My grandfather was a POW in Burma. He was captured in Singapore. He ended up a double amputee, one of only two to survive. I know he was operated on by an Australian surgeon. They had no anaesthetic, he was held down by 4 men, and told to bite down on a piece of bamboo. His life expectancy was 3 weeks. He passed away age 97, and still asked for the last post to be played. Still get emotional about it all, and he didn't tell us all that much.
My Father was a POW on the Burma-Siam railway... he was captured in Java and sent there.. he was part of the Australian Contingent. He didnt speak about it very much. He was an amazing human being. RIP old man
I as a teenager worked with a survivor of the Death Railway and his stomach was so shrunk that he could hardly eat anything! He didn't tell me it was is wife when I reamarked to her that he hardly ate, he wouldn't talk to anyone about it, except to say he still hated the Japanese!
My late Dad was forced to work on this 'Death Railway'. He was a survivor of the sinking of the USS Houston CA-30 on 03/01/1942 in the battle of Sunda Strait (as was William Holden's character in the 1957 epic movie- 'Bridge on the River Kwai'). The testimonials given in this piece are very, very important in their depiction of the true reality of what went on with the forced slave labor used to build this railway. A railway that was aiding the war effort of the enemy- the oppressors. Bravo to these brave British POW's in speaking the truth. Appreciate greatly the documenting and making available of this profound, important piece. My dad only ever wanted but a sincere apology from the Japanese for their treatment as he felt that and only that could begin the process of perhaps leading to 'forgiveness'. Obviously passing in 2006 he never received such an apology. The Japanese appearing in this piece albeit perhaps one, did little to nothing in contribution of that wish. I simply as a son ask everyone to consider all of this before possibly running out to buy a Toyota, Mitsubishi or Nissan automobile!
I under stand back in the day…. But what to the kids of the kids of the evil people have to do with evil people? What makes them evil too?? Don’t you think you should judge someone on who they are. Not what their great grand father did? And even then what if the great grandfather or grandfather wasn’t in the war… or didn’t do anything.. imagine not reaching the moon because of refusing to use German scientists … or ending the 2nd war by showing your nuclear power… or not eating pizza because Mussolini did horrible things and some Italians joined in to kill Americans… toxic levels of nationalism can hold a nation back and keep them close minded and suck in the past.. dangerous line. I understand you have trauma as well as your ancestors from war but why pass that to your kids so they can continue biases? There’s a better way That’s all I mean…
Even thousands of Tamil workers were also massacred in the construction of death railway.Please mention this too.Every person while documenting the Death Railway are not recording the plights faced by our Tamil community by Japanese in Siam
@@nixbronowski5822 But it was in vain . The world is still full of racism and oppression . What a waste of human lives . Like crime ,I'm afraid it will always be . We cannot stop hunger and poverty , how can we conquer anything else ?
@Desmond Griffith I do not watch anything to do with child abuse of any kind . I raised 3 children and never laid a hand on any of them . Yet they were well behaved and disciplined .
Yes we should tell the school kids. That the British empire is Nothing to be proud of.It was a Mass enslavement of foreign People who did not look like us. But who gave us a better Life style then the natives.
I had a dear friend of our family who was captured in Singapore and worked on this railway. George Williams was a wonderful man, husband and father. He would dress up as Santa and visit all his friends children on Christmas eve. With his trusty sidekick Red they would put a ladder up on the very snowy roofs and bang on them to simulate the sleigh much to our delight. They did this until they were in their 70's and their wives insisted they quit climbing ladders in the snow. George was also the local Scout leader for some 30 years. He would not talk about his time as a POW and I understand why but I really appreciate learning what he went through. George lived a good long life in Canada after the war and was loved by all. God bless all who serve and thank you for your sacrifice.
It's so revealing how the Japanese in this film have such a light-hearted view of what they did and tend to blame the prisoners for dying because the didn't 'behave' well! Even after so many years, they have no remorse or sympathy for their victims or crimes.
Especially that guy who smilingly says he’d like to say “thank you for working the rail”. Apology rather than gratitude seemed to be grossly overdue and yet...
Japanese cultural training dictates that they use smiling, laughing, "making light of things" when they are discussing deeply serious things about which they are deeply ashamed, or are deeply uncomfortable with. Especially if they are discussing them with strangers. This reduces the burden of the speaker or the listener to "save face" in a moment of shame or strong discomfort. Many people don't know that.
They want everybody to feel sorry for them and I'm sorry but I can't I lost family members during this I can't even watch a TV show about it it makes me so mad but they don't acknowledge anything but they did they expect us to
My dutch grandfather was POW who lost his life building this railway. He is buried in Thailand. His wife, my grandmother, did not know he had died until the day she was released along with my father and his siblings from a Japanese concentration camps in Indonesia. Her Japanese captors did not even have the decency to tell her that.
My great grandad was kidnapped and taken prisoner my dad tells me a story about how he stole bread of a girl to survive and the amount of torture he went through and sadly he has passed away but its crazy how he manged to survive
My Father was a pow and was 3.5 years working with his brother at the bridge over the river kwai, his brother who was killed by japanese soldiers, they chop his head coz he was so hungry stole rise and as an exsample for all and in front of my Father they be headed him, that was something my Father never forgive the japanese, when I was with my Father in Kuncanabury in 1969 he was so upset, there were some japanese walking around on that grave yard, at that time is was an open field with no buildings as it is nowedays and he run to them and started a fight, my uncle who was at that time a high militairy officer ordered his soldiers to dismiss those japanese, my Mother is from Thailand and meet my Father after he and his friends could freely walk around in town and so he fall in love. Never could my Father lie in his bed sleeping, always sits and needed a lamplight next to him. I'm very greatfull to see this documantairy🙏 Thank You.
My great grandfather (Dutch) was forced to work on that railroad he luckily managed to survive, I’m really sorry for your loss. And his wife and child were imprisoned in Indonesia.
I thought the Japanese side was very interesting hearing about their training a bit. Medics always deserve love I’m glad the pows at least got that much love, especially for those who passed because of the camps.
For those interested read the "War diaries of Weary Dunlop". Dr Dunlop was an Australian surgeon who voluntarily went into captvity on the Burma railway and kept an illegal diary during the period. It is published with minimal editing and is horrific reading.
I saw an interview many, many years ago with Sir Weary, maybe with Mike Walsh or someone, and was struck then by his grace. A true legend and a man amongst men.
@@martymethuselah USA does nothing but whine about Japan? Do you even know history? The US are the ones who ignored Japanese atrocities in exchange for their compliance in opposing the PRC and the USSR. Also, Korea was never a British colony in the first place. The Japanese "saved" Korea about as much as the Nazis "saved" Poland. Moreover, Koreans still haven't gotten their country back. The country is split in two, with the North being destroyed by sanctions, and the South being a US satellite state.
You are ^^^@David Peters; "Blessed to have Lived to such a fine regal age," tens of thousands never lived to see 52, 62, 10, 2, 14, 29 or whatever age, "It is written, to enjoy and live one's life to full potential as if it was their last day" Look after yourself, young fella ..
Every soldier in this film blamed others and denied torturing. They try to minimize the atrocities they were part of. The stain will last as long as history.
The truly worrying issue is that Japanese public concience is kept comfortably away from such deeds. It's their common understanding that atrocities happened to some degree, but regret regarding them is hardly part of their historical awareness.
It's been publicised that the last Japanese soldier surrendered in the 1970's after hiding out in the wildland of the Philippines, above Clark Air Force Base. Always wondered, did this Japanese patriot make it home ?
@@paulsuprono7225 There are reports about him. Apparently he never integrated well into Japanese society, after returning home. It was a number of years ago that I read about his story.
who knows, you don't know where these Japanese soldiers were stationed or in what capacity. They may indeed not have taken part of or even witnessed atrocities. Just like many German soldiers during the war didn't, and many Soviets.
I knew two men who became POWs after the fall of Singapore. One worked on the Burma railway, his experience effected him physically, and mentally the rest of his life. He had massive scars on his legs from jungle sore ulcers, and ultimately he took his own life. The other was my father-in-law. He was a Colonial Service doctor who had been seconded to the army as an interpreter in the last days of the defense. He spent the duration of his captivity in Changi prison, and lived into his 90s. Post war he took several years to recover. My wife, as a young child, two of her siblings, and her mother were evacuated by ship to Ceylon/Sri Lanka, and then from Ceylon to South Africa where they spent the remainder of the war.
So sad that the obvious effects of PTSD caused this man to suffer physically and so tortured mentally that despite survivg these horrors he ultimately took his own life.
@@jaymystery1425 Learning to admit when I'm wrong didn't come easy for me -- it wasn't modeled for me growing up. But learning to do so as an adult sure the heck improved my life.
They were citizens of a successful military dictatorship. An understanding of their history, as well as basic human nature, one understands some. I have met some survivors of the Pacific Theatre. I inherited some papers of an American couple whom resided in Baguio, P.I. They arrived home after a visit to California on Nov. 11, 1941. Everyone knew War was coming, and it was not a surprise. It was, in the end as a close fought thing, with Japan testing their nuke 3 days before Hiroshima was lit up.
I've been to the railway many times, and have performed on and under The Kwai River Bridge on several occasions, telling the story of its construction. I've had the great honour of playing "Weary" Dunlop three times. I've done a lot of research and I've seen this excellent documentary before. The stories never cease to move and inspire. The last time I performed at The Bridge I finally had the chance to go to Hellfire Pass. As much as I knew the details, actually standing in that chasm was overwhelming and just unthinkable. The Bridge on The River Kwai was at the top of my list of things to see the first time I came to Thailand. I never imagined that Kanchanaburi would wind up becoming a kind of second home. I highly recommend visiting if anyone has the chance.
