The government of Nanjing, Jiangsu province, wants to include the history of the Nanjing massacre in the Memory of the World Programme.

A panel has been formed to carry out the application, according to the local government.

Five groups of valuable archives have been chosen for the application, including photos, cinefilm and paper material. They were declared China's Archives and Documentary Heritage in 2011.

The Memorial Hall of the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Invaders, the Second Historical Archives of China and the Nanjing Archives Bureau will prepare the application.

Zhu Chengshan, director of the memorial hall, said that UNESCO officials visiting the hall in 2008 suggested he apply for the program.

UNESCO's Memory of the World Programme, established in 1992, is an international initiative to preserve valuable documentary heritage worldwide.

The Nanjing Massacre took place in December 1937 when more than 300,000 men, women and children were slaughtered as Japanese troops invaded Nanjing, then the capital of China.