Japan/China: Human Guinea Pigs
7 & 8 minutes, 2004
Ref: 295

They were injected with cholera, typhoid and the plague – they were the Chinese prisoners of the Japanese during World War 2. With news headlines still dominated by the alleged existence of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction, we have an horrific story of the experimental use of biological weapons on humans during World War 2 by Japan. Unit 731, based in the northern Chinese City of Harbin, was the notorious germ warfare section of the Japanese Army. A Tokyo court recently acknowledged for the first time Japan's use of biological weapons in World War 2. The admission came during a compensation appeal by 180 Chinese who say they were victims of the project. We spoke with some of the victims and a scientist who was a member of Unit 731. It’s a part of Japanese history that few Japanese know anything about. We reveal the hidden secrets of Japan’s germ warfare in 2 reports.