People who sacrifice for Singapore.

Lim Bo Seng

Lim Bo Seng was a staunch anti-Japanese even before the war had started. He was also an active contributor of the China Relief Fund and was later made the Director of the Labour Service Department in the newly formed Singapore Chinese Mobilization Council. Certain that he would be a target of reprisals for the Japanese, he was compelled to flee Singapore just before it capitulated.

He managed to reach Sumatra where he then made his way to Colombo and finally to Calcutta in India where he met a British officer, Basil Good fellow, who persuaded him to join the British efforts in setting up a joint China-Britain network in Malaya. This resistance force was then known as force 136.

How he was captured and killed.

Lim was captured by the Japanese under Marshal Ōnishi Satoru (大西覚) at a roadblock in Gopeng around March-April 1944. He was taken to the Kempeitai headquarters for interrogation and he refused to provide the Japanese with any information about Force 136 despite being subjected to severe torture. Instead, he protested against the ill treatment of his comrades in prison. He fell ill with dysentery and was bedridden by the end of May 1944. Lim died in the early hours on 29 June 1944. He was later buried behind the Batu Gajah prison compound in an unmarked spot. After the Japanese surrender, Lim's wife, Gan Choo Neo, was informed of her husband's death by the priest of St. Andrew's School. Gan travelled with her eldest son to bring her husband's remains home later.

Lim's remains arrived at the Tanjong Pagar railway station in Singapore on 7 December 1945. Upon arrival, the hearse was sent off by a large procession of British officers and prominent businessmen, from the station to Hock Ann Biscuit Factory in Upper Serangoon Road, via Armenian Street. On the same day, a memorial service for Lim was held at the Tong Teh Library of the Kuomintang Association in Singapore.^[9]

A funeral service was held on 13 January 1946 at City Hall to mourn Lim's death. Lim's remains was transported in a coffin to a hill in MacRitchie Reservoir(coordinates: 1°20'31.76"N 103°49'50.60"E) for burial with full military honours. Lim was posthumously awarded the rank of Major General (少將) by the Republic of China Nationalist Government.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lim_Bo_Seng date accessed: 16/2/2013

Elizabeth Choy

Elizabeth Choy Su-Meiwas born on 29 November 1910 in Kudat, Sabah. She was a Hakka from North Borneo. During the Japanese Occupation, together with her husband, she worked as a canteen operator at a hospital where patients from General Hospital had been moved to.  

Elizabeth Choy and her husband secretly brought food, medicine, money, messages and even radios to British internees. Unfortunately, they were caught by the Japanese. Her husband was arrested on 29 October while she was arrested on 15 November 1943. The Kempeitai thought that they had given information to the British which led to the sinking of several Japanese ships in Keppel Harbour in 1943. 

Elizabeth Choy was imprisoned in a small cell for 193 days with 20 other prisoners in the old YMCA building. During her imprisonment, she was badly tortured by the Kempeitai. The Kempeitai made her kneel down on a frame of three-sided wood. They tied her hands behind her back and also her legs. She could not move at all. Then, they brought her husband and he was made to kneel beside the frame to watch her being tortured. They slapped and kicked her and gave her the ‘electric shock’ treatment. The pain was extremely unbearable.

Despite being terribly tortured, Elizabeth Choy refused to confess. After 193 days, she was released from the prison. Her husband was released much later. After the war, she was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in recognition of her valour in 1946 during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore. She was known as a war heroine. 

Elizabeth Choy also became Singapore's first woman in the Legislative Council in 1951 and she was also recognised as a dedicated educator. She started teaching first at St. Margaret's School and later St. Andrew's School; and was the first principal of the Singapore School for the Blind in 1956. At the age of 96, Elizabeth Choy passed away on 14 September 2006.

http://singaporeheroes.weebly.com/elizabeth-choy.html date accessed:16/2/2013

How the Japanese treated me.