Visit Kanchanaburi every Anzac Day. Dawn service at Hellfire Pass then later commemoration service at the beautifully kept Allied war cemetery very moving. Death Railway museum opposite the cemetery also a must visit.
Went to gallipoli last year a must go place but read the first hand accounts about what happened their first Apart from the ANZACS See what the Gurkars did from 800 men landed only 165 survived all the officers where killed on the first day
They also did this in Sumatra Indonesia, between Pekanbaru and Muaro. The engineers from the Thai Burma railway were sent to complete this 220km railway which was finished the 15th of august 1945, the day the war ended. Over 100,000 local slaves were killed along with 703 prisoners of war.
I had hoped the men and relatives who Suffered and Died because of this 'Holocaust' would recieve much better 'Reparations' like other survivors of WW2 Atrocities. This is an Appalling piece of History. Thank you for making this Documentary.
My father never recieved reparations, he died before and neither did his next of kin, The British Government made money from it as many died before the Japanese accepted to pay for it.
While both my parents joined the allies, I know nothing about my father.He deserted my mother 2 weeks after my birth in 1950 .I applied for a war veterans grant for her,(she served from 1941 to 1945) she was injured in a freak accint in the middle east.The British war office refused as it was never a reported by the nurse treating her.Yet she dilligently served the British for 4 years 35 pounds was her severance allowed at demob.It makes me sick.
Every nation, among the winners & losers follows a policy of expediency, interesting how some comments here cause pointed debate, reflecting the various memories of the War.
@Yes Sir! So in total, out of ~1.5 million German POWs, between 3,000-6,000 died (mortality rate of ~2%). In comparison, out of 5.7 million Soviet POWs, 3.2 million died in German POW "camps" (they were mainly just open fields without shelter or food). That's a death rate of nearly 60%. While conditions in Allied POW camps was appalling, it was nothing compared to the German run camps.
I'm visiting here after watching a fantastic movie, The end of all wars. My wife is Thai so it was very nice to watch. She actually has been to those sites but didn't really grasp what it was until tonight after watching it. Because of this film, we will go again to visit so I can experience what happened in Thailand.
@@veggiedisease123 ummmm. The soviets were part of the allied forces. They held what, 2.6 million Germans as POWs during and after the war, with a few hundred thousand returning. Numbers you are listing are way off, even for the American camps post war in the American sector of Germany.
I'm now in my 80's, but as a young man one of the jobs I did was long distance bus, " coach" driving. We still had conductor's at that time. An elderly conductor we called, " Burma Tam' was working on the death railway, always there was one seat near the driver empty for the conductor. Tam sometimes sat and actually passed out, maybe for a couple of minutes, then would "come to" as if nothing happened. The medics at that time contributed this to his treatment on the death railway.
I think these men deserve a web forum that they can talk to people, and answer questions with their time left. Their legacy and knowledge and experience needs to live on in others. These memories of great and honorable men need not be lost to history. Other than the limited replies given in this documentary.
How many are still living? And of those, how many use a smartphone or computer? Of those, how many want to talk about it? My father’s ship was hit during the Korean war, USS St Paul, and my grandfather was wounded on D-day. Neither spoke about their war experiences. Other aspects of military service, yes, but combat, no; at least not with their families.
David Brind: I can only offer my respect to your father as a soldier who fought and died during WWII to ensure our freedom today. Thank you Jim Odhams, 26th RA, for giving your life for us. You and your comrades will not be forgotten. Rest in peace, SIR!! 👍
@iqbal sahibil That's not quite accurate from how I've understood it; the food was needed to feed the soldiers. The situation was dire in India before the Brits landed there, but the Brits certainly didn't really do anything to improve the situation and therefore the famine was an inevitability. It was terrible beyond belief, and can easily be put down to incredibly poor management of Bengal, but I don't think the famine was entirely out of malevolence.
A survivor of the Japanese prison camps I was told about never recovered. He had a habit of grabbing people by the head and pressing his thumbs into their eyes (amongst other behaviours) ... he was acting out what had been done to him in the camp. He spent the rest of his life in a Mental hospital after being released from the camp and returning home.
I think that you should be very wary of passing on those old “well one guy told me about another guy” stories. They are almost always false, or at least wildly inaccurate. Just like the story about how a Japanese sword could cut through machine gun barrels or any number of bs stories.
Wow that Japanese Man at around 46:20 or near that has the audacity to complain about how the British had them work on the Thailand side of the railway after the war when he was now the POW “so they could sale it to Thailand for the best price”. He complains about that happening when he was involved in the horrific treatment of those Allied POWs and local Native people. He has evolved slowly since 1945 obviously.
Evolved? His character probably formed, as most people's, around age seven. A person can follow multiple political principles and parties, but their character remains.
Look I’d say him making the comment about the Brits “selling the railroad” was said in a ... well I was gonna say sarcastic but I’m not sure that’s the best word. It’s been a few months since I watched the documentary and I spend more time than I should watching war and other history documentaries so I can’t recall exactly what made me think he held something against the British for holding him as a POW after WW2 or possibly just making him work on that railroad after the war but I did feel that he did. I think any of the Japanese involved in the multiple railroad building projects they had going during the war should probably just be very grateful to the Allies for not putting them in a prison for life after the war or much worse. I do however know I make mistakes and I sure could have just completely misinterpreted his attitude .. again for a lack of better words (I sure could misunderstand something today as my brain is just barely with me🤷♂️).
My father worked on the death railway. He was a captain in 2n bt, 17th Dogra regiment Indian army taken prisoner at Singapore. I can remember him telling me about how the Japanese would light the fuses for blasting the rock and only warning the prisoners at the last possible moment. He also got malaria and the only treatment he got was one single aspirin. Even that single aspirin was a miracle find. He also told me that it was the big rough tough John Wayne types that were the first to keel over.
Do you know which camp he was in? Which section of the railroad he worked on? The very first group of POWs were packed into trains for a long, sweltering 3-day journey from Singapore during which they had to stand because they were packed so tight into the freight cars. They were let off in Ratchaburi and then had to march through the jungle to the camps in Kanchanaburi; some as far as Three Pagodas Pass. Then they had to endure the back-breaking slave labour amidst tropical disease, snakes, insects, and wounds that would develop into skin ulcers as the flesh rotted away in the sticky jungle. There are many, stories of atrocities, of bravery, of heroism, and mostly of heartbreak.
Thnk u so mutch my grandfather workt at the burmaline and kept all his man in live he was a KNIL underlutenent My grandmother and greetgrandmother survived the womenskamp and my father was in the boys kamp. Greeting from the Netherlands
Very interesting, my father helped a Nederland Military doctor on the death march to the railway with another Royal Engineer friend, that Doctor helped all the men, unfortunately he couldn't save all. I have the propaganda photo of when his unit were taken prisoner and the doctor was in the photo. Mijn Nederlands is niet so goed, sorry ik habt schrived en Engelsetaal,
Learned all about this after doing my family tree and finding out that my relative Frederick King 1906-1943 died on the Burma Railway. RIP Freddie. So sad I can't imagine how bad this must have been 💔
My friend grew up in Japan and said they are complete atrocity deniers which is reflected by the men in this video, but is still true today. You will only ever hear of hiroshima, nagasaki and the terrible way the Japanese are treated, in the educational system but nothing in reverse.
Although I've never fought in a war I do follow our history. I applaud the makers of this documentary for keeping this history alive. In my life I have known a few former POW's and probably a lot more that I wasn't aware of. I know of the acts carried out on Aussies (and probably the Pom's too) by the Japanese in Ambon and Changi. Had it been me I doubt that I would forgive them but for all those who overcome the past and did forgive them I take my hat off to you all. You're all better blokes than me.
This is absolutely amazing. It's wonderful so many of these guys are still around to tell the tale. I also get a chuckle out of how the guy sitting in the most posh house by far, has the most working-class accent.
He's at chelsea barracks, he's a chelsea pensioner which means he wont have to pay or want for anything for the rest of his life...by order of her majesty...
An absolute masterpiece of a documentary. The true accounts from men who were themselves there. Please keep these coming. Inspiring, Educational, and a haunting reminder of what mankind can become when a global war erupts consuming civilization.
How could you allow the Japanese guards to lie through their teeth like that? I'm glad they went to their death with these horrible lies between them and their maker. How disgusting. I can't even watch the whole thing with these lying pieces of garbage. They could have at least had the courage to admit what they had done!! They also act like it was ok to turn these prisoners into slaves. I'm disgusted!
Also the Soviets don`t remember the atrocities they did, thousands upon tohusands killed and slaved... Oh dear, try to say this in russia, they will linch you alive for that.
Alistair Urquhart's book is amazing. It disgusted me to read in it that when he returned to the UK he had the cost of his uniform and daily rations deducted from his pay whilst he was a POW by the British Army.
To have survived these horrible events is a tribute to the strength and will if these men and honor is due them. I would also point out that Americans and Australians were among these prisoners and few survived. I had the good fortune to meet some of the survivors and can attest to their great character. I also was part of a crew that documented railroad from the American point of view in 1969 and saw the results.
