Japanese Occupation free essay sample

For this very reason, the Japanese Occupation is another essential facet that must be examined through the lens of Human Rights. The bombing of Manila on December 8, 1941 marked the beginning of what was known to be the one of the darkest and most traumatic ages in Philippine history. At the start of the Second World War, the Filipinos were unprepared for the sudden attacks in the capital. A flood of people were forced to hurriedly evacuate the city, for fear of more attacks. War was indeed at hand. To avoid further damages, Manila was declared an Open City. What began with a surprise attack in Manila, stretched to 4 years of Japanese colonial regime. The new colonizers justified war and violence as their means of empowering fellow Asian races to finally put an end Western colonialism. The Japanese invoked nationalism and revolution and openly acted towards eliminating American influence in the Philippines. We will write a custom essay sample on Japanese Occupation or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The Japanese strongly believed in â€Å"Asian for Asians† which provided space for Filipino leaders to serve in the government. But veering away from this puppet government as well as from the interests of the elite, we see a contrastingly different picture of the Filipino people. Certain rights were curtailed as the First Proclamation of the Imperial Army was announced 1942. Under this proclamation, all Filipinos were to obey whatever the Administration might rule or decree. It was strictly prohibited to disseminate news, statements or rumors against the Japanese Imperial forces. Any one found guilty would immediately be sentenced to death. Likewise, any act of sabotage or personal assault against any Japanese member of the Armed Forces would be punishable by death. Another decree implemented by the Japanese Military Administration was compulsory identification card issued to the Filipinos. They facilitated greater control over the population by imposing the registry as obligation impossible to evade. There were also occasions of unannounced acts of setting bounds to an area in any given town or city for purposes of search, seizure and arrest. These instances reflect a few of the violations committed against the basic rights of persons. But it was a recurring theme among the Filipinos common experience under the Japanese. Different memoirs of the Filipino and Japanese alike mirror the atrocities endured during this era. They spoke of trauma caused by threat, violence and humiliation. Filipino war veterans described how their daily life was one of flight and terror, while some Japanese soldier refer to the war as a nightmare of their past. Former Japanese soldier Daizaburo Ohera admits to still having nightmares of guns and bayonets, of killing and death. With respect to these accounts of the Japanese occupation, three of the main themes highlighted by this paper are (a) the Death March of Bataan, (b) Guerilla subjugation, and (c) the Filipina comfort women. a. Bataan Death March It had already been many months of anguished battle with the enemy when Bataan fell and surrendered. Thousands of Filipinos and Americans troops became Prisoners of War. The Bataan Death March, as it has come to be called, forced these Prisoners of War to march from Mariveles, Bataan to San Fernando Pampanga, to Capas, Tarlac and head to an even farther Camp O’Donnell. The death march took 6 days of walking under fatigue and the scorching heat of the tropical sun. As the name implies, the Bataan death march caused so many casualties of both Filipino and American troops. More than 70,000 soldiers were forced to walk while denied of food and water for so many days. Under such harsh conditions, only around 54,000 of them made it to Camp O’Donnell. Soldiers who had fallen behind were executed while some were randomly tortured and beaten up. Some even attempted to hide in the jungles but were just too weak to escape. Eventually, they were shot and killed. This was the fate of the Prisoners of War that those who made it to their destination could only wish that they had been left behind. Life in the camp was nothing better, as thousands more of them died because of lack of poor living conditions. Water and food were either scarce or contaminated which only led to disease and malnutrition. Other times, they were again beaten up or died of torture. The infamous Bataan Death March is considered one of the worst atrocities committed in World War II. As such, it was one of the most dreaded memories of any Filipino or American Prisoner of War. b. Guerilla Subjugation Another significant aspect that should be focused on is the Japanese Army’s Guerilla subjugation. This issue raises concerns because it has been used as a perverted justification of imposing violence on Filipinos. In certain parts of the Philippines, such as Laguna and Batangas, World War II survivors attest to such harsh treatment of the Japanese. There were many instances of mass slaughter, where people were tied together and massacred in the name of â€Å"guerilla subjugation†. Different forms of violence were used including slapping or humiliating Filipinos who refuse to bow down, strangling people using hemp ropes, setting houses on fire as well as shooting people with machine guns or rifles. In all these instances, old men, women, children and infants alike were not spared of brutality. The Japanese soldiers’ only justification was that these Filipinos were guerillas. It was alarming and at the same time upsetting as they labeled practically everyone as Huks and Guerillas. This, they believe, gave them the right to suppress and kill just about anyone, even innocent people. There were those extreme cases of atrocities where suspected guerillas were blindfolded and made to kneel before their graves. An even more sadistic case was when a condemned man would often be made to dig his own grave. No wonder, even decades after, Japanese soldiers are plagued with nightmares of the crimes they committed. However, this wasn’t the case for all of them. Some claimed that they were not responsible for the victims of the war in the Philippines. These soldiers refuse to apologize because, for them, the guerillas were the enemy of the Japanese army who fought on equal terms. What is most saddening about this issue was that these soldiers, like any human being, at first found it hard to kill. But as their â€Å"duty† called for it, eventually they got used to killing and felt no guilt, at all. The guerilla subjugation was another significant aspect of the Japanese Occupation for it brings to mind how life gradually became worthless. People were no longer entitled to their rights and were deprived the basic right to live. Because of this, some people, up to now harbor ill feelings towards the Japanese. c. Comfort Women If there was one issue that keeps on surfacing regarding the Japanese Occupation, it would be that of the Filipina comfort women. Along with forced labor for the Japanese Imperial Army, sexual slavery was another disturbing reality back in World War II. As young boys were forced to carry rice heavy rice bags, dig tunnels and bring boxes of ammunition up to the mountains without pay, young beautiful women were also selected and brought to the mountain with them. As a practice in most towns, women were forced to work and serve in the comfort women system. Some were even abducted forcibly from their homes and separated from their families. It was unimaginable how these young women were brutally molested and stripped off of their innocence, leaving them physically and emotionally wounded. Apparently, it wasn’t enough that they had the men work for them. They needed the service of hundreds of innocent women. Comfort women, now grandmothers, who survived the harsh conditions of the war, could still recall their life back then. They would tell tales of how they were kept in the garrisons to be regularly raped by soldiers of the Japanese Imperial Army. As some of them continue to protest against the Japanese Embassy and fight for justice, we see how deep their wounds have been. However, the number of comfort women openly fighting for justice could just be a fraction of the survivors. Probably there are still some who could not even bring themselves to talk about it to their families, more so to other people. As we have learned, the atrocities committed during the Japanese Occupation and WWII were clear violations of the basic rights of human persons. These forms of violence seen in the Bataan Death March, the Guerilla subjugation and the Comfort Women System reveal the then pressing need for utmost respect for Dignity and Human Life. The WWII roused humanity to the reality of violence and brutality which has long been threatening it. In the Philippines, we can’t deny that there were many victims of the war. Some survived and many did not. But those who were fortunate enough now find themselves living with physical and emotional scars inflicted by Japanese swords and bayonets. Antonio Molina, Dusk and Dawn in the Philippines, Memoirs of a living witness of World War II. Quezon City: New Day Publishers, 1996. Jintaro Ishida, The Remains of War: Apology and Forgiveness. Quezon City: Megabooks Company, 2001. Juan Hernandez, For Love of Freedom – Japanese Occupation. Manila: National Printing Company, 1982.