Canada's Chinese Connection
Penelope Johnston describes China's revered North American hero
Although Dr Norman Bethune only spent one-and-a-half years in China every major delegation from that country wants to see two things when they visit Canada: Niagara Falls and Bethune's birthplace in Gravenhurst, a small Ontario town, 100 miles north of Toronto.
Ironically in their own country, many have not visited his grave site in the Cemetery of the Martyrs in Northern China, but they come to Canada to see where he was born, to write their names in the visitor's book and to exchange gifts.
'Everyone knows about Bethune. He is very popular in China. We first learn about him in primary school. There are many statues and museums throughout China commemorating him', explained Professor Xin Shang Zheng, head of Academic Affairs, Shenyang Institute of Gold Technology, and Director of the Gold Society of China.
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