I'm a Japanese university student who major in Southeast Asian Studies. And I'm studying about Thai-Burma Railway, " the Death Railway". I have read many articles like books written by POWs, movie( " the Railway Man"), a documentary of a military police translator "Takashi Nagase" etc... And during reading a book about Mikio Kinoshita (12:40) written by his daughter, luckily I could know this wonderful documentary. We Japanese students have never taught about " Death Railway" (neither comfort women, nanjing massacre etc ) in the compulsory history classes. Luckily, I can study history of WW2 from many aspects at my university, but I believe most people including my father's generation don't know much about what Japanese Army did. And some right-wing Japanese say it's not the truth, it is exaggerated. This is a really big problem. I want people all over the world to know this situation about history education in Japan.... But as a student who major in Asian Studies and wish to improve relationship between Japan and Asia, I'll study more about history even though it hurts me a lot. Anyway, thank you for the wonderful documentary.
definitely sad but to be expected. the Americans sought to swiftly build diplomatic relations especially after fighting a country that was devastated by its own shortcomings, both physically and morally, and worse of all, had been doing anything but realizing just that, and would certainly loathe the Americans. the fastest solution and policy to that was not to make them actually face and understand the Japanese, but to appease them to an extent, which the Americans did a considerable amount of. a big reason for this was the rise of Communism and the new Cold War, after the Soviets had triumphed in their "liberation", or more so conquest of eastern Europe during their bloody effort in driving the Germans out of their country and all the way back to Berlin, and also China's post-ww2 ongoing civil war between the KMT and CPC, of which they were basically Japan's next-door neighbor next to the USSR. another reason why the Americans took this route was modelling it after Germany's response to losing ww1 and the harsh consequences it faced, leading the country down a path of bigotry and hatred which eventually manifested itself in unspeakable horrors like the Holocaust, the Americans wanting to prevent Japan from going for a round-two like Germany at any and all cost possible. Hirohito was allowed to keep his position as emperor (even though if anything he wasn't really respected or held to the highest regard during the war and it was more so the military and the highly-exaggerated image they painted of him), because the Americans knew the Japanese populace revered him and needed him the most especially after the bombs had been dropped and there was despair everywhere as the war came to an end leaving then post-war Japan in ruins. many of Hirohito's family members and members of the Japanese royal family were also pardoned and lived long, undisturbed lives. numerous members of Hideki Tojo's cabinet and otherwise officials and generals who were tried for otherwise deeply serious war crimes got light sentences of 7 years and were then released and paroled, because the Americans felt the need to appease Japan's right-wing and also because they were needed in the process of rebuilding Japan, especially in defending the very American Cold War cause of keeping out the communists. among these members was also Nobusuke Kishi, class-A war criminal for his apathy to and involvement in the Manchuria invasion (later becoming ruler of Manchukuo), and also Shinzo Abe's grandfather. the Americans released him without trial or consequences because they trusted him as the best man in leading a post-war Japan in their image. the real cherry on top is most definitely Shiro Ishii and his band of monsters who masterminded the human experimentation unit Unit 731. the Americans eventually pardoned them with 0 consequences to their actions for their surviving evidence and records of the Unit's activities (since they destroyed a load of them in an attempt of covering it up towards the end of the war), and the "interesting" fruits of their human experimentation research, which the US likely had nefarious intents for viewing this research as valuable and worthy of obtaining. all this is true despite certain reasonable efforts that yes, the Americans went to in prosecuting and executing war criminals. of course, when I'm referring to the Americans in this context, I mean the American government. it's extremely ironic especially after the fact that thousands of American POWs were beaten, tortured, starved, enslaved, and subjected to the most merciless and inhumane treatment imaginable by the Japanese guards, many for up to 4 years, and/or the fact that there was even supposed evidence that a handful of American POWs were even dissected alive and experimented on in Unit 731. I've read a story of (and I very well assume more) of an American POW who survived and went home hating MacArthur and the government for the rest of his life. I think it's quite admirable that the same fanatic nationalism Japan once held during the war has been significantly decreased, and so is loyalty towards the Emperor who is treated like a god. Japan is quite far from the nation it was, excelling and embodying many traits Imperial Japan didn't or couldn't. though some shadows of it still remain, in hushing up about historical war crimes, sweeping them under the rug, or even distorting them in an effort to hide away from what shouldn't be hidden away from, as it's things like this that otherwise serve as valuable and important lessons. from what I have read, while Japanese students are generally taught about at the very least, some basics about the war, it is ultimately about Japan and essentially fails to recognize any other crucial context like the millions of other people who were negatively impacted by Japan's actions. I think that hearing everyone's perspective out is important in a comprehensive understanding of multi-faceted political issues like ww2, but this is an example of teaching one-sided history. if you're teaching one-sided history...you're not teaching history. and as a result, the Japanese public has grown to be generally largely apathetic or unaware of the country's past, even when it was at the very least about an extremely large conflict, that China and Korea have not gotten over. from the education Japanese people are generally given, they cannot understand why China and Korea hold such animosity towards them, and that's even excluding some of the more radical, outspoken, or angry ones of the bunch. it further fuels the conflict. further evidence of the general apathy shown towards ww2 crimes is the Yasukuni shrine, which, despite commemorating many others, still fundamentally includes 12 class-A war criminals. every year, Japanese people go to pay respects and tribute, being unaware of the controversy surrounding it and as mentioned, further context to it which was not provided in their education. all this blissful unawareness also makes things easier for some in the right-wing to control the narrative, purporting forth revisionist historical concepts Imperial Japan also purported and mass-propagandized, with little overall logic or regard for blatant historical evidence and context.
personally, I don't want Japan to apologize. nor do I feel much anger towards modern Japan or even Imperial Japan, more so than I'm just filled with disappointment and sorrow over the amount of unnecessary tragedies which could've been prevented. nonetheless, I wouldn't change history if I didn't know what good it would do me. I acknowledge that Japan has apologized numerous times and paid reparations, but to me, they're not worth much. "sorrys", especially for crimes as serious as this, will ultimately amount to nothing other than some form of emotional consolence and closure for victims. that motive and goal is otherwise redundant when high-ranking Japanese politicians who say these sorrys do actions contrary to them in joining the revisionists in downplaying and denying atrocities or visiting the Yasukuni shrine with no sufficient rebuttal towards its controversial nature. money and reparations do wonders in helping to rebuild a country ruined by the wartime actions of another, but ultimately do not fix or heal the deeper emotional and even cultural pain and damage caused. it's especially redundant when the victims view the money as pacifiers to shut them up and direct backlash away where it is politically advantageous. what is worth much to me though is if Japan could, in the future, potentially go back on these PR tactics and everything I mentioned above that makes their "sorrys" and reparation money worthless to me. truthfully, I'm not expecting them to, best I could do is dream for it. ultimately what I really want is just a decent sense of closure towards a war that ended 80 years ago that still feels a little like an open wound. I don't hate or despise Japanese people, especially modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2, something they had no control over and weren't born during its events, and I strongly discourage people who do so. but especially with the rise of the internet, communication and easing of language or cultural barriers, modern Japanese people are perfectly capable of changing this cycle for themselves and others.
If anyone knows or fought with Roland Criddle,cpl.he is my grandfather,he was starved BEATEN and his pupil was damaged,.I still cannot think of japan it kills me.thry took him from us although he survived.
I appreciate the honesty and matter of factness of this program. This is history that should not be forgotten. I will not forget it! If you do not learn the history lessons of the past it is sure that history will repeat itself.
Yes Sir! Allies had pow camps too, what’s your point? If you’re gonna try to shame the allies from that period, you maybe shouldn’t reference the POW camps that held almost 2,000,000 people at at most, had 6,500 deaths resulting from it. You’re comparing apples to rotten oranges. History isn’t your strong suit.
Amazing tribute to the character of these men who suffered so terribly that most seem to not harbour a bitter hatred because of their ordeal. This was also the attitude of my father-in-law (at that time) who was captured in Singapore and became one of these great men. He confirmed the experience as related, but also harboured no lasting bitterness; they truly were the greatest generation. Denial or lying about of the brutality of that time by Japanese veterans is typical, and after visiting the Yushukan museum at the Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo where no mention of any of this made, it is easy to understand why most younger Japanese have no idea or interest in what really happened. They focus exclusively on the atomic bombings and doggedly view themselves as victims.
Same with my dad, who was a Dutch prisoner on the Death Railway (www.youtube.com/@JapanesePOWs/videos). He suffered physically and emotionally for the rest of his life yet he never complained, never felt sorry for himself. Remarkable.
Thank you for your testimony. Alistair Urquhart, thank you for surviving to share your experience. They bore witness to barbarity that we need not. Thank you men that we may learn from history, and need not repeat it. Peace through strength.
My grandad was a POW forced to build the railway. Captured in Singapore. Lived to tell the tale, but never uttered a single word about his experience. I named my 10 month old after him. I visited Kanchanburi and hellfire pass. It will haunt me forever. 😢
Now I know enough about what took place, but what does amaze me is the "I never took part in any of that sort of behavior" attitude, despite the overwhelming evidence of atrocious war crimes committed by these very men.
The only part I liked about the video is in 53:30, when the Japanese the old ex-Japanese soldier said: "the dangerous thing is about our Education, that everyone was told be the dame, no one thinks differently" Wow, it totally changed my mind..indeed. He wins my respect.. In any society, there has to be a differently voice that keep those power in check. otherwise, the history will repeat itself.
My grandad was on the Burma railroad and was emotionally scarred by it for the rest of his life, he never spoke about it till he was on his death bed, and told my dad about how he and mates suffered at the hands of the Japanese, he must have been like these old boys talking on this documentary I take my hat off to all them, can you imagine how today's snowflake generation be able to cope with that
Japanese had 35K soldiers and British had more than 85K soldiers, yet British lost Singapore? those in the leadership position should be court marshalled!
In fact, every year the Japanese prime minister lays wreaths to honor the WW11 generals who were responsible for these atrocities. Can you imagine the pushback if the German leadership did that? No, they never apologized and they never paid reparations.
War is evil. Always. I pray that the leaders and peoples of the world work for peace and justice. For this to happen I guess we have to change ourselves.