The Japanese treated me as their slave. And the other POWs too. We thought life was done. We all are going to die during World war II. They treated us like punching bags. They beat us up when they want to and also let us starve. That is why some POWs were so skinny. They affect my mindset. And also they made me hated Japan so much. Singaporeans suffer because of them. They would kill us even if we make our slight mistakes.

Japanese surrendered 1945

The Japanese surrendered to General MacArthur on board an American battleship, Missouri, in Tokyo Bay at 9 am on 2 September 1945, officially ending the WWII. Two weeks later, on 12 September 1945 at 11:10 am, another Japanese surrender ceremony was held at the Municipal Building of Singapore (now known as City Hall), which was accepted by Lord Louis Mountbatten. It officially ended the Japanese Occupation of Southeast Asia. 

Surrender ceremony on board the American battleship Missouri in Tokyo Bay

The Japanese representatives were made up of Foreign Minister Mr Shigemitsu, General Umezu of the Imperial General Headquarters, and nine others; three each from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Navy and the Army. The Instrument of Surrender were signed by Mr Shigemitsu as "by command of and on behalf of the Emperor of Japan and the Government of Japan" and General Umezu who signed as "'by command of the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters". They had initially made a request that they be allowed to sign as "by command of and on behalf of the Emperor of Japan" with accordance to the Japanese constitution but this request was denied.

The Allies were represented by General MacArthur who signed on behalf of the Allied Powers, Admiral Nimitz for the United States, Admiral Fraser for Great Britain, General Blamey for Australia, Colonel L. M. Cosgrove for Canada, Air Vice-Marshall L. M. Isitt for New Zealand, General Hsu Yung-chang for China, General P. Leclerc for France, Admiral C. E. L. Helfrich for the Netherlands and Lieut-General K. N. Derevyanko for Russia.

General MacArthur was assigned the duty of administering the occupation of Japan, which lasted till 1952. During this occupation, many high-ranking Japanese officials were tried and were either executed or given long-serving sentences.

Surrender ceremony at Municipal Building of Singapore (now known as City Hall)

On 12 September 1945, Lord Louis Mountbatten, accompanied by the Deputy Supreme Commander Wheeler, was driven to the ceremony by a released prisoner of war. As the car drove by the streets, sailors and marines from the East Indies Fleet who had lined up the streets greeted them. At the Municipal Building, Mountbatten was received by his Commanders-in Chief and all high-ranking Allied Officers in Singapore. Also gathered in front of the Municipal Building were four guards of honour, from the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, Australian paratroopers, and the Indian army. Lord Mountbatten led an inspection of the officers before proceeding to the chamber where the ceremony was to be held. During the inspection, a fleet of band was playing the song 'Rule Britannia!'concurrently with the firing of seventeen-gun salute by the Royal Artillery.

The Instrument of Surrender was signed by General S. Itagaki, who signed on behalf of Aisarchi Terauchi, Field Marshall Count, Supreme Commander of the Imperial Japanese Forces, Southern Region. Terauchi was not able to attend the surrender ceremony as he had fallen ill due to a stroke. He surrendered personally to Mountbatten on 30 September 1945 in Saigon. He also surrendered his two swords; a short sword forged in the 16th century and a long sword forged in the 13th century. Mountbatten later presented the short sword to King George VI.

The Japanese signed a total of 11copies of the Instrument of Surrender; one each for the British, American, Chinese, French, Dutch, Australian, Indian and the Japanese governments; and one each for King George VI, the Supreme Commander and the South East Asia Command's records.

The ceremony was also witnessed by 400 spectators made up commanders and officers from the navy, army and air force, as well as senior officers from the Supreme Headquarters, leaders of the Malayan communities, Sultan of Johore, Sir Ibrahim, and released prisoners of war, whom were all seated behind the Allied representatives. In the chamber, flags of Allied forces were hung and at the bases of it's pillars stood one officer representing the different fighting forces; the Gurkhas, Sikhs, Australians, British airmen, Dutch, Americans, French (from the "Richelieu") and the 5th Indian Division.

