Source:
https://scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2186874/honouring-wounded-pla-mine-sweeper-triggers-poignant-memories
China/ Diplomacy

Honouring of wounded PLA mine sweeper triggers poignant memories for Sino-Vietnamese war veterans

  • Du Fuguo lost his arms and eyes to an explosion during mine clearance operations along the China-Vietnam border
  • Nearly 40 PLA soldiers have been hurt since 2014 clearing mines in China’s southwest Yunnan province
Du Fuguo, who lost his hands and eyes when a bomb exploded during a mine sweeping operation, was honoured by the PLA for his sacrifice in January. Photo: Handout

For Sino-Vietnamese war veterans who dodged landmines decades ago, the honouring of a former PLA mine sweeper who lost his arms and eyes to an explosion during mine clearance operations along the China-Vietnam border was a poignant occasion.

Du Fuguo, 27, was removing camouflage from a hand grenade he had detected among a cluster of landmines in the vicinity of the conflict in October, when it detonated, costing him his eyes and hands.

The incident made Du – who was awarded a first-class honour by the People’s Liberation Army in November – one of the nearly 40 soldiers who have been hurt since 2014 in mine-clearing operations in southwest China’s Yunnan province.

On Monday, Du was furthered recognised in a television programme, Touching China, broadcast on CCTV, which paid tribute to the extraordinary bravery and achievements of Chinese people. He was joined on the show by his wife and father, and watched by a live audience of 1,000.

Among those viewing was another veteran of the 1979 border war between China and Vietnam, Guo Jixue.

“From the bottom of my heart, I really want to thank [Du] for his braveness,” the 55-year-old said.

“But his misfortune also reminded me that thousands of my comrades who were wounded in the war are struggling to live now and they have been denied their retirement benefits.”

Du Fuguo receives his first-class medal in hospital. Photo: Handout
Du Fuguo receives his first-class medal in hospital. Photo: Handout

An estimated 1.3 million landmines and explosives are believed to be buried deep in the mountains across the China-Vietnam border, deadly reminders of the war 40 years ago and the clashes that followed through the 1980s. The hostilities caused more than 7,000 PLA fatalities and thousands of injuries.

China’s 57 million war veterans are traditionally revered by state media. There have been reports, however, of retired military personnel staging protests and rallies to improve their treatment and win greater recognition for their sacrifices.

Du carries blasting cartridges to a mountain where thousands of mines lay buried. Photo: Handout
Du carries blasting cartridges to a mountain where thousands of mines lay buried. Photo: Handout

A retired senior colonel, who fought in a main border clash with Vietnamese troops in 1984, said the Chinese side relied on landmines to keep enemies from launching night-time sneak attacks.

“We laid landmines along hillsides,” the colonel, who requested anonymity, told the South China Morning Post, adding that the strategy continued for years.

“As soon as a unit arrived, they would start laying mines and putting down explosives … layer after layer, and the mines were soon spread everywhere, as they were washed away in heavy rains and buried in dirt.”

Macau-based military expert Anthony Wong Dong said cleaning up the mountains for the villagers who returned home after the war was problematic for the PLA because of sketchy landmine placement records.

“There were no records of the mines and the PLA did not know how many and what types of landmines were buried in those areas,” Wong said.

State broadcaster CCTV reported late last year that more than 1,000 people in Malipo county, where Du was hurt, had been killed in mine-related accidents since the war ended.

But on November 16, eight days before Du was honoured for his sacrifice, the PLA announced that all landmines in Malipo had been cleared.