I am half British and HalfJapanese, 3rd generation Canadian. I feel terrible for the crimes- Im so sorry to the POWs. Im scared at times when asked my ethnicity: especially when telling fellow Asians whose families suffered from Japanese war crimes...😰... I was told any Japanese men would get a beat down for what WW2 Japan did by my asian friends (we were talking about our family histories. Most my friends are from all parts of Asia.) Im just ashamed and sorry. My grandparents, their children were Canadian born but put in camps. Beaten up. Spit on - what little they did not keep fromme/cousins hurt to hear. And my siblings are half Chinese. My cousins are half Jewish. I dont understand the soldiers in this documentary 'not remembering' it was 'that bad'. Theres PROOF. While i sometimes worry my siblings might catch a beat down as Karma for what Japan did (and sometimes im scared what ppls reaction to me being half Japanese may be)....it is the most shameful sad result of war crimes. It doesnt change history but: I am so so sorry to anyone hurtby WW2 Japan 🥺😭
your comment is 3 years old but I just wanted to add to this today that I'm a Southeast Asian and I do not hate or despise any modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2, something which is fundamentally out of their control and which they weren't even born during its events, which includes you. no less special as you're British-Japanese. I also strongly discourage and disagree with people who do hate and despise modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2. all I ask is that you're not denying, downplaying or glorifying the war crimes or even the unfortunate actions of your ancestors to any unreasonable or outlandish extent. ww2 was bad, and every side sucked to different extents. the Axis were definitely the most in the wrong though, but there is no reason to be blaming and even physically assaulting descendants of German, Italian and Japanese soldiers 80 years later who don't support the war crimes! recognizing your country's shortcomings and historical war crimes which would otherwise serve as valuable and important lessons to better oneself in the future is admirable and gives closure to a war that otherwise happened 80 years ago. it is admirable and more honorable than anything Japanese war criminals claimed to be "honorable" during the war. otherwise, just doing that is more than enough for me. don't apologize for things you didn't do and had no control over.
My grandfather was also a POW in Indonesia. He survided, barely, and I remember vividly how outraged he was when the first Japanese cars came to Holland and the day emperor Hirohito visited our country. I was surprised when he bought an AKAI tapedeck in early seventies.
As the daughter of a Dutch KNIL soldier, who also was a POW, we did not joke about the Japanese. When my brother went into the U.S. army, he jokingly said to our dad that he might bring home a Japanese wife! ! You can imagine what my dad’s reaction was 😡 . (We immigrated to the US in ‘61.)
Hi John I saw your post a few years ago now a law suit was imposed on the Japanese government for the horrible things they did to our prisoners of war the amount was in the millions if not billions.
No, Japanese is just a very flow-y language. Latin root languages use few syllable (short) words most frequently, but Japanese uses a lot more several syllable words than short ones. It also adds extras. For example, saying "my name is..." adds a syllable to your name. You can't compare a Latin based language word-for-word with one which isn't. That's why it is much more difficult for an English speaker to learn Japanese than Spanish or French.
This is a patently one-sided documentary. Its all about “white” soldiers who were brutally worked and died in huge numbers. Reality, there were multiple times more forcibly conscripted labour from malaya, mostly tamils. Their deaths are not well recorded or highligted. These tamils were brought into malaya by the same brits to work in british rubber plantations and were left to fend for themsleves when the british scooted. I had an uncle who went thru this. He was young and had learnt japanese in school. Luckily for him, the japanese, due to his language ability, he was assigned clerical work. He was able to return and provided first hand info. No compensation for the thousands of forced labour. The british, when they returned in 1945, ignored this event n continued to exploit tamil labour.
"I think our education was a very dangerous thing" is an insight into the Japanese psyche. For some of the Japanese survivors it is surprising that no remorse is apparent.... "I didn't see sweat boxes in my camps" ...... ""I never saw cruelty on the railway". Too little mention of the thousands of Asians who perished in this very British documentary.
The stories told by my dad who was a Dutch prisoner and his buddy mirror what the men here say (www.youtube.com/@JapanesePOWs/videos). I believe the number of Asians who died at the hands of the Japanese is in the millions and yes, not enough attention has been given to them.
My father was a KNIL-soldier (Royal Dutch East Indies Army), and slaved for three years as a POW at the Burma Railway. He barely made it. He was dying of pneumonia when the US nuked Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Even 35 years later he told me in awe about how the US army had ice cream in the jungle. Ice cream in the jungle! The bombs came too late for my grandfather. As a white, former KNIL-soldier he was interned in a civilian camp. He died a month before Hiroshima of hunger oedema.
The Japanese were doing what so many other colonizer nations did. It was completely wrong, but when placed in the context of history, it is unfortunately not out of place. The British committed outright atrocities to so many of their colonized peoples. So did Japan. The US is not free from this either (look at what we did in South America and parts of Asia throughout the mid to late 1900s). I feel for these prisoners, but I can't help but wonder how the British would have treated the Japanese if it was the Japanese who surrendured in Burma. What is important is that those who committed and ordered these acts take responsibility. Some of those Japanese vets they interviewed still aren't taking responsibility.
My grandfather was a POW in Burma. He was captured in Singapore. He ended up a double amputee, one of only two to survive. I know he was operated on by an Australian surgeon. They had no anaesthetic, he was held down by 4 men, and told to bite down on a piece of bamboo. His life expectancy was 3 weeks. He passed away age 97, and still asked for the last post to be played.
Still get emotional about it all, and he didn't tell us all that much.
My Father was a POW on the Burma-Siam railway... he was captured in Java and sent there.. he was part of the Australian Contingent. He didnt speak about it very much. He was an amazing human being. RIP old man
RIP - and Bless~
I as a teenager worked with a survivor of the Death Railway and his stomach was so shrunk that he could hardly eat anything! He didn't tell me it was is wife when I reamarked to her that he hardly ate, he wouldn't talk to anyone about it, except to say he still hated the Japanese!
I thank your father for his service. Thanks for sharing
@Mike Barton Because the POW''s were gagged. Forbidden by the Govt to speak - it would ruin trade after the war.
My late Dad was forced to work on this 'Death Railway'. He was a survivor of the sinking of the USS Houston CA-30 on 03/01/1942 in the battle of Sunda Strait (as was William Holden's character in the 1957 epic movie- 'Bridge on the River Kwai'). The testimonials given in this piece are very, very important in their depiction of the true reality of what went on with the forced slave labor used to build this railway. A railway that was aiding the war effort of the enemy- the oppressors. Bravo to these brave British POW's in speaking the truth. Appreciate greatly the documenting and making available of this profound, important piece.
My dad only ever wanted but a sincere apology from the Japanese for their treatment as he felt that and only that could begin the process of perhaps leading to 'forgiveness'. Obviously passing in 2006 he never received such an apology. The Japanese appearing in this piece albeit perhaps one, did little to nothing in contribution of that wish.
I simply as a son ask everyone to consider all of this before possibly running out to buy a Toyota, Mitsubishi or Nissan automobile!
i feel the same way, after seeing how my country was destroyed by the british, americans and japanese
I under stand back in the day…. But what to the kids of the kids of the evil people have to do with evil people? What makes them evil too?? Don’t you think you should judge someone on who they are. Not what their great grand father did? And even then what if the great grandfather or grandfather wasn’t in the war… or didn’t do anything.. imagine not reaching the moon because of refusing to use German scientists … or ending the 2nd war by showing your nuclear power… or not eating pizza because Mussolini did horrible things and some Italians joined in to kill Americans… toxic levels of nationalism can hold a nation back and keep them close minded and suck in the past.. dangerous line. I understand you have trauma as well as your ancestors from war but why pass that to your kids so they can continue biases? There’s a better way That’s all I mean…
Even thousands of Tamil workers were also massacred in the construction of death railway.Please mention this too.Every person while documenting the Death Railway are not recording the plights faced by our Tamil community by Japanese in Siam
Not only Tamil but many other Indians from all over India were killed during the construction...
This documentary should be used in our classrooms to help kids remember the history.
@Desmond Griffith and there was me thinking these guys stood up to Nazis to Stop racism and oppression.
I agree , but only in high schools . I do not think young children should be exposed to such brutality .
@@nixbronowski5822 But it was in vain . The world is still full of racism and oppression . What a waste of human lives . Like crime ,I'm afraid it will always be . We cannot stop hunger and poverty , how can we conquer anything else ?
@Desmond Griffith I do not watch anything to do with child abuse of any kind . I raised 3 children and never laid a hand on any of them . Yet they were well behaved and disciplined .
Yes we should tell the school kids. That the British empire is
Nothing to be proud of.It was a
Mass enslavement of foreign
People who did not look like us. But who gave us a better
Life style then the natives.
I had a dear friend of our family who was captured in Singapore and worked on this railway. George Williams was a wonderful man, husband and father. He would dress up as Santa and visit all his friends children on Christmas eve. With his trusty sidekick Red they would put a ladder up on the very snowy roofs and bang on them to simulate the sleigh much to our delight. They did this until they were in their 70's and their wives insisted they quit climbing ladders in the snow. George was also the local Scout leader for some 30 years. He would not talk about his time as a POW and I understand why but I really appreciate learning what he went through. George lived a good long life in Canada after the war and was loved by all. God bless all who serve and thank you for your sacrifice.
It's so revealing how the Japanese in this film have such a light-hearted view of what they did and tend to blame the prisoners for dying because the didn't 'behave' well! Even after so many years, they have no remorse or sympathy for their victims or crimes.
Especially that guy who smilingly says he’d like to say “thank you for working the rail”. Apology rather than gratitude seemed to be grossly overdue and yet...
@@martymethuselah Go spew your random anti US propaganda on some relevant video, we don't need any whataboutism.