The surrender ceremony finally ended with the hoisting of the Union Jack flag and the playing of the national anthems of all the Allied nations. This was the same flag used by General Percival when he surrendered to the Japanese and had been kept concealed in the Changi prison during the occupation.

http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_123_2005-02-03.html Date accessed: 16/2/13

Civilian War memorial

The Civilian War Memorial is a monument dedicated to civilians who perished during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore (1942-1945). It is located on a parkland, along Beach Road, opposite Raffles City, in the Downtown Core of Singapore's Central Region. The structure of four pillars soar to more than 68 m symbolising the shared 'war experiences' of the Chinese, Indians, Malays, and other races. It resembles two pairs of chopsticks, so it is affectionately called the "chopsticks" memorial because of its unusual design. Since its completion and unveiling on 15 February, 1967, exactly 25 years after the "Fall of Singapore", every year on 15 February, ex-servicemen, families and others gather at the memorial to commemorate that fateful day. 

HistoryIn World War II, Singapore fell to the Japanese Forces, who occupied Singapore from 15 February 1942 to 15 September 1945. The total loss of civilian lives in the 'Battle for Singapore' remains uncertain. A major massacre was that of "Operation Sook Ching" (which literally means "to purge" or "to eliminate"). The atrocities which occurred started on 18 February 1942, shortly after the fall of Singapore. Among the civilians who lost their lives were a large number of Chinese. The torture and killing was a mass exercise to wipe out potential threats. These atrocities continued until the Japanese surrendered in World War II. The numbers of those taken away and massacred can never be accessed, but unofficial figures put the number of dead at about 50,000 people.

Discovery of Human Remains
On 15 February 1962, in a headline, "Mass war graves found in Siglap's 'valley of death'", the Straits Times reported the discovery of five separate war graves located in a "Valley of Tears" in the Siglap area. Twenty years ago, on its rugged countryside, hundreds of civilians of which a large number were Chinese residents, were rounded up by the Japanese Army, machine-gunned, and buried in several places. The massacres by the Japanese took place during their occupation in 1942-1945. The human remains were uncovered during sandwashing operations in an area off the 7.5 mile Siglap Road. Subsequent investigations were carried out by the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce team of Messers. Ng Aik Huang, Toh Keng Tuan, and Lam Thian

http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_516_2004-12-23.html

Date accessed: 16/2/13

Fort Canning (Bukit Larangan)

According to the Malay Annals (Sejarah Melayu) Raja Chulan a great king of South India encamped in Temasek on his voyage to conquer China. He abandoned his enterprise and later married a princess and their son was Sang Nila Utama who became ruler of the Indianesed Srivijaya Empire based in Sumatra. He took the title of Sri Tri Buana. When he landed in Temasek in 1297 he mistook an animal to be a lion and named the settlement Singapura meaning 'lion city'. He built his palace on the hill nearby (Fort Canning) and fortified it; the hill became known as Bukit Larangan (the forbidden hill) because the ruler lived there and his subjects were forbidden from ascending the hill. It was only after 1819 (the year modern Singapore was founded by Stamford Raffles) that Bukit Larangan became known as Government Hill (Raffles built his house there) and in 1859 it was renamed Fort Canning after Viscount George Canning, Governor of India (1857 - 1862).

Bukit Larangan was protected by a wall 16 feet broad at the base and about 9 feet high; it ended in a moat at the base of the hill which was protected on three sides - the salt marsh on the left, the sea in front and the wall on the right.

There was a monolith 10 feet and 10 feet and 2.5 feet thick with writing at the mouth of the Singapore River. It was a tragedy that this ancient piece of historical evidence was blown up by the British soon after the founding of Singapore. The writing on the monolith would have thrown some light on the early history of Temasek.

Archaeological work undertaken by the National Museum and the National University of Singapore shows evidence of ruins of buildings on the summit of the hill. They can be interpreted to be the remains of a Buddhist temple or Chandi and monasteries of Buddhist priest. The excavations unearthed Malay wares, pieces of Chinese porcelain, brass coins and other artifacts.

