Robert Jacquinot de Besange

Robert de Besange (Jacquinot de Besange) (born March 15, 1878 in Saintes, France, died 1946 in Berlin, Germany ) was a French Jesuit who set up a successful model of safety zones that saved over half a million Chinese people during World War II.[1][2]

The model includes the Shanghai Safety Zone, or "Jacquinot de Besange Safe Zone", the Nanjing Safe Zone (simplified Chinese: 南京安全区; traditional Chinese: 南京安全區; pinyin: Nánjīng Anquán Qǖ), the Hankou Safe Zone, the Zhangzhou Safe Zone and the Shenzhen Safe Zone. These Safe Zones (pinyin: Anquán Qǖ) were demilitarized zones for Chinese civilians. Following the example of de Besange in Shanghai, the foreigners in Nanking created the Nanking Safety Zone, managed by the International Committee for the Nanjing Safety Zone, led by German businessman John Rabe.

Jacquinot de Besange's family originates from Lorraine, Northeastern France.

His work is acknowledged in the Protocols and Commentaries to the 1949 Geneva Convention.[3] A film of his life an work, Jacquinot: A Forgotten Hero directed by Krzysztof Zanussi, was featured in the 2009 Shanghai International Film Festival.[4]

References

  1. ^ Marcia R. Ristaino (14 February 2008). The Jacquinot Safe Zone: wartime refugees in Shanghai. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804757935. http://books.google.com/books?id=MbeT3r-bAfUC&pg=PA4. Retrieved 24 December 2010. 
  2. ^ "WAR IN CHINA: Safety Zones". TIME. 7 November 1938. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,788850,00.html. Retrieved 2010-12-25. 
  3. ^ "Robert Jacquinot de Besange, S.J.". Theology as a Process. 5 September 2008. http://jacqueshaers.wordpress.com/2008/09/05/robert-jacquinot-de-besange-sj/. Retrieved 2010-12-24. 
  4. ^ "Jaquinot: A Forgotten Hero (USA)". Shanghai International Film Festival. 17 May 2009. http://www.siff.com/PortalIPS/Library/User/zhud/Co-FPC英文/103JACQUINOT%20A%20FORGOTTEN%20HERO-Krzysztof%20Zanussi（英文）.pdf. Retrieved 2010-12-24.