I think you miss interpreted a couple of the old Japanese chaps. As they did apologise. The chap who said thank you depends how you interpret that .
Japanese cultural training dictates that they use smiling, laughing, "making light of things" when they are discussing deeply serious things about which they are deeply ashamed, or are deeply uncomfortable with.
Especially if they are discussing them with strangers. This reduces the burden of the speaker or the listener to "save face" in a moment of shame or strong discomfort.
Many people don't know that.
They want everybody to feel sorry for them and I'm sorry but I can't I lost family members during this I can't even watch a TV show about it it makes me so mad but they don't acknowledge anything but they did they expect us to
May the sacrifices made by those men and their friends who died never seeing home again live on in our minds forever. Lest we forget
My dutch grandfather was POW who lost his life building this railway. He is buried in Thailand. His wife, my grandmother, did not know he had died until the day she was released along with my father and his siblings from a Japanese concentration camps in Indonesia. Her Japanese captors did not even have the decency to tell her that.
So sorry to hear that! May they all rest in peace
Hi Edward I saw your post please accept my sincere heartfelt sympathies at the loss of your loved ones
My great grandad was kidnapped and taken prisoner my dad tells me a story about how he stole bread of a girl to survive and the amount of torture he went through and sadly he has passed away but its crazy how he manged to survive
My Father was a pow and was 3.5 years working with his brother at the bridge over the river kwai, his brother who was killed by japanese soldiers, they chop his head coz he was so hungry stole rise and as an exsample for all and in front of my Father they be headed him, that was something my Father never forgive the japanese, when I was with my Father in Kuncanabury in 1969 he was so upset, there were some japanese walking around on that grave yard, at that time is was an open field with no buildings as it is nowedays and he run to them and started a fight, my uncle who was at that time a high militairy officer ordered his soldiers to dismiss those japanese, my Mother is from Thailand and meet my Father after he and his friends could freely walk around in town and so he fall in love. Never could my Father lie in his bed sleeping, always sits and needed a lamplight next to him. I'm very greatfull to see this documantairy🙏 Thank You.
My great grandfather (Dutch) was forced to work on that railroad he luckily managed to survive, I’m really sorry for your loss. And his wife and child were imprisoned in Indonesia.
Perfect documentary, being able to hear directly from those who were there.
I thought the Japanese side was very interesting hearing about their training a bit. Medics always deserve love I’m glad the pows at least got that much love, especially for those who passed because of the camps.
👍👍👍 Outstanding
@@dannydethanos6994 hhhhhhhh1hjjj
For those interested read the "War diaries of Weary Dunlop". Dr Dunlop was an Australian surgeon who voluntarily went into captvity on the Burma railway and kept an illegal diary during the period. It is published with minimal editing and is horrific reading.
I have read it 😢🇦🇺
I saw an interview many, many years ago with Sir Weary, maybe with Mike Walsh or someone, and was struck then by his grace. A true legend and a man amongst men.
Was a very good book
They mwntion him in this video. He was the surgeon they keep mentioning.
My family was brutalized by the Japanese during their opposition of Korea. History has all but forgotten and forgiven them without them apologizing.
Opposition? You mean occupation.
@@martymethuselah USA does nothing but whine about Japan? Do you even know history? The US are the ones who ignored Japanese atrocities in exchange for their compliance in opposing the PRC and the USSR.
Also, Korea was never a British colony in the first place. The Japanese "saved" Korea about as much as the Nazis "saved" Poland.
Moreover, Koreans still haven't gotten their country back. The country is split in two, with the North being destroyed by sanctions, and the South being a US satellite state.
@Aaron Keener
The U.S. still has 23 military bases in Japan alone, and they aren't going away any time soon.
501 amiga - ONLY Partly correct, "Close" only counts in Horse shoes and Hand Grenades!
@Kim Chi. What do you think about the Korean Guards participation in the brutalities in these camps?
Dr Bill Frankland died 2 Apr last ...aged 108. I wouldn't be surprised if his last words were: "I don't feel old". I'm 77 ... I also "Don't feel old."
You are ^^^@David Peters; "Blessed to have Lived to such a fine regal age," tens of thousands never lived to see 52, 62, 10, 2, 14, 29 or whatever age, "It is written, to enjoy and live one's life to full potential as if it was their last day" Look after yourself, young fella ..
Every soldier in this film blamed others and denied torturing. They try to minimize the atrocities they were part of. The stain will last as long as history.
The truly worrying issue is that Japanese public concience is kept comfortably away from such deeds. It's their common understanding that atrocities happened to some degree, but regret regarding them is hardly part of their historical awareness.
It's been publicised that the last Japanese soldier surrendered in the 1970's after hiding out in the wildland of the Philippines, above Clark Air Force Base. Always wondered, did this Japanese patriot make it home ?
@@paulsuprono7225 There are reports about him. Apparently he never integrated well into Japanese society, after returning home. It was a number of years ago that I read about his story.
@@billg7205 yes, he made it home and lives (or lived, he may have died since) quietly in retirement.
who knows, you don't know where these Japanese soldiers were stationed or in what capacity.
They may indeed not have taken part of or even witnessed atrocities. Just like many German soldiers during the war didn't, and many Soviets.
I knew two men who became POWs after the fall of Singapore. One worked on the Burma railway, his experience effected him physically, and mentally the rest of his life. He had massive scars on his legs from jungle sore ulcers, and ultimately he took his own life. The other was my father-in-law. He was a Colonial Service doctor who had been seconded to the army as an interpreter in the last days of the defense. He spent the duration of his captivity in Changi prison, and lived into his 90s. Post war he took several years to recover.
My wife, as a young child, two of her siblings, and her mother were evacuated by ship to Ceylon/Sri Lanka, and then from Ceylon to South Africa where they spent the remainder of the war.
So sad that the obvious effects of PTSD caused this man to suffer physically and so tortured mentally that despite survivg these horrors he ultimately took his own life.
Despicable to hear the lies and denial by these elder Japanese -- so shameful.
Totally agreed. Blaming the POWs even for getting sick, denying the existence of sweat boxes or torture. Sick mofos!
There still evil in there defeat,some of us admit!When where wrong
@@jaymystery1425 Learning to admit when I'm wrong didn't come easy for me -- it wasn't modeled for me growing up. But learning to do so as an adult sure the heck improved my life.
They were citizens of a successful military dictatorship. An understanding of their history, as well as basic human nature, one understands some. I have met some survivors of the Pacific Theatre. I inherited some papers of an American couple whom resided in Baguio, P.I. They arrived home after a visit to California on Nov. 11, 1941. Everyone knew War was coming, and it was not a surprise. It was, in the end as a close fought thing, with Japan testing their nuke 3 days before Hiroshima was lit up.
JHyun - it’s a Israeli art as well so what now .?
Those are some of the toughest men to have ever lived.
I've been to the railway many times, and have performed on and under The Kwai River Bridge on several occasions, telling the story of its construction. I've had the great honour of playing "Weary" Dunlop three times. I've done a lot of research and I've seen this excellent documentary before. The stories never cease to move and inspire. The last time I performed at The Bridge I finally had the chance to go to Hellfire Pass. As much as I knew the details, actually standing in that chasm was overwhelming and just unthinkable. The Bridge on The River Kwai was at the top of my list of things to see the first time I came to Thailand. I never imagined that Kanchanaburi would wind up becoming a kind of second home. I highly recommend visiting if anyone has the chance.
Visit Kanchanaburi every Anzac Day. Dawn service at Hellfire Pass then later commemoration service at the beautifully kept Allied war cemetery very moving. Death Railway museum opposite the cemetery also a must visit.
@@petersattler3454 Yes, I agree. I've been to the cemetery several times, and have been to the museum twice.
00
@@petersattler3454
.
Went to gallipoli last year a must go place but read the first hand accounts about what happened their first
Apart from the ANZACS
See what the Gurkars did from 800 men landed only 165 survived all the officers where killed on the first day
They also did this in Sumatra Indonesia, between Pekanbaru and Muaro. The engineers from the Thai Burma railway were sent to complete this 220km railway which was finished the 15th of august 1945, the day the war ended. Over 100,000 local slaves were killed along with 703 prisoners of war.
Infuriating 🔥
Very little mention is made of the millions of locals and Chinese who were killed.
I had hoped the men and relatives who Suffered and Died because of this 'Holocaust' would recieve much better 'Reparations' like other survivors of WW2 Atrocities.
This is an Appalling piece of History.
Thank you for making this Documentary.
P
My father never recieved reparations, he died before and neither did his next of kin, The British Government made money from it as many died before the Japanese accepted to pay for it.
@@johngrindley169 Very Saddening to hear this. Very Brave..and Very Resilient Men.
@@johngrindley169 Japanese never paid a red cent.
While both my parents joined the allies, I know nothing about my father.He deserted my mother 2 weeks after my birth in 1950 .I applied for a war veterans grant for her,(she served from 1941 to 1945) she was injured in a freak accint in the middle east.The British war office refused as it was never a reported by the nurse treating her.Yet she dilligently served the British for 4 years 35 pounds was her severance allowed at demob.It makes me sick.
Japanese wars crimes along with the Italian involvement in ww2 isn't really talked about or portrayed in film very much.
Every nation, among the winners & losers follows a policy of expediency, interesting how some comments here cause pointed debate, reflecting the various memories of the War.
@Yes Sir! So in total, out of ~1.5 million German POWs, between 3,000-6,000 died (mortality rate of ~2%). In comparison, out of 5.7 million Soviet POWs, 3.2 million died in German POW "camps" (they were mainly just open fields without shelter or food). That's a death rate of nearly 60%. While conditions in Allied POW camps was appalling, it was nothing compared to the German run camps.