In 1822 Raffles built his own house on the Hill and therefore it became the first Government House in Singapore. Government House was a neat bungalow 100 feet by 50 feet deep with rough plank walls, Venetian windows and an attap roof. It was later substantially reconstructed and stood on the Government House in brick and tile after 1826. Coleman also extended the first Botanic Gardens on the North-East of the Hill and this covered the area now occupied by the Anglo-Chinese School, Coleman Street, the Armenian Church and the National Museum. Unfortunately the Botanic Gardens were abandoned in 1829 because of the lack of funds to maintain it.

The first Christian cemetery was established on the Hill which was now known as Government Hill; it ceased to be used in 1822 and the new one was consecrated in 1834.

Between 1923 and 1927 the old fort was demolished and what remains today is only the massive gateway.

A gun was fired from Fort Canning as a salute and to warn the public of fires in the Town; it was also a time gun fired at 5.00 a.m., 12 noon and 9 p.m. This ceased in 1896.

When World War I had started Singapore Based District at Fort Canning had arranged that in case of an emergency a big gun would be fired from the Hill. It was a signal for all units of armed forces to report to their respective headquarters at once; these included all units in the East and West coast, those in the Clubs and homes lying within a certain distance of Fort Canning. The gun was fired when the mutiny of Indian soldiers occurred in 1915 and all units reported to their headquarters including the Straits Settlements Volunteer Force which comprised Chinese, Malays, and Eurasian. These volunteers reported to the Drill Hall at Beach Road.

During the Japanese occupation Fort Canning became the Defence Headquarters of the Japanese Imperial Army headed by Major-General Kawamura.

In 1945 September the British returned and soon after occupied Fort Canning.

When Singapore was part of British from 1963 to 1965 Fort Canning was taken over by the Malaysian Armed Forces; the 4th Malaysian Infantry Brigade under Brigadier Alsagoff occupied the Fort.

After separation from Malaysia the Malaysian forces withdrew to Malaysia and the Singapore Armed Forces took over Fort Canning.

The first Singapore and Command Staff College was established in 1970 in the main administrative block (after extensive renovations) once occupied by Percival and Brigadier Alsagoff. It was officially opened by the Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew on 13 February, 1970. The author was appointed (the first Singaporean) to be a member of the Directing Staff of the College. The College later moved to Ayer Rajah and finally to its present premises in Seletar.

Today Fort Canning has been converted into a Historical Park and most of the buildings have been converted for the Arts. What still remain on the Hill are the Old Gateway, the tombstone 

http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/singapore/world_war_2_military_site/137/fort_canning__bukit_larangan.php

Date accessed:16Feb2013

The Gate is the final remnant of the park's namesake fortress that once stood on the hill. A narrow stairway behind the door leads up to the roof over the gate, allowing sentries access to the parapets atop the wall

BATTLE BOX

This war memorial is located in the hillside of Fort Canning. It is the largest underground command centre of the British Malaya Command Headquarters during World War II. It has 22 rooms, all linked by a corridor.

A unique feature of this ’hideout’ is that it is resistant to bombings and can recycle its own air supply, making it a good place for issuing commands. After the war, the Battle Box was restored, using special audio-visual effects, and high-quality animatronics.

http://www2.hci.edu.sg/y09hci0003/content.html (Date accessed: 16 Feb 2013)

Changi Prison 1936

First prison and POW camp

Changi Prison was constructed by the British administration of the Straits Settlements as a civilian prison, in 1936.

During World War II, following the Fall of Singapore in February 1942, the Japanese military detained about 3,000 civilians in Changi Prison, which was built to house only 600 prisoners. The Japanese used the British Army's Selarang Barracks, near the prison, as a prisoner of war camp, holding some 50,000 Allied—predominantly British and Australian—soldiers and since 1943 some Dutch civilians brought over by the Japanese from the islands in the then Dutch East Indies now Indonesia.^[1] Although POWs were rarely, if ever, held in the civilian prison, the name Changi became synonymous in the UK, Australia,The Netherlands and elsewhere with the POW camp.

