UK remembers Chinese Labor Corps first time in history

A remembrance ceremony was held Saturday in London to honor the Chinese Labor Corps who came to Britain’s assistance during World War I.

At the Cenotaph war memorial on Whitehall, people laid wreaths to pay tribute to the thousands of Chinese workers who were believed to have died during the war a century ago.

This is the first time that the Chinese workers, who were recruited by the British and French armies, have been officially remembered by the United Kingdom.

Up to 140,000 Chinese workers served on the Western Front throughout WWI to support the British and French troops, among whom some 96,000 were recruited by the British government to undertake a wide range of essential logistic tasks, such as digging trenches, building roads and bridges, constructing fortifications, transporting supplies and maintaining tanks.

Nearly 20,000 workers of the Chinese Labor Corps died in the WWI. However, the contribution made by the Chinese Labor Corps was barely recognized at the end of the war, and has almost been obliterated since. There is no tribute to them among Britain's 40,000 war memorials.

In August 2014, several Chinese organizations in the UK launched a campaign called “Ensuring We Remember” for a permanent memorial to be built to remember the Chinese Labor Corps for all the work they did behind the lines on the Western Front.

The campaign has been backed by the Chinese embassy and the Chinese nationals in the UK.

In addition to Saturday's official ceremony, schools across the UK also organized various activities to remember the sacrifices made by the Chinese workers.

(CGTN)