I'm visiting here after watching a fantastic movie, The end of all wars. My wife is Thai so it was very nice to watch. She actually has been to those sites but didn't really grasp what it was until tonight after watching it. Because of this film, we will go again to visit so I can experience what happened in Thailand.
@@veggiedisease123 ummmm. The soviets were part of the allied forces. They held what, 2.6 million Germans as POWs during and after the war, with a few hundred thousand returning.
Numbers you are listing are way off, even for the American camps post war in the American sector of Germany.
How much is American or British war crimes in Iraq & Afghanistan talked about ?
I'm now in my 80's, but as a young man one of the jobs I did was long distance bus, " coach" driving. We still had conductor's at that time. An elderly conductor we called, " Burma Tam' was working on the death railway, always there was one seat near the driver empty for the conductor.
Tam sometimes sat and actually passed out, maybe for a couple of minutes, then would "come to" as if nothing happened. The medics at that time contributed this to his treatment on the death railway.
I think these men deserve a web forum that they can talk to people, and answer questions with their time left. Their legacy and knowledge and experience needs to live on in others. These memories of great and honorable men need not be lost to history. Other than the limited replies given in this documentary.
How many are still living? And of those, how many use a smartphone or computer? Of those, how many want to talk about it? My father’s ship was hit during the Korean war, USS St Paul, and my grandfather was wounded on D-day. Neither spoke about their war experiences. Other aspects of military service, yes, but combat, no; at least not with their families.
Unfortunately 90+ percent have passed
“My colonel literally lost his head!” 😫 I can’t imagine how horrifying this kind of thing must be.
Mary
Yeah! On your first day of combat too!!
Thank you for posting this video of an often glossed over part of History.. Good to know tgerh are still good Documentaries out there
My dear Daddy,Jim Elliot Odams of the 26th Royal Artillery died when I was eight from conditions that he endured on the Burma railway
David Brind: I can only offer my respect to your father as a soldier who fought and died during WWII to ensure our freedom today. Thank you Jim Odhams, 26th RA, for giving your life for us. You and your comrades will not be forgotten. Rest in peace, SIR!! 👍
@iqbal sahibil That's not quite accurate from how I've understood it; the food was needed to feed the soldiers. The situation was dire in India before the Brits landed there, but the Brits certainly didn't really do anything to improve the situation and therefore the famine was an inevitability. It was terrible beyond belief, and can easily be put down to incredibly poor management of Bengal, but I don't think the famine was entirely out of malevolence.
May the light of humanity shine forever on your papa
Rip.
@@donchonealyotheoneal5456 🧡
A survivor of the Japanese prison camps I was told about never recovered. He had a habit of grabbing people by the head and pressing his thumbs into their eyes (amongst other behaviours) ... he was acting out what had been done to him in the camp. He spent the rest of his life in a Mental hospital after being released from the camp and returning home.
JFC that's scary
May he finally RIP
@Charlie Day I feel so sorry for him. My greatest respect
I think that you should be very wary of passing on those old “well one guy told me about another guy” stories. They are almost always false, or at least wildly inaccurate. Just like the story about how a Japanese sword could cut through machine gun barrels or any number of bs stories.
Damn.!!
My great grandad Albert Ballard was an RAF pilot who was captured as a POW and forced to work on the railway. He died there in 1942.
Wow that Japanese Man at around 46:20 or near that has the audacity to complain about how the British had them work on the Thailand side of the railway after the war when he was now the POW “so they could sale it to Thailand for the best price”. He complains about that happening when he was involved in the horrific treatment of those Allied POWs and local Native people. He has evolved slowly since 1945 obviously.
Evolved? His character probably formed, as most people's, around age seven. A person can follow multiple political principles and parties, but their character remains.
didn't seem like he was complaining, just recounting facts.
He wasn't complaining (?)
Look I’d say him making the comment about the Brits “selling the railroad” was said in a ... well I was gonna say sarcastic but I’m not sure that’s the best word. It’s been a few months since I watched the documentary and I spend more time than I should watching war and other history documentaries so I can’t recall exactly what made me think he held something against the British for holding him as a POW after WW2 or possibly just making him work on that railroad after the war but I did feel that he did. I think any of the Japanese involved in the multiple railroad building projects they had going during the war should probably just be very grateful to the Allies for not putting them in a prison for life after the war or much worse. I do however know I make mistakes and I sure could have just completely misinterpreted his attitude .. again for a lack of better words (I sure could misunderstand something today as my brain is just barely with me🤷♂️).
He just stated what he went through. I dont see him complaining
The denials of the Japanese ex soldiers is disgusting. No torture, no starvation, no mistreatment and no comfort women.
One of the Japanese blamed the Allied soldiers for causing their own sicknesses. They ate raw fish and bad water? ? ?
43:02 "If the atomic bombs had not been dropped, we would have carried on fighting, until everyone was dead..."
Until they ran out of food, in about 3 weeks.
The gentleman at 55:20 said it best. If I hate them it will do them no harm, but if I hate them it does me harm.
This is why the old people need to talk, and the Young People need to listen.
My father worked on the death railway. He was a captain in 2n bt, 17th Dogra regiment Indian army taken prisoner at Singapore. I can remember him telling me about how the Japanese would light the fuses for blasting the rock and only warning the prisoners at the last possible moment. He also got malaria and the only treatment he got was one single aspirin. Even that single aspirin was a miracle find. He also told me that it was the big rough tough John Wayne types that were the first to keel over.
My grandfather survived this and was a railway man.pow,corporal Roland Criddle
Do you know which camp he was in? Which section of the railroad he worked on? The very first group of POWs were packed into trains for a long, sweltering 3-day journey from Singapore during which they had to stand because they were packed so tight into the freight cars. They were let off in Ratchaburi and then had to march through the jungle to the camps in Kanchanaburi; some as far as Three Pagodas Pass. Then they had to endure the back-breaking slave labour amidst tropical disease, snakes, insects, and wounds that would develop into skin ulcers as the flesh rotted away in the sticky jungle. There are many, stories of atrocities, of bravery, of heroism, and mostly of heartbreak.
Bless him and thank him for the work he did.
@@WaterShowsProd It's so sad what human beings do to other human beings.
@Jake Thaiman It was
Darren minister Atkins
grandfather.
Hi Darren I saw your post I'm sorry to read that about your grandfather
My uncle was a POW, he was taken prisoner at Singapore and spent most of his time in Tiawan he was liberated on the 9 September 1945.
Harrowing. Thank you for this film.
Thnk u so mutch my grandfather workt at the burmaline and kept all his man in live he was a KNIL underlutenent My grandmother and greetgrandmother survived the womenskamp and my father was in the boys kamp. Greeting from the Netherlands
Respect voor jou groot ouders, het was een hel
Very interesting, my father helped a Nederland Military doctor on the death march to the railway with another Royal Engineer friend, that Doctor helped all the men, unfortunately he couldn't save all. I have the propaganda photo of when his unit were taken prisoner and the doctor was in the photo. Mijn Nederlands is niet so goed, sorry ik habt schrived en Engelsetaal,
Learned all about this after doing my family tree and finding out that my relative Frederick King 1906-1943 died on the Burma Railway. RIP Freddie. So sad I can't imagine how bad this must have been 💔
My grandads cousin perished here building the railway. In memory of Private Francis William Crombleholme aged 24, a gunner in the Royal Artillery
My friend grew up in Japan and said they are complete atrocity deniers which is reflected by the men in this video, but is still true today. You will only ever hear of hiroshima, nagasaki and the terrible way the Japanese are treated, in the educational system but nothing in reverse.
I have no words... only tears...
This video deserves 10 million likes!
Brilliant Brits - those men are true heroes and should have been treated as such upon their return. The Japanese apologies ring hollow.
I must have missed the Japanese "apologies."
Although I've never fought in a war I do follow our history. I applaud the makers of this documentary for keeping this history alive. In my life I have known a few former POW's and probably a lot more that I wasn't aware of.
I know of the acts carried out on Aussies (and probably the Pom's too) by the Japanese in Ambon and Changi. Had it been me I doubt that I would forgive them but for all those who overcome the past and did forgive them I take my hat off to you all.
You're all better blokes than me.
The horrors of war. Very sad.
Long live Indochina! blog.chinadaily.com.cn/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=742201
This is absolutely amazing. It's wonderful so many of these guys are still around to tell the tale. I also get a chuckle out of how the guy sitting in the most posh house by far, has the most working-class accent.
He's at chelsea barracks, he's a chelsea pensioner which means he wont have to pay or want for anything for the rest of his life...by order of her majesty...
how about a documentary on Unit 731 of the Imperial Japanese army ?
Their is ..you just gotta look for it
It's on RUclips
An absolute masterpiece of a documentary. The true accounts from men who were themselves there. Please keep these coming. Inspiring, Educational, and a haunting reminder of what mankind can become when a global war erupts consuming civilization.
Around 39:30, the Japanese soldier said: he is so happy that he has completed something great!!!! (at cost of 110,000 lives!!!)
One of the best history presenters of all time dan snow and his father
How could you allow the Japanese guards to lie through their teeth like that? I'm glad they went to their death with these horrible lies between them and their maker. How disgusting. I can't even watch the whole thing with these lying pieces of garbage. They could have at least had the courage to admit what they had done!! They also act like it was ok to turn these prisoners into slaves. I'm disgusted!
Rest in peace to everyone who lost their lives on the railway lest we forget
Funny how the Japanese soldiers don’t remember torture but everybody else does that were their POWs. An entire nation with selective memory
every country has their own selective memory and each group of people perform atrocities on other people, right down through the ages
Ask the Germans about allied torture Rhine meadows you will see the political class of every country are psychopaths
Also the Soviets don`t remember the atrocities they did, thousands upon tohusands killed and slaved... Oh dear, try to say this in russia, they will linch you alive for that.
