Mainland and SAR scholars have hailed a newly renovated museum in Huizhou, Guangdong province that commemorates the history of the East River Column during Japan's invasion of China, saying it will help enhance the sense of national identity among youth.

To mark the 80th anniversary of victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, the memorial hall of the East River, or Dongjiang, Column – a unit of anti-Japanese communist guerrillas that operated in Guangdong and Hong Kong – launched its revamped exhibitions this year following months of renovations.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with RTHK, Ye Quan, director of research and planning at the memorial hall, said the exhibitions allow visitors to learn more about the histories of the guerrillas through the use of multi-media tools.

"By utilising settings such as multi-media interactions, restorations of [war] scenes, theatres, coupled with the unique immersive experiences, we're enabling visitors to feel as if they are in the historical scenes as they can hear, touch and feel," he said.

Zhang Qiulan, head of the hall's publicity team, said a major secret rescue mission by the guerrilla force from 1942 – after Japan began its occupation of Hong Kong – led 800 patriots and leading cultural figures from Hong Kong to the mainland, which helped protect Chinese cultural heritage.

"[By learning about the history of East River Column], it could enable Hong Kong's youth to have deeper understanding about the close ties between the SAR and the mainland, while enhancing their sense of national identity and national pride," she told RTHK.

SAR lawmaker and history professor Lau Chi-pang, a non-official member of the SAR's working group on patriotic education, said that while holding such commemorative events are among key tasks for the group this year, the events should not provoke anti-Japanese sentiments.

"When it comes to the Sino-Japanese war, it's truly filled with family and national hatred. We shall not exaggerate the wars, but instead focus on the patriotic and heroic sacrifice of soldiers who participated in the war, which [to me] is the most profound learning experience," he told RTHK.

Since its launch in 2003, the memorial hall has received an average of around 500,000 visitors each year, mainly from Guangdong and neighbouring regions.