About 850 POWs died during their internment in Changi during the Japanese Occupation of Singapore,^[2] a relatively low rate compared to the overall death rate of 27% for POWs in Japanese camps.^[3] However, many more prisoners died after being transferred from Changi to various labour campsoutside Singapore, including the Burma Railway and the Sandakan airfield.

Allied POWs, mainly Australians, built a chapel at the prison in 1944 using simple tools and found materials. British airman Stanley Warren painted a series of murals at the chapel. Another British POW, Sgt. Harry Stodgen built a Christian cross out of a used artillery shell. After the war, the Chapel was dismantled and shipped to Australia, while the cross was sent to the UK. The chapel was reconstructed in 1988, and is now located at the Royal Military College Duntroon, Canberra. After the war, the prison was briefly used to hold Japanese and other soldiers who were held on suspicion of having committed war crimes. British soldiers were stationed there as prison guards.

 many prisoners at Changi during the war as they thought that Kempeitai

The prison also contained the Headquarters of the Kempeitai, the Japanese secret police who tortured many of those prisoners to be spies.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changi_Prison Date accessed: 16/2/2013

The changi Prison

The POWs ( Prisoners of War)

Old Ford Factory (1942)

The factory is the site of the historic surrender of the British to the Japanese on 15 February 1942, at the end of the Battle of Singapore in World War II. It was here that the meeting between Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival and General Tomoyuki Yamashita was held and the surrender document signed. Then British Prime Minister Winston Churchill referred to that event as the "worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history"; it was also widely seen as a turning point for anti-colonialism in Southeast Asia.

The factory was built by Ford Motor Works in October, 1941 and became Ford's first motor car assembly plant in Southeast Asia. However, Japanese forces invaded Singapore shortly thereafter. During the Malayan Campaign, the Factory’s modern assembly equipment was used by the Royal Air Force to assemble fighter planes. The planes came in parts that were shipped to Singapore in crates. However, most of these aircraft never fulfilled their destiny of defending Malaya. They were flown out of Singapore towards the end of January 1942, when prospects for Singapore looked bleak. Many battles were fought around the areas of the Ford Factory in Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang, Bukit Batok and Bukit Timah. The factory was subsequently taken over by the Japanese Imperial Army and used as its military headquarters. Following British surrender, Japanese forces relocated its headquarters to Raffles College along Bukit Timah road.

During the Japanese Occupation, the Factory was designated as a butai or Japanese facility. Nissan, which was then a prominent zaibatsu or Japanese multinational company, took over the plant to assemble military trucks and other vehicles for the Japanese occupying forces.

The Ford Motor Factory resumed operations after the war in 1947 and was finally shut down in June 1980. On 7 February 2006, the Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB) announced that it would gazette the historic factory for preservation as a national monument on the 64th anniversary of the surrender on 15 February 2006.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Ford_Motor_Factory 16/2/2013

The food planted there are the food the people eat during the war. Food such as tapioca, sweet potato  etc.

We commemorate Total Defence day on every 15 February is to remember the day where the British surrendered to the Japanese.

This is a picture of the British surrendering to the Japanese.

Bukit Chandu (13 February-14 February)

Bukit Chandu, Opium Hill in Malay, is a historical site where the brave battle between the Japanese and British took place in Singapore during World War II. The Malay Regiment, which fought together with the British, was led by Lt Adnan Bin Saidi, a man known amongst Singaporeans for his valour during the war.

The battle at Bukit Chandu was fierce and unfortunate, for the defenders had lesser soldiers and weapons to start out with. The Japanese successfully launched several heavy attacks which managed to shatter the defence line. By this point, many lives were already lost, and the Malay Regiment leader was badly injured.