Survived jews and slavs remember their camp lives but Germans don't
True The United States have the Native Americans
Alistair Urquhart's book is amazing. It disgusted me to read in it that when he returned to the UK he had the cost of his uniform and daily rations deducted from his pay whilst he was a POW by the British Army.
True, but he would have received every penny of his active duty pay for when he was a POW. A decent enough payout.
@@cygil1 He earned every penny of it and I wouldn't consider that anywhere near the compensation he deserved for all he suffered.
To have survived these horrible events is a tribute to the strength and will if these men and honor is due them. I would also point out that Americans and Australians were among these prisoners and few survived. I had the good fortune to meet some of the survivors and can attest to their great character. I also was part of a crew that documented railroad from the American point of view in 1969 and saw the results.
I'm a Japanese university student who major in Southeast Asian Studies.
And I'm studying about Thai-Burma Railway, " the Death Railway".
I have read many articles like books written by POWs, movie( " the Railway Man"), a documentary of a military police translator "Takashi Nagase" etc...
And during reading a book about Mikio Kinoshita (12:40) written by his daughter, luckily I could know this wonderful documentary.
We Japanese students have never taught about " Death Railway" (neither comfort women, nanjing massacre etc ) in the compulsory history classes.
Luckily, I can study history of WW2 from many aspects at my university, but I believe most people including my father's generation don't know much about what Japanese Army did.
And some right-wing Japanese say it's not the truth, it is exaggerated.
This is a really big problem.
I want people all over the world to know this situation about history education in Japan....
But as a student who major in Asian Studies and wish to improve relationship between Japan and Asia, I'll study more about history even though it hurts me a lot.
Anyway, thank you for the wonderful documentary.
definitely sad but to be expected. the Americans sought to swiftly build diplomatic relations especially after fighting a country that was devastated by its own shortcomings, both physically and morally, and worse of all, had been doing anything but realizing just that, and would certainly loathe the Americans. the fastest solution and policy to that was not to make them actually face and understand the Japanese, but to appease them to an extent, which the Americans did a considerable amount of. a big reason for this was the rise of Communism and the new Cold War, after the Soviets had triumphed in their "liberation", or more so conquest of eastern Europe during their bloody effort in driving the Germans out of their country and all the way back to Berlin, and also China's post-ww2 ongoing civil war between the KMT and CPC, of which they were basically Japan's next-door neighbor next to the USSR. another reason why the Americans took this route was modelling it after Germany's response to losing ww1 and the harsh consequences it faced, leading the country down a path of bigotry and hatred which eventually manifested itself in unspeakable horrors like the Holocaust, the Americans wanting to prevent Japan from going for a round-two like Germany at any and all cost possible.
Hirohito was allowed to keep his position as emperor (even though if anything he wasn't really respected or held to the highest regard during the war and it was more so the military and the highly-exaggerated image they painted of him), because the Americans knew the Japanese populace revered him and needed him the most especially after the bombs had been dropped and there was despair everywhere as the war came to an end leaving then post-war Japan in ruins. many of Hirohito's family members and members of the Japanese royal family were also pardoned and lived long, undisturbed lives. numerous members of Hideki Tojo's cabinet and otherwise officials and generals who were tried for otherwise deeply serious war crimes got light sentences of 7 years and were then released and paroled, because the Americans felt the need to appease Japan's right-wing and also because they were needed in the process of rebuilding Japan, especially in defending the very American Cold War cause of keeping out the communists. among these members was also Nobusuke Kishi, class-A war criminal for his apathy to and involvement in the Manchuria invasion (later becoming ruler of Manchukuo), and also Shinzo Abe's grandfather. the Americans released him without trial or consequences because they trusted him as the best man in leading a post-war Japan in their image. the real cherry on top is most definitely Shiro Ishii and his band of monsters who masterminded the human experimentation unit Unit 731. the Americans eventually pardoned them with 0 consequences to their actions for their surviving evidence and records of the Unit's activities (since they destroyed a load of them in an attempt of covering it up towards the end of the war), and the "interesting" fruits of their human experimentation research, which the US likely had nefarious intents for viewing this research as valuable and worthy of obtaining. all this is true despite certain reasonable efforts that yes, the Americans went to in prosecuting and executing war criminals.
of course, when I'm referring to the Americans in this context, I mean the American government. it's extremely ironic especially after the fact that thousands of American POWs were beaten, tortured, starved, enslaved, and subjected to the most merciless and inhumane treatment imaginable by the Japanese guards, many for up to 4 years, and/or the fact that there was even supposed evidence that a handful of American POWs were even dissected alive and experimented on in Unit 731. I've read a story of (and I very well assume more) of an American POW who survived and went home hating MacArthur and the government for the rest of his life.
I think it's quite admirable that the same fanatic nationalism Japan once held during the war has been significantly decreased, and so is loyalty towards the Emperor who is treated like a god. Japan is quite far from the nation it was, excelling and embodying many traits Imperial Japan didn't or couldn't. though some shadows of it still remain, in hushing up about historical war crimes, sweeping them under the rug, or even distorting them in an effort to hide away from what shouldn't be hidden away from, as it's things like this that otherwise serve as valuable and important lessons. from what I have read, while Japanese students are generally taught about at the very least, some basics about the war, it is ultimately about Japan and essentially fails to recognize any other crucial context like the millions of other people who were negatively impacted by Japan's actions. I think that hearing everyone's perspective out is important in a comprehensive understanding of multi-faceted political issues like ww2, but this is an example of teaching one-sided history. if you're teaching one-sided history...you're not teaching history. and as a result, the Japanese public has grown to be generally largely apathetic or unaware of the country's past, even when it was at the very least about an extremely large conflict, that China and Korea have not gotten over. from the education Japanese people are generally given, they cannot understand why China and Korea hold such animosity towards them, and that's even excluding some of the more radical, outspoken, or angry ones of the bunch. it further fuels the conflict. further evidence of the general apathy shown towards ww2 crimes is the Yasukuni shrine, which, despite commemorating many others, still fundamentally includes 12 class-A war criminals. every year, Japanese people go to pay respects and tribute, being unaware of the controversy surrounding it and as mentioned, further context to it which was not provided in their education. all this blissful unawareness also makes things easier for some in the right-wing to control the narrative, purporting forth revisionist historical concepts Imperial Japan also purported and mass-propagandized, with little overall logic or regard for blatant historical evidence and context.
personally, I don't want Japan to apologize. nor do I feel much anger towards modern Japan or even Imperial Japan, more so than I'm just filled with disappointment and sorrow over the amount of unnecessary tragedies which could've been prevented. nonetheless, I wouldn't change history if I didn't know what good it would do me.
I acknowledge that Japan has apologized numerous times and paid reparations, but to me, they're not worth much. "sorrys", especially for crimes as serious as this, will ultimately amount to nothing other than some form of emotional consolence and closure for victims. that motive and goal is otherwise redundant when high-ranking Japanese politicians who say these sorrys do actions contrary to them in joining the revisionists in downplaying and denying atrocities or visiting the Yasukuni shrine with no sufficient rebuttal towards its controversial nature. money and reparations do wonders in helping to rebuild a country ruined by the wartime actions of another, but ultimately do not fix or heal the deeper emotional and even cultural pain and damage caused. it's especially redundant when the victims view the money as pacifiers to shut them up and direct backlash away where it is politically advantageous.
what is worth much to me though is if Japan could, in the future, potentially go back on these PR tactics and everything I mentioned above that makes their "sorrys" and reparation money worthless to me. truthfully, I'm not expecting them to, best I could do is dream for it. ultimately what I really want is just a decent sense of closure towards a war that ended 80 years ago that still feels a little like an open wound.
I don't hate or despise Japanese people, especially modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2, something they had no control over and weren't born during its events, and I strongly discourage people who do so. but especially with the rise of the internet, communication and easing of language or cultural barriers, modern Japanese people are perfectly capable of changing this cycle for themselves and others.
If anyone knows or fought with Roland Criddle,cpl.he is my grandfather,he was starved BEATEN and his pupil was damaged,.I still cannot think of japan it kills me.thry took him from us although he survived.
Darren minister Atkins I know how you feel. Bless your grandfather.
I appreciate the honesty and matter of factness of this program. This is history that should not be forgotten. I will not forget it! If you do not learn the history lessons of the past it is sure that history will repeat itself.
Amazing. Even now the Japanese deny mistreatment to POWs.
Yes Sir! You sound like a broken record, nobody cares
Even now millions of citizens of certain countries are being mistreated , so it’s no surprise
Yes Sir!
Allies had pow camps too, what’s your point? If you’re gonna try to shame the allies from that period, you maybe shouldn’t reference the POW camps that held almost 2,000,000 people at at most, had 6,500 deaths resulting from it. You’re comparing apples to rotten oranges. History isn’t your strong suit.
People now are depressinlly bad. They do not seem to learn any where. We Will be the Death Of Ourselves.@@JeepCherokeeful
@Yes Sir! I just looked up the new word you introduced to me. All I have to say is...it was much better than most of those criminals deserved.
Amazing tribute to the character of these men who suffered so terribly that most seem to not harbour a bitter hatred because of their ordeal. This was also the attitude of my father-in-law (at that time) who was captured in Singapore and became one of these great men. He confirmed the experience as related, but also harboured no lasting bitterness; they truly were the greatest generation. Denial or lying about of the brutality of that time by Japanese veterans is typical, and after visiting the Yushukan museum at the Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo where no mention of any of this made, it is easy to understand why most younger Japanese have no idea or interest in what really happened. They focus exclusively on the atomic bombings and doggedly view themselves as victims.
