"This is it. This is where I slept as a Second World War
Prisoner of War," said former US marine Roy Weaver, smacking one of
a row of large wooden bunks with his fist that used to accommodate
16 Allied POWs.
Weaver, 88, was a slave laborer alongside 2,000 other Allied
prisoners at the former Japanese POW camp Mukden, now a residential
community owned by a Chinese factory in Shenyang, capital of
northeast China's Liaoning Province, for nearly three years from
November 1942 to August 1945.
The white-haired man and eight other former American POWs, along
with relatives, arrived on Tuesday at the place where they were
subjected to forced labor, sub-zero temperatures and cruel beatings
to mark the 65th Anniversary Service of Remembrance of the Mukden
camp.
Most of them were captured by the Japanese in the Philippines in
April 1942 and, still in uniform made for tropical climates, were
taken to the northeastern Chinese city in November when winter
temperatures dropped to minus 30 degrees Celsius.
Weaver recalled brutal beatings handed out by a Japanese captain
nicknamed "The Bull of the Woods".
Weaver said he would stand up to face the "Bull" every time he
was struck to the ground but eventually he was unable to stand on
his feet.
"I'm lucky to have survived. About 266 POWs died from
malnutrition, starvation, disease, overwork and the cruelty of the
Japanese guards," he said.
"The food was terrible here, but the lack of food was much
worse," said Robert Brown, who was only 18 when he was taken
prisoner.
"Lack of food, shortage of medicines and extremely cold weather
struck down one POW after another. The ground was frozen so solid
in winter that the men could not be buried, so their bodies were
kept in a room at the camp until springtime," Brown said.
Despite the horrors and hardships of Mukden, the POWs said they
had a strong feeling they would survive.
"We did everything we could to thwart the Japanese war efforts,"
said Randall Edwards. Like others, Edwards worked at Manchu Work
and Machine Corporation Ltd, a former Ford car plant which
manufactured parts for aircraft production.
"We stole their machine tools and truck tyres from the factory,"
he said.
The group also recalled the assistance they received from their
Chinese colleagues at the factory, saying the Chinese always stole
machine parts to exchange food outside and gave food to the POWs in
secret.
Another returning American POW, Hal Leith, did not suffer as a
prisoner at Mukden - he was the camp's liberator. Two days after
Japanese Emperor Hirohito surrendered, Leith parachuted into Mukden
and set free all the POWs, with the help of Russian and Chinese
farmers.
"The POWs were all so happy when we told them that the Japanese
had surrendered," Leith said. "They asked me many questions, some
of which I could answer but some I couldn't. One question was 'Is
Shirley Temple still alive' and I told them 'Yes'," he said.
Despite their old age, many of the former POWs have revisited
Shenyang in recent years to mourn for their dead comrades and
relive their experiences at the camp, one of the most
heavily-protected Japanese WWII camps in Asia.
They brought old photos, eating utensils, uniforms and
newspapers to donate to the Chinese authorities, who have decided
to turn the old camp into a museum.
According to the 54-million-yuan (US$6.9 million) plan, the
museum will cover 12,900 square meters and will include original
camp buildings, a main square and a bungalow where the Japanese
wardens used to live.
Two walls will be constructed in the square on which the names
of all the POWs will be inscribed.
Looking around the old camp time and time again, the American
veterans seemed reluctant to leave - a three-hour visit was clearly
regarded as too short compared with their former stay of three
years. It was the first time most of them had revisited the camp
and it will probably be their last.
Jo Lippard, who accompanied her 87-year-old husband John, was
more emotional than the former POW.
"John told me to be strong and not to cry, but I couldn't help
shedding tears when I saw the battered old camp and thought about
their hardships," said Jo, a retired nurse.
"We must move forward, of course, but we should never forget
what happened," she said.
(Xinhua News Agency May 24, 2007)