Singapore Readily Remembers WWII Sacrifices
Japan's Southeast Asian Conquest Meant The British Colony Suffered
Mar 17, 2009
Westerners aren't always as familiar with the Second World War in Asia as they might be with the conflict in Europe. Japan began an Asian takeover on December 7/8, 1941 with a four-pronged thrust at Pearl Harbor, Hong Kong, Darwin and the Malayan Peninsula. With air superiority and adaptable tactics like bicycle units in the jungles, the Japanese overwhelmed Allies in the Malayan Peninsula.
Japan took over 80,000 prisoners of war in what Winston Churchill called the largest capitulation in British history. Singapore was defended by British, Australian, Indian and Malay troops but poor strategy and technical errors, such as armour-piercing shells rather than high-explosives for the 15 inch coastal guns, led to a surrender on February 15 1942.
Singapore, as a grateful and gracious society, diligently keeps its WWII memory at the forefront. Three ways Singaporeans remember their own ethnic experiences and show gratitude to those who tried to protect them are:
- Plaques and simple shrines on garden walkways, hospitals and beaches, indicating sites of execution and horror
- A chapel and museum at Changi paying tribute to P.O.W. experiences
- Several Remembrance Day ceremonies at sombre war monuments
War Memorials in Singapore
From the Raffles Hotel in the north to the statue of Sir Stamford Raffles on the river, there is a long green space bound by the City Hall and pristine white St. Andrews Church on one side and the Queen Elizabeth Walk and river on the other. It is called the Padang and Esplanade Walk. A visitor will find:
- two memorials, a War Memorial to honour the troops and a Civilian War Memorial. Two thousand soldiers were killed in January and February 1942 and well over 50,000 civilians were executed. In fact, eight Chinese were beheaded by the Japanese early in the occupation to deter looters, they claimed
- the Lim Bo Seng Memorial which honours a young Chinese man who escaped Singapore and made it to India. There he joined Force 136, an organization for underground work and returned to Singapore, where he was captured, tortured and killed at the age of 35.
- Further north, Alexandra Hospital displays a plaque to commemorate the massacre of 650 patients by Japanese troops over two days.
Changi Prison and Barracks
The British built barracks and a prison in Changi on the eastern corner of the island. The Japanese used the prison, designed for 600, as a prisoner of war camp for 3,000 and in May 1944 increased it to 8,000. The conditions were horrible. Pictures and artifacts at the museum bear testimony to their ordeal:
- stark photos and letters, such as Jack Sharpe waving to a cameraman when the war was over, a gapped tooth smile and a mere 56 pounds; an ironic picture of freed Allied prisoners of war in September 1945 lining the street as Japanese prisoners march by themselves into the prison; a picture of the Japanese signing the unconditional peace treaty and an officer looking at his watch to record the exact time.
- artifacts, such as spikes from the Death Railway, Imperial Japan's Burma-Thailand railway project. They recruited 7,500 PoW's from Changi to be part of the F Force of 60,000 who toiled on the project that had a 27% death rate.
- there is also a plaque on the Changi village beach where the Japanese executed 100 Singaporeans as part of the Sook Ching massacre of cleansing anti-Japanese Chinese from Singapore
Singapore Remembrance Day
There are several Remembrance ceremonies in Singapore. November 11 is held at Kranji War Memorial which is at the north end of the island near the Jahor causeway, Kranji has 4,464 graves and recognizes 23, 943 names etched on the columns. On Feb 15, the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce commemorates the civilian deaths at the Padang. Various embassies also hold ceremonies to commemorate their allied participation.
Singapore does not let the fast pace of modernity overshadow their historical sacrifices.
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