THE SECRET BETRAYAL

Chinese seamen played an integral role during both World Wars, putting their lives at risk crossing the Atlantic to support the British war effort. Over 2,000 Chinese seamen made Liverpool their home during these periods, settling in an area close to the port now known as China Town, forming relationships with local women and raising families. However, rather than being celebrated for their vital role in the Battle of the Atlantic, many were cast out by the country they had risked their lives for. Ripped from their families and friends, they were rounded up by local police and forcibly repatriated in a secret government programme, without the knowledge of their loved ones and leaving no trace. Their wives and children spent decades not knowing what had happened, many believed that they had been abandoned and left destitute. Some died never knowing the truth. The deportations were shrouded in secrecy until the 1990s declassification of Home Office files titled ‘Compulsory repatriation of undesirable Chinese seamen’ lit a spark among their Liverpool-born descendants. They began to join the dots of their family history, seek answers, and to fight for justice. After years of tireless campaigning by the children of these Chinese seafarers the truth has finally come to light. When I brought the campaign to Parliament in a debate two years ago, I secured a Home Office investigation by the then- immigration minister who promised to ‘leave no stone unturned’. The resulting report paints a grim picture. Using Home Office documents, marriage records and archive material, it details dark dealings between British intelligence under the post-war Labour government, the Liverpool constabulary, and the shipping companies conspiring to forcibly repatriate – what they termed – ‘undesirables’. On their orders, hundreds of Chinese seamen were quite literally plucked from the streets at night and coerced onto ships docked in the Mersey bound for Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore, never to set foot on these shores again. During the war, Chinese seamen were among the most highly exploited on British ships, particularly the Blue Funnel line. They occupied the more onerous and dangerous jobs, confined below decks for long stretches. Chinese and Lascar merchant seamen received lower wages than their British counterparts. At the time of the outbreak of hostilities in 1939, rates of pay varied between a quarter and a half of the British seamen. This differentiation enabled the major shipping companies to suppress wages and undercut conditions for British workers, thereby amplifying their profits. These conditions continued unabated for the first years of the war despite disputes and strike action on the part of both Lascars and Chinese seamen. They eventually won a settlement in early 1942 that raised wages as well as an entitlement to the War Risk bonus that had previously only been paid to UK seamen or had been paid at a much lower rate. After the war, the report notes that other foreign nationals were also not given leave to remain in Britain despite their service. However, the evidence shows that the Chinese seamen were specifically targeted for RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: september 2023 :: RMTnews 20 CAMPAIGNING: Kim Johnson, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, has supported the campaign for justice for families of deported Chinese seafarers THE SECRET BETRAYAL Kim Johnson MP calls for justice for the families of Chinese seamen forcibly deported after the war against fascism