human beings, living beings who need honor, dignity, and recognition.” Xue Bo said that these elders work hard in response to the call of their hearts.
After Mr. Lu Jun’s death, at the funeral, his daughter repeatedly thanked Xue Bo: “Thank you; the value of my father’s life has been recognized through you!”
Xue Bo has visited Mr. Cai Jin in the nursing home many times: “Every time I go to see him, he is pleased, a childlike smile appears on his face, he keeps trying to speak, he looks at my eyes, and tells me without a doubt that he hopes to contribute to society what he has learned, and is happy that his existence is valuable to others.”
In the aftermath of the hostile years of the Cultural Revolution, almost no one paid attention to this older man. Xue Bo once saw a photo of him in a suit and leather shoes; he used to be a handsome young man. Who would have thought that his later life would be so miserable?
Timeless legacy
The cruel fate of this group of elderly academics is ample evidence that keeps us ever vigilant for our innate rights and freedoms, neglects our responsibilities, and the entire society pays a heavy price. Communism, by its treacherous nature, has a very brief shelf-life. England’s most significant contribution to our planet is possibly the Common Law.
It has survived the thick and thin of a turbulent millennium. It enshrines the timeless freedom of the individual, the ownership of property, the pursuit of happiness, tolerance of each other, and recognition of the Divine Creator.
See Part 1 here
Translated by Chua BC
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