Index+No.+39+-+42

Name of members : Wong Jia Min, Wong Jing Ting , Yeo Wei Li , Zhuo Yun Shan If you are a journalist, are you sure you will ask your interviewee question 1 in such a format? You must be diplomatic yet polite. Rethink about question 1.
 * Comments from Mrs Teo - 10 Feb 2009**

I definitely like the responses now. Keep it up.
 * Comments from Mrs Teo - 14 Feb 2009**

Task no. :2

Interviewer and ex-Japanese soldier Question 1- Q: How do you feel after the war? A: We have killed many people and I still feel bad about it as it was a gruesome sight to see so many people dead lying around. However, we had no choice that time, we had to kill them as our prime minister had ordered us too. It was certainly the worst moment in my entire life. Question 2- Q: Do you think the other ex-soldiers want to apologize? A: It was a war of invasion, and I believe an apology was right. The war had been a long time ago and we try not to think about it, although I regretted killing so many people. However, some might disagree to apologize as they might think that they have no evidence that those things occurred.


 * RESPONSE FOR TASK ON 18 FEB

Life in the Japanese Occupation: Mr Charles Simon's ** **experience -There were horrors on the Death Railway -PoWs were treated like criminals -Worked on Death Railway for about 2 years -90,000 Asians died while building the Death Railway -16,000 Allied PoWs died while building the Death Railway too -34 people, including him, were put into a cattle carriage -Had to do** ablutions inside that carriage -Prisoners sent to Takanun, Chungkai and Banpong in Thailand -Had to cut down bamboos to make camp -The weak state and the lack of food cause ulcers -Ulcers could grow untill it bit their bones if no treatment was given -Lack of medication shown during an outbreak of cholera -Koreans and Japanese did nothing about it -There was a huge decrease of weight loss -Many men died because of the disease -Rations consisted of only rice and dried vegetables. No meat was given -Punishment and beating occurs everyday -Quarrelled with guard because guard wanted him to operate 2 machine instead of 1 -Was given severe warning and was beaten in the face many times -Was slapped every time see the same guard for no reasons -Worked in a grave-digging party after the completion of the railway -He grew up to become callous -Saw the suffering he endured **
 * -After 5 days journey, 2 people died

-He was held prisoner for about five months at river Valley road Camp -Not ill-treated there and had freedom to do what he wished to do -First sent to Changi Camp where he was held prisoner at the Selarang Barracks for four months -About 3,000 soldiers moved to the River Valley camp -Lived in attap huts which were about 100 feet long -Saw mill factory called Fodgen-Brisbane at Havelock Road. -Had about an hour of lunch break when we worked and our guards did not care where he went -He and his friends would make a little fire between the huts and cooked meals -They cooked food ,which they could buy from nearby shops, themselves with a pan -The prisoners were asked to line up and to number themselves -The soldier asked them to repeat after him as he counted in Japanese -When the soldier said ichi, meaning 'one', they started scratching ourselves all over. -Then the soldier said ni, they looked at our knees -Then the soldier said san, they looked at the sun -Then the soldier said go, they started marching off -The guard then chased after them, scolded them and asked them to count in Japanese -Learning to count in Japanese was useful as in Thailand, he would sometimes be woken up and asked to line up and number himself. If he did not know how to count, he would be slapped by the guards. - He thought the war would end in six months' time -All that changed when he were sent to work on the Death Railway in Siam Thoughts and Reflections about war and PoWs: I feel that we should cheerish our life now as we do not have to suffer like the PoWs did. We are very fortunate and lucky. As for the PoWs, I feel sorry for them. They were innocent and should not have been captured. We should not have war as the world is a place for harmony and peace. Therefore, we should work hard and not disppoint our family members. **
 * Mr Cleaver Rowell Ebecer's experience