SHANGHAI, CHINA – JUNE 17, 1946 Public execution by firing squad of two Japanese soldiers, Yonemura Haruchi and Shimoto Jiro, took place in Shanghai, China. A Chinese military tribunal sentenced them for crimes committed during the Japanese occupation of China.
Yonemura Haruchi & Shimoto Jiro
Japanese aggression against China began in the 1930s and escalated into a full-scale war in 1937. The Japanese army occupied vast territories and committed massacres of civilians, torture, rape, and other war crimes. Among the best-known events was the Nanjing Massacre in 1937-1938, during which Japanese soldiers murdered tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of people.
According to historical records, Yonemura Haruchi was found guilty of burying Chinese victims alive. Shimoto Jiro was sentenced for torture, rape, and looting. Both men received the death penalty.
Before the execution, they were transported through the streets of Shanghai in an open military vehicle, with large crowds watching their procession. According to a contemporary estimate by the British consul general, approximately 150,000 people may have witnessed the event. They were subsequently shot at the Kiangwan Execution Ground.