I'm glad the atomic bombs happen. That's what you get when you do evil. You get evil.
Same with my dad, who was a Dutch prisoner on the Death Railway (www.youtube.com/@JapanesePOWs/videos). He suffered physically and emotionally for the rest of his life yet he never complained, never felt sorry for himself. Remarkable.
Thank you for your testimony. Alistair Urquhart, thank you for surviving to share your experience. They bore witness to barbarity that we need not. Thank you men that we may learn from history, and need not repeat it.
Peace through strength.
My grandad was a POW forced to build the railway. Captured in Singapore. Lived to tell the tale, but never uttered a single word about his experience. I named my 10 month old after him. I visited Kanchanburi and hellfire pass. It will haunt me forever. 😢
Up and Over! Thank you! Keep Pushin!
Great Documentary. Thanks.
Now I know enough about what took place, but what does amaze me is the "I never took part in any of that sort of behavior" attitude, despite the overwhelming evidence of atrocious war crimes committed by these very men.
California Army Guard Vet Here. God Bless these brothers in Arms.
The only part I liked about the video is in 53:30, when the Japanese the old ex-Japanese soldier said: "the dangerous thing is about our Education, that everyone was told be the dame, no one thinks differently" Wow, it totally changed my mind..indeed. He wins my respect.. In any society, there has to be a differently voice that keep those power in check. otherwise, the history will repeat itself.
My grandad was on the Burma railroad and was emotionally scarred by it for the rest of his life, he never spoke about it till he was on his death bed, and told my dad about how he and mates suffered at the hands of the Japanese, he must have been like these old boys talking on this documentary I take my hat off to all them, can you imagine how today's snowflake generation be able to cope with that
My uncle was there. He survived but was affected by it.
My father was the same, he refused to talk about anything that went on in these camps.
Massive respect for these absolutely astounding men who survived and who died god bless them
Japanese had 35K soldiers and British had more than 85K soldiers, yet British lost Singapore? those in the leadership position should be court marshalled!
Sad and good times at the end?Those that are sharing there ervaring?Are hero's of survival.God bless them all.Amen.
'if the POWs behave they not get sick'. Unbelievable they still think that way. Has Japan ever apologised to the ex POWs?
In fact, every year the Japanese prime minister lays wreaths to honor the WW11 generals who were responsible for these atrocities. Can you imagine the pushback if the German leadership did that? No, they never apologized and they never paid reparations.
It's STILL amazing how the POW camp guards sound remorseless about their actions.
Always "following orders" smh ...
I thought this was a beautifully heart gripping timeline thank you for sharing...
GOD BLESS ALL THOSE SOULS WHO PERISHED AND PREVAILED AMEN
Seems that memory loss was very prevalent for those old Japanese soldiers.
Apparently, this part of their history goes untold. Young Japanese are oblivious.
Wow......On every aspect of thought.
War is evil. Always. I pray that the leaders and peoples of the world work for peace and justice. For this to happen I guess we have to change ourselves.
That cruelty that humans inflicted upon other human beings just like themselves. Pure hatred. Pure evil.
A brilliant novel, set painfully in this history: The Narrow Road to the Deep North.
I am half British and HalfJapanese, 3rd generation Canadian. I feel terrible for the crimes- Im so sorry to the POWs. Im scared at times when asked my ethnicity: especially when telling fellow Asians whose families suffered from Japanese war crimes...😰... I was told any Japanese men would get a beat down for what WW2 Japan did by my asian friends (we were talking about our family histories. Most my friends are from all parts of Asia.) Im just ashamed and sorry. My grandparents, their children were Canadian born but put in camps. Beaten up. Spit on - what little they did not keep fromme/cousins hurt to hear. And my siblings are half Chinese. My cousins are half Jewish. I dont understand the soldiers in this documentary 'not remembering' it was 'that bad'. Theres PROOF. While i sometimes worry my siblings might catch a beat down as Karma for what Japan did (and sometimes im scared what ppls reaction to me being half Japanese may be)....it is the most shameful sad result of war crimes. It doesnt change history but: I am so so sorry to anyone hurtby WW2 Japan 🥺😭
your comment is 3 years old but I just wanted to add to this today that I'm a Southeast Asian and I do not hate or despise any modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2, something which is fundamentally out of their control and which they weren't even born during its events, which includes you. no less special as you're British-Japanese.
I also strongly discourage and disagree with people who do hate and despise modern Japanese people for anything relating to ww2. all I ask is that you're not denying, downplaying or glorifying the war crimes or even the unfortunate actions of your ancestors to any unreasonable or outlandish extent. ww2 was bad, and every side sucked to different extents. the Axis were definitely the most in the wrong though, but there is no reason to be blaming and even physically assaulting descendants of German, Italian and Japanese soldiers 80 years later who don't support the war crimes!
recognizing your country's shortcomings and historical war crimes which would otherwise serve as valuable and important lessons to better oneself in the future is admirable and gives closure to a war that otherwise happened 80 years ago. it is admirable and more honorable than anything Japanese war criminals claimed to be "honorable" during the war. otherwise, just doing that is more than enough for me. don't apologize for things you didn't do and had no control over.
Said sorry because of the railway, didn’t say sorry about treating the soldiers so bad
My grandfather was also a POW in Indonesia. He survided, barely, and I remember vividly how outraged he was when the first Japanese cars came to Holland and the day emperor Hirohito visited our country. I was surprised when he bought an AKAI tapedeck in early seventies.
As the daughter of a Dutch KNIL soldier, who also was a POW, we did not joke about the Japanese. When my brother went into the U.S. army, he jokingly said to our dad that he might bring home a Japanese wife! ! You can imagine what my dad’s reaction was 😡 . (We immigrated to the US in ‘61.)
Has Japan ever made a monetary restitution for the survivors or their families?
Hi John I saw your post a few years ago now a law suit was imposed on the Japanese government for the horrible things they did to our prisoners of war the amount was in the millions if not billions.
Excellent documentary. Thank you
Read the "Forgotten Highlander"by Alistair Urquhart who's in that documentary. Must read book.
I don't speak Japanese, but it seems like there saying a lot more words then the subtitles are saying
I speak Japanese, and some of the subtitles are off. But in general, Japanese phrases are a little longer because of the grammar being different.
No, Japanese is just a very flow-y language. Latin root languages use few syllable (short) words most frequently, but Japanese uses a lot more several syllable words than short ones. It also adds extras. For example, saying "my name is..." adds a syllable to your name. You can't compare a Latin based language word-for-word with one which isn't. That's why it is much more difficult for an English speaker to learn Japanese than Spanish or French.
As if you've never seen bad kung fu movies
Some nuance was lost in translation. But more important is what was left unsaid. You can see some of it in their faces.
The subtitles are horrible, way off at times
This is a patently one-sided documentary. Its all about “white” soldiers who were brutally worked and died in huge numbers. Reality, there were multiple times more forcibly conscripted labour from malaya, mostly tamils. Their deaths are not well recorded or highligted. These tamils were brought into malaya by the same brits to work in british rubber plantations and were left to fend for themsleves when the british scooted. I had an uncle who went thru this. He was young and had learnt japanese in school. Luckily for him, the japanese, due to his language ability, he was assigned clerical work. He was able to return and provided first hand info. No compensation for the thousands of forced labour. The british, when they returned in 1945, ignored this event n continued to exploit tamil labour.
Agreed. Would be nice to see all victims given voice.
@Dave De Castle Typing in all caps decreases your credibility.
Excellent documentary
Absolutely fudging amazing!
Absolutely heartbreaking and also heartwarming!✌❤
"I think our education was a very dangerous thing" is an insight into the Japanese psyche. For some of the Japanese survivors it is surprising that no remorse is apparent.... "I didn't see sweat boxes in my camps" ...... ""I never saw cruelty on the railway". Too little mention of the thousands of Asians who perished in this very British documentary.
Maybe the Asians could make their own documentary.
The stories told by my dad who was a Dutch prisoner and his buddy mirror what the men here say (www.youtube.com/@JapanesePOWs/videos). I believe the number of Asians who died at the hands of the Japanese is in the millions and yes, not enough attention has been given to them.
My father was a KNIL-soldier (Royal Dutch East Indies Army), and slaved for three years as a POW at the Burma Railway. He barely made it. He was dying of pneumonia when the US nuked Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Even 35 years later he told me in awe about how the US army had ice cream in the jungle. Ice cream in the jungle! The bombs came too late for my grandfather. As a white, former KNIL-soldier he was interned in a civilian camp. He died a month before Hiroshima of hunger oedema.
The Japanese were doing what so many other colonizer nations did. It was completely wrong, but when placed in the context of history, it is unfortunately not out of place. The British committed outright atrocities to so many of their colonized peoples. So did Japan. The US is not free from this either (look at what we did in South America and parts of Asia throughout the mid to late 1900s). I feel for these prisoners, but I can't help but wonder how the British would have treated the Japanese if it was the Japanese who surrendured in Burma. What is important is that those who committed and ordered these acts take responsibility. Some of those Japanese vets they interviewed still aren't taking responsibility.
Most importantly is that nobody is screaming, crying or tearing down statues in Japan because of past colonisations
americandumpsterfire - Do we have a Socialist, Commie, ANTIFA/BLM History Revisionist, "Appologist?"
Great Documentary “Like you know”
The real honour in telling other people’s stories should be for those who don’t promote themselves for over 30 seconds in every single video.
'Japanese would not torture'..... My stepdad has a very different story about the camp he was in.
I read the comments. THANK YOU!!!!