U.S. Foreign Service Officer headed to Wuhan, China

The mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad. The work that diplomats do has an impact on the world as they serve at one of any of the more than 270 embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions in The Americas, Africa, Europe and Eurasia, East Asia and Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.

The duties of a Consular Officer include to provide emergency and non-emergency services to American citizens and protect our borders through the proper adjudication of visas to foreign nationals and passports to American citizens. We adjudicate immigrant and non-immigrant visas, facilitate adoptions, help evacuate Americans, combat fraud, and fight human trafficking. Consular Officers touch people’s lives in important ways, often reassuring families in crisis. They face many situations which require quick thinking under stress and develop and use a wide range of skills, from managing resources and conducting public outreach to assisting Americans in distress.

Japanese Germ Warfare Experimental Base (731)

One of the first places we visited in Harbin was a historical one - the Japanese Germ Warfare Experiment Base - 731 Division. Unit 731 was a secret biological and chemical warfare research and development unit of the Japanese Army that performed lethal human experimentation during the Japanese War (1937–1945) and World War II. It was responsible for some of the most notorious and horrible war crimes carried out by the Japanese. Unit 731 was initially set up to develop weapons of mass destruction for potential use against Chinese, and possibly Soviet during the forces (according to Wikipedia, my guidebook and the translations in the museum).

I had never heard of unit 731 before but the description I read in the guidebook made it seem like conditions were similar to those in concentration camps. Here, according to my Lonely Planet guidebook, "Chinese prisoners of war and civilians were frozen alive, subjected to vivisection or infected with bubonic plague, syphilis and other virulent diseases. Three to four thousand people died here in the most gruesome fashion including Russians, Koreans, Mongolians and, it is believed, a few American airmen."

There is only the main building that remains from the once very large unit. Much of it was destroyed by the Japanese when they left because they didn't want it to be discovered. Visiting the main building, now a museum, is free and contains photos, sculptures and exhibits of the equipment used by the Japanese. It had a lot of captions in English which was a huge plus. It was definitely eerie being able to walk through one of the actual buildings and see examples of some of the real things used. The museum made me want to read more about what happened at 731 and if it interests you too, check out the link here to the Wikipedia page for a brief introduction. I think the article will disgust and horrify you with what humans are able to do to other humans for power, money, fame and success in war.

Read More 2 comments | Posted by Sarah Sanderson

2 comments

Chen on January 19, 2010 at 11:18 PM

History always proves the truth.
Erica on January 23, 2010 at 10:04 PM

That article made me want to throw up. Somehow the torture museum in Amsterdam luckily didn't measure up.

Wanderlust

In Mandarin: 旅遊癮 (lǚyóu yǐn)

According to my Mandarin teacher, the term 'wanderlust' can best be translated as 'a travel addiction or craving'. In the above translation, 'yǐn' has several meanings such as 'a strong impulse', 'a longing', or 'a desire'.

U.S. Foreign Service Officer headed to Wuhan, China

Japanese Germ Warfare Experimental Base (731)

2 comments