The China Convoy: Pacifist idealism in China at war
The FAU, while adjusting to the realities of China, soon found its perceptions of morality were not wholly in tune with the culture of those to whose aid it had come. David Brough describes how they sought to keep their idealism and integrity intact.
Few of the FAU (Friends Ambulance Unit) members who volunteered for service in China fully appreciated the situation into which they were projecting themselves. China had not yet joined the Allies, but its sufferings since the Japanese invasion in 1937 had been widely reported in Britain.
For the overwhelmingly British FAU, this was not ‘their war.’ So, it seemed an opportunity to provide service to their fellow man without prejudice or judgement of those in need of relief. In this spirit, the Unit initially considered offering to provide ambulance services in Japanese-occupied areas, but quickly realised this would not be countenanced by their sponsors or by the British government.
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