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Return to China or "Return to Taiwan": The Chinese POWs Who Derailed the Korean War Peace Talks

David Cheng Chang, postdoctoral fellow at the Center for East Asian Studies at Stanford University will give a presentation based on his recent work entitled Return to China or “Return to Taiwan”: The Chinese POWs Who Derailed the Korean War Peace Talks.

Date & Time

Thursday
Mar. 22, 2012
4:00pm – 5:30pm ET

Location

5th Floor, Woodrow Wilson Center
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Overview

David Cheng Chang, postdoctoral fellow at the Center for East Asian Studies at Stanford University will give a presentation based on his recent work entitled Return to China or “Return to Taiwan”: The Chinese POWs Who Derailed the Korean War Peace Talks.

At the end of the Korean War, only one third of the approximately 21,000 Chinese prisoners of war were repatriated to Communist China; the remaining two thirds, or more than 14,300 prisoners, went to Nationalist Taiwan which represented a significant propaganda coup.

These Chinese POWs were a source of contention in the second half of the war. Utilizing previously untapped archival sources and oral history interviews in the U.S., Taiwan, and China, this study examines who these prisoners of war were, why and how they, individually and collectively, made divergent decisions in the contentious process of “voluntary repatriation.” 

Situated at the intersection of macro geopolitical powers and micro prison camp struggles, caught in the crossfire of ideological battles, frustrated and aided by contingency, Cheng Chang asserts that these POWs nevertheless took actions that derailed the peace talks, and consequently changed history.

Joining Cheng Chang on the panel is James Zheng Gao, associate professor at the University of Maryland.

Wilson Center Fellow Yafeng Xia will chair the event.

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Cold War International History Project

The Cold War International History Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on all sides of the Cold War. Through an award winning Digital Archive, the Project allows scholars, journalists, students, and the interested public to reassess the Cold War and its many contemporary legacies. It is part of the Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program.  Read more

History and Public Policy Program

The History and Public Policy Program makes public the primary source record of 20th and 21st century international history from repositories around the world, facilitates scholarship based on those records, and uses these materials to provide context for classroom, public, and policy debates on global affairs.  Read more

North Korea International Documentation Project

The North Korea International Documentation Project serves as an informational clearinghouse on North Korea for the scholarly and policymaking communities, disseminating documents on the DPRK from its former communist allies that provide valuable insight into the actions and nature of the North Korean state. It is part of the Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program.  Read more

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