The Guardian described the documentary about the sinking of the Lisbon Maru as "an enthralling Chinese documentary" that "excavates the emotional wreckage on all sides."
by Xinhua writers Wu Liming, Zheng Bofei
LONDON, May 27 (Xinhua) -- As 2025 marks the 80th anniversary of both the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, a little-known wartime episode featuring the solidarity between Chinese and British people is returning to public attention -- through a memorial, a documentary, and renewed calls for remembrance.
Eighty-three years ago, a Japanese cargo ship transporting British prisoners of war (POWs) was sunk off the coast of Zhejiang Province in eastern China. More than 800 lives were lost, but local Chinese fishermen rescued 384 POWs -- an extraordinary act of humanity that remains a powerful link between China and Britain.
While Britain's official commemorations for Victory over Japan Day (VJ Day) are due in August, a solemn memorial was held on May 20 on Qingbang Island in Dongji town, Zhejiang Province. There, a 2-meter-tall stone memorial was unveiled to honor the fishermen who risked their lives to save the stranded POWs. Eighteen descendants of the rescued soldiers traveled from Britain to attend the event.
In Zhejiang, Anthony Jones, grandson of survivor Thomas Theodore Jones and chairman of the Lisbon Maru Memorial Association, described the memorial as "a bridge" linking past and present, China and Britain, sorrow and solidarity.
On the same day, "The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru," the documentary depicting the tragic journey of the Lisbon Maru, which was mistakenly torpedoed by a U.S. submarine, and the courageous rescue that followed, premiered in British cinemas.
A few days later, on May 23, the 2025 China Film Festival opened in London with the screening of that same documentary. Nearly 200 guests attended, including relatives of survivors.
The film, eight years in the making, features rare testimony from survivors and their families, as well as interviews with historians and archival footage. Through detailed research and storytelling, it brings new attention to a largely forgotten wartime episode. According to the documentary, Dongji fishermen set out in humble vessels to save unfamiliar foreign soldiers stranded at sea. Though they spoke different languages, they used gestures to help understand each other. Local fishermen shared food and medicines with the survivors, disregarding their own lack of necessities.
At the film festival's opening ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to the United Kingdom Zheng Zeguang emphasized that the wartime cooperation between the Chinese and British peoples reflected the shared sacrifices made in the fight against fascist aggression. The fishermen's selfless actions, he said, stand as a powerful testament to the friendship forged during the war.
British documentary filmmaker Julian Alcantara, whose uncle Joseph Viotto died on the Lisbon Maru, also attended the event. "We only knew he died on a sunken ship, but nothing more," he said. "This documentary gave us our first opportunity to understand what really happened to him and the others. It fills a huge gap in our understanding."
British media echoed the film's emotional resonance. The Times praised it as "an eccentric and pretty remarkable film" that "makes a powerful argument for the value of stories that challenge our crude political and cultural affiliations." The Guardian described it as "an enthralling Chinese documentary" that "excavates the emotional wreckage on all sides."
On May 15, British Member of Parliament Kirsten Oswald referenced the Lisbon Maru incident in the House of Commons, highlighting the upcoming memorial ceremony in Zhejiang and calling for an official government statement. Leader of the House Lucy Powell responded that the tragedy "deserves to be remembered."
During the memorial ceremony in Zhejiang, the 18 British descendants met with relatives of the fishermen who had saved their forebears. Wu Buwei, grandson of rescuer Wu Qisheng, said: "As their descendants, we take immense pride in their legacy." ■
