Remembering history is not just about looking back, but also about helping people look for new ways to achieve lasting peace, according to a museum curator.

The comments came from Zhu Chengshan, curator of the memorial hall dedicated to remembering the Nanjing Massacre, at a peace forum held in Nanjing yesterday.

Present at the forum were over 120 experts and scholars on peace studies from nine countries and regions, including China, the United States, Israel, the Republic of Korea, Japan, the Philippines and Hong Kong.

The 20th century left people with unforgettable memories of two world wars and many regional conflicts in which millions of people lost their lives.

In the Nanjing Massacre, perpetrated by Japanese invaders in 1937, more than 300,000 people were killed.

"This is an undeniable historical fact. But what we strive for is to join hands to prevent such tragedies happening again," said Zhu.

He added that historical facts were sometimes ignored.

"I am writing down what I have discovered about that incident to let Japanese people know we did something wrong to Chinese people and should not deny the facts," said Honda Katsuichi, a former reporter with the Asahi Shimbun newspaper.

He wrote several books revealing Japanese atrocities in Nanjing after collecting evidence in the city itself and Japan.

Satoshi Daito, a researcher of the Nanjing Massacre, has been to the city more than 20 times.

He used every means possible to collect evidence in Japan, such as news reports around the time of the massacre and books. He donated all he collected to the memorial hall in Nanjing.

At the forum, participants presented their ideas and suggestions on peace studies based on their years of research.

Bitter war experiences, especially in World War II, have stimulated people's desire for peace studies.

It is not just an endeavour by individuals, an academic discipline has been set up to conduct professional research and studies.

Figures show that 36 universities in the United States offer courses on peace studies, and courses are also starting up in China and other countries, such as the United Kingdom.

Though China lagged behind in the past due to various reasons, it is catching up, and more scholars are concentrating their academic work on peace studies.

A number of organizations have also been established for the purpose, such as the Nanjing Research Institute for International Peace, the Research Association for the History of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders and the International Peace Institute of the Nanjing Academy of Sciences.

We give lectures on the Nanjing Massacre to university students and local residents with the aim of arousing the young generation's awareness of peace, said Zhu, who is also the head of the Nanjing Research Institute for International Peace.

Source: China Daily