Dear
Reader,
I am
very sorry for this long break from my Blogging. Church and Community
commitments prioritize.
The
Rev Edwin Khoo
British Singapore fell to the Japanese Invasion on 15 Feb 1942
The
year 1941 witnessed the War in the Pacific. The surprise
Japanese on Pearl Harbour in December 1941 - followed by
rapid invasion in S.E.Asia
saw Japan capturing Burma, Thailand, Malaya, Singapore,
Indonesia, the Philippines, New Guinea and Hong Kong.
The Americans were forced into this War by the Pearl Harbour Attack. The Americans won a series of battles in 1942 - then slowly re-captured the Japanese -occupied territories. They turned these into bases from which they could attack Japan proper.
Meanwhile at Selarang Barracks, near Singapore's Changi Prison - after only 6 months of Japanese occupation....thousands of Allied POWs died. Death came largely from beriberi - dysentery - torture - beating but largely from starvation.
These Allied POWs, numbering around 50,000 , predominantly British and Australian soldiers, worked around Singapore...repairing the damages inflicted by the Japanese invasion and getting the essential services back to working order. About 850 POWs died during their intern at Changi.
The Americans were forced into this War by the Pearl Harbour Attack. The Americans won a series of battles in 1942 - then slowly re-captured the Japanese -occupied territories. They turned these into bases from which they could attack Japan proper.
Meanwhile at Selarang Barracks, near Singapore's Changi Prison - after only 6 months of Japanese occupation....thousands of Allied POWs died. Death came largely from beriberi - dysentery - torture - beating but largely from starvation.
These Allied POWs, numbering around 50,000 , predominantly British and Australian soldiers, worked around Singapore...repairing the damages inflicted by the Japanese invasion and getting the essential services back to working order. About 850 POWs died during their intern at Changi.
I
was then in my early teen - working as a 'toban' at
Yasuda Butai - the Japanese Army Camp at Changi then. A
toban makes - and serves tea to Japanese military personnel..
He also fetches meals for them.
Hunger,
as mentioned above, was the main cause of death of the Allied POWs.
Sighting them rummaging for thrown-away food from dustbins was
common - just as stray dogs, cats and rats do.
Deplorable! Humans eating food wastes - from
garbage bins! Sheer hunger drove them to it.
Moved
by compassion, a few of us - all teenagers
chose to supply them with bought fresh clean food. But how!?
Readers can fathom what the Japanese would do to us - had
we been caught?
But
for posterity .. we're very sorry we cannot tell you how... Wars have
not ceased . When will we ever learn!
For
our Today; they gave their Yesterday.
The Rev Edwin Khoo
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