Nanjing Massacre added to Memory of World register

Documents related to the Nanjing Massacre have been listed in Unesco's Memory of the World Register.

Eleven sets of files which show the atrocities of Japanese troops in China were inscribed on Friday, including film, photographs and text taken and written between 1937 and 1948, Xinhua news agency reported.

Lasting over six weeks, from December 13, 1937 till January 1938, the Nanjing Massacre saw 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers being killed after the city fell to the Japanese.

"China will ensure these valuable documents are protected and circulated, and play a positive role in remembering history, cherishing peace, looking into the future and safeguarding human dignity," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said.

The inscription was met with criticism by Japan, with Tokyo's foreign ministry questioning the authenticity of the documents, calling on Unesco to be neutral, fair and for changes to be made to the process.

"Nanjing Massacre is a severe crime committed by Japanese and is a historical fact recognised by the international community," Hua said, rejecting Japan's protest.

She said the files meet the evaluation criteria of Memory of the World register, especially for authenticity and completeness, and the submission complied with Unesco rules.

"Facts should not be denied and history not re-written," Hua said.