In the process of human development, war is an inevitable phenomenon, in this war, people have experienced too many tribulations, experienced too many tribulations, gave birth to too many heroes, too many legends. On the battlefield, either dead or crippled, but reduced to captivity. "Prisoners" are soldiers and civilians captured by enemy forces, and their fate and values vary depending on history and culture.
In ancient times, prisoners were often treated as part of war, deprived of their personal freedom and dignity, and lived or died according to the will of the captor. Usually, in ancient times, prisoners were divided into different ranks. As for men, if there are elderly and weak women and children, or if they may become their confidants, they are usually summarily executed as an example. Young adults are forced to do manual work, such as building the Great Wall, digging rivers, building mausoleums, etc., which are the most dangerous and arduous jobs. They survive in extremely difficult conditions, with famine and disease being the most common causes of death. And the female prisoners are even more miserable, they are divided into two categories, the beautiful ones are captured as slaves or concubines, they are subjected to the best, and the ugly ones are abandoned or killed, and there is no humanity at all. Similar to Egypt, ancient Babylon, Rome, China, and many other ancient civilizations, similar torture has occurred.
Since modern times, due to the development of human society and the establishment of international law, the identity and rights and interests of prisoners have been improved to varying degrees, and they have changed from simple "plunder" to "victims", and have received due "humanitarian" treatment and protection. During World War II, countries signed the Geneva Conventions, which enshrined prisoners in the right to be free from violence, coercion, forced labour, free from food, medicine, discrimination or stigmatization, and religious belief. Prisoners also have the right to liaise with their families and the International Committee of the Red Cross, and to be released or exchanged after the war. But not everyone can completely obey, and some are still brutally killing prisoners, such as Japan's treatment of China, Southeast Asia, Germany's treatment of the Soviet Union, the Soviet Union's treatment of Japan, and so on. Their suffering is a scar that can never be erased. In contemporary warfare, the position of a captive is as much a matter of rights and personality as it is of political and military roles.
For example, during the two world wars of Korea and Vietnam, both the United States and the Communist Party educated and transformed the captives to change their views and concepts in order to achieve their political goals. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression in China, some Japanese prisoners eventually joined the Communist Party of China and became excellent anti-Japanese soldiers because of the good political treatment and good education they received. For example, during the Chinese Liberation War, the People's Liberation Army (PLA) attracted a large number of prisoners to join the army and strengthened the strength of the army through ideological transformation. In some regional contradictions and terrorist activities, captives can also become bargaining and trading weights, such as the Middle East, Africa and other places, some *** and rebels, will take some ** personnel, foreigners as prisoners, in exchange for hostages, or in exchange for ransom and supplies.
In a word, as a product of war, the fate and values of the captives will change depending on the environment and different cultural backgrounds, they are not only a victim, but also a combatant, they are not only a fighting person, but also an influential figure, and their deeds have become a thought-provoking history.