Statue installed in Paris to commemorate WWI Chinese workers

PARIS - A bronze statue was installed on Thursday in front of Gare de Lyon, one of the largest railway stations in Paris, to commemorate Chinese workers in the First World War.

The statue, with a height of more than two meters, presents the image of an ordinary farmer of the origin of China's Shandong Province, from where many Chinese workers in WWI came.

"This statue embodies a Sino-French common memory," said Zhai Jun, the Chinese ambassador to France, while addressing the ceremony. "I hope it will establish a stronger link between the French and the Chinese who live thousands of miles from here."

Catherine Baratti-Elbaz, mayor of the 12th arrondissement of Paris, told Xinhua: "I am convinced that what we are doing today, to express memories for the Chinese workers of the First World War, will contribute to peace for today and tomorrow."

Between 1916 and 1918, some 140,000 Chinese workers had arrived in Europe to provide logistical services to the Allied forces, of which about 20,000 had lost their lives during the war. After being forgotten by the West for a long time, the contribution made the Chinese laborers is recalled more and more now.