China steps up efforts in finding martyrs' relatives

BEIJING, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- China's veteran affairs departments have so far successfully found the relatives of 6,350 martyrs, according to authorities.

This is the result of China's renewed efforts in locating the remains or burial sites of martyrs and finding their relatives, said the Ministry of Veteran affairs.

To locate martyrs and find their relatives efficiently, the ministry is furthering cooperations with governmental departments in charge of household registration, data and information, as well as historical research institutes, in order to cross-check relevant materials.

When identifying newly-found remains of martyrs and matching them with relatives, technologies such as DNA comparison and big data also come into play, according to the ministry.

In April 2021, the ministry launched an online platform to facilitate the search of martyrs' whereabouts. As of September, more than 14,000 search applications from martyrs' relatives were submitted.

Martyrs, as defined by the Chinese government, are those who sacrificed their lives for national independence and prosperity, as well as the welfare of the people in modern times, or after the First Opium War (1840-1842).

Of all those who are qualified as martyrs, 1.96 million had their names documented by the government. However, the whereabouts of only 559,000 of them are currently known.