Yun-lun CHEUNG [c.1915-c.2010]

Cheung Yan-lun (Age 95 when interviewed at Fanling circa 2008)

Information:

§  Cheung Yan-lun worked for the British Military Mission (BMM) in China during the War. 

• Initially he came under the BAAG in Wai Chow, and was later despatched to BAAG Kweilin HQ; there, hundreds of other former enlisted members of the British Forces in Hong Kong awaited orders and opportunities.
• He volunteered to join the BMM and was posted to various places, including Yunnan, eventually to Chejiang and Fujian to run demolition & small arm training for the Nationalist Military units.
• The BMM was attached to the Nationalist Chinese Military Units.
• He owed his appointment to his ability to speak both English & Mandarin; he was able to speak Mandarin because it was taught at Wah Yan College where he attended school for several years;
• He was despatched to set up BMM training courses for the Chinese Nationalist Military Units in demolitions & use of small arms.
• He was taken across Free China from Guangxi, through Guangdong to Chejiang and Fujian;
• Towards the end of the War, his unit was cut off by the Japanese push forward (ICHIGO Operation); communication with Kweilin and Chungking by plane only.
• Later he was transferred to Shaanxi to set up another training camp; but the War ended abruptly in August 1945.
• Prior to the Japanese occupation of HK, Cheung joined the Royal Artillery (RA) and was at one time made a temporary Sergeant to run training courses for the Chinese members of the British Forces.  He owed part of this ability to command and train others to his brief experience as a teacher at Wah Yan.
• When the Japanese attacked Hong Kong in Dec 1941, he was posted to Stanley Fort which he helped to build earlier; after Stanley was overrun, he hid in Stanley Village for about a week before making his way home.
• At Sai Ying Pun, he joined around 300 people from Kau Yan Church to return to China; it was the Japanese policy to reduce the population of Hong Kong then.
•   They crossed the harbour at Western in a ferry boat and landed at Shamshuipoo, each carrying lots of belongings & food.  There, they started walking north to his home county at Ng Wah (Wuhua in Eastern Guangdong) which took over a week.

•  While at Ng Wah (Dai Po Ping 大布坪,his home village, about 50km from Tsim Hang), Ng Wah, Cheung initially taught English at school for awhile.  He heard that the BAAG at Wai Chow was distributing back-pay to ex-servicemen & civil servants, as well as referring work to them; he therefore made his way to Wai Chow and enrolled with the BAAG.  He was eventually posted to await orders at its HQ at Kweilin.

• While at Kweilin, there were several hundreds ex-servicemen from Hong Kong living in houseboats; they did not have much to do; took some drills and generally await opportunities.
• Officers of the BMM came from Chungking to recruit and he volunteered to join them, leaving the BAAG; knowing both English & Mandarin was an advantage; he was involved with forming training camps for the Chinese Nationalist Military most of the time.
• After the War, he returned to Hong Kong and rejoined HQ Land Forces as a civilian.
• He was initially posted to Happy Valley, then Argyle Street Camp No. 3, then Lo Wu Camp, which prompted him to find a place at On Lok Tsuen which was adjacent to Shung Him Tong Village where many of his relatives were living.
• Later, he joined J.D. Hutchison & Co Ltd in Hong Kong as an accountant; the company was owned by Col. J.D. Clague, formerly of the BAAG.
• He participated in the HK Defence Force (The Volunteers) in their intelligence section.  

He passed away circa 2010 in Fanling at the age of 97.

His elder brother Cheung Yun-shung was believed to be a member of the BAAG at HQ also.