Chongqing Zhazidong | Witness to the Spirit of Hongyan

Zhazidong is located at the foot of Gele Mountain in Chongqing. It was originally a small coal mine, named for the poor quality of coal it produced, which contained more slag than coal. Surrounded by mountains on three sides and a valley on the other, it is a hidden and dangerous place. In 1943, it was occupied by Kuomintang agents and transformed into a detention center for political prisoners. The detention center was divided into an inner and outer courtyard. The inner courtyard had a yard for prisoners to exercise, 16 cells for male prisoners, and 2 cells for female prisoners. The outer courtyard was used as an office and interrogation room for the agents. Zhazidong was used by the Kuomintang to imprison communists and progressives, and together with the Baigongguan, it became part of the Sino-American Cooperative Organization. Zhazidong and Baigongguan were two prisons used by the Kuomintang to imprison communists and progressives before the liberation of China. The area is home to a monument and cemetery for martyrs, as well as Zhazidong, Baigongguan, Meiyuan, Yangjiashan, and Buyun Bridge, covering an area of more than 20 square miles. Many revolutionary martyrs, such as Jiang Zhuyun (Sister Jiang), Xu Jianye, and Yu Zusheng, were imprisoned here, with more than 300 prisoners at its peak. Zhazidong witnessed the brutal persecution of revolutionaries by the Kuomintang, especially on November 27, 1949, when the Kuomintang massacred more than 300 revolutionaries imprisoned here on the eve of their retreat, with only 15 survivors. The novel "Red Crag" is based on these events. The exhibition in Zhazidong is more detailed, with the life stories of more than 200 martyrs who died in the detention center being re-examined and displayed for the first time. In 1963, the Zhazidong Detention Center was restored and opened to the public. In 1988, it became a national key cultural relic protection unit. In August 2020, the protection and restoration project of the Zhazidong site in Chongqing was launched. On February 5, 2021, after nearly six months of closed protection and restoration, and a new exhibition, Zhazidong was reopened to the public. Zhazidong is not only a witness to history but also a symbol of the spirit of Hongyan, demonstrating the firm belief and indomitable fighting spirit of the Chinese communists and revolutionaries.