Nonetheless, the fighting spirit in Lt Adnan spurred him and his men to keep fighting. Instead of surrendering to the Japanese, who were getting frustrated by their defiance, Lt Adnan continued to battle hard, and encouraged his men to do the same. The prospect of surrendering was shameful – they would not be able to live with the guilt, knowing that they did not fight to the last man, nor would they be able to face their families, who were patiently waiting for them at home with much faith.

Due to the far contrast in strength of soldiers and weapons, the Japanese eventually won the battle. Many defending soldiers were taken as Prisoners of War, while Lt Adnan was captured and tortured ruthlessly under a rubber tree, before bayoneted to death. His body was never found and it is believed that the tree can found at Pepys Road, Carpark B. Many have sought to look for this infamous tree during their trip to the War World II-themed museum, Reflections at Bukit Chandu nearby.

http://yesterday.sg/urban-legends-folklore/battle-at-bukit-chandu/ Date accessed:16/2/2013

A short video about the history of Bukit Chandu ( Pasir Panjang). (language in malay. with sub)

Our war hero, Lieutenant Adnan bin Saidi

The Kranji War Memorial

Kranji War Memorial honors the men from Britain, Australia, Canada, Sri Lanka, India, Malaya, the Netherlands and New Zealand who gave their lives defending Singapore in World War II. 

There are more than 4,000 graves of servicemen who died during the Japanese Occupation stand in neat rows on manicured lawns. Also, more than 20,000 names of soldiers and air force men who died but whose bodies were never recovered are inscribed on 12 columns. 

The War Memorial represents the three branches of the military - the Air Force, Army and Navy. 

The columns represent the Army, which marches in columns, the cover over the columns is shaped after of the wings of a plane, representing the Air Force, and the shape at the top resembles the periscope of a submarine, representing the Navy. 

This is my own personal knowledge. Some of the graves at the Kranji War Memorial are not correctly identified. It is because during the war, there were too many people dead and some were dead unidentified. There are not only soldiers buried there but also ordinary people of different races buried there.

People are also allowed to pay a respect on these soldiers. 
http://www2.hci.edu.sg/y09hci0003/content.html Date accessed: 16/2/2013

Sook Ching

The Sook Ching Massacre was the extreme act of exterminating the enemy used by the Japanese during World War II. This was carried out in Singapore on the Chinese after the surrender of the British to the Japanese on 15 February, 1942. The term, Sook Ching comes from a Chinese word meaning a purge through cleansing. This ruthless and massacre lasted from 18 February, 1942 to 4 March, 1942. It was carried out at various places including Punggol Beach and Changi Beach. The reason behind this massacre was because the Japanese were concerned about the local Chinese as many of them were either very loyal to Britain or China, both enemies of Japan. 

The most brutal massacre that occurred in the history of Singapore happened on 20 February 1942. 66 Chinese men were lined up along the Changi Beach and were then shot by the military police. The Punggol Beach massacre had cost a total 300 to 400 innocent men. Despite all this, it is unclear as to how many people have died from this extermination as there is a lack of records. However, official Japanese figures show that there are around 5 000 while the Singapore Chinese Community figures shows a shocking total of 100 000. Through postwar trial testimonies however, the suggested total is 25 000 to 50 000. 

In 1947, the British Colonial authorities in Singapore held a trial involving war crimes during the Japanese occupation. Through this, seven officers, Lieutenant General Takuma Nishimura, Lieutenant General Saburo Kawamura, Lieutenant Colonel Masayuki Oishi, Lieutenant Colonel Yoshitaka Yokata, Major Tomotatsu Jo, Major Satoru Onishi and Captain Haruji Hisamatsu were found guilty and were charged with carrying out the massacre. Kawamura and Oishi received the death penalty while the others received life sentences. However, during a subsequent trial Nishimura was convicted for his part in the Parit Sulong massacre by an Australian Military Court and hanged.

http://www2.hci.edu.sg/y09hci0003/content.html Date accessed: 16/2/2013