Vets urge recording stories of war for posterity

REMEMBERING THE WAR Veterans and antiwar advocates gather in a Quezon City forum on Tuesday to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Japanese forces’ attack in Manila, which marked the outbreak of World War II in the Pacific. The group batted for the documentation of war stories from survivors, with Sen. Cynthia Villar (standing, fourth from left) urging for the inclusion of narratives from the remaining four so-called “comfort women” who were forced to work as sex slaves of Japanese soldiers. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

HIS HANDS shook as he grasped the microphone and recalled how Japanese soldiers killed thousands of innocent Filipinos and Chinese when World War II broke out more than 70 years ago.

But Dee Kong Hi’s eyes and voice never faltered even as he vividly described the torture and murders, the razing of houses and stores, and the cruelty of Japanese soldiers who invaded the Philippines during the war.

“It was very difficult back then. People were being killed and there was nothing to eat,” said the 92-year-old former member of a Chinese guerrilla group that liberated several towns from the enemy.

Dee, his fellow veterans and Filipino “comfort women” were among those who gathered on Tuesday to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Manila, which signaled the start of World War II.

At a forum in Kamuning, Quezon City, the veterans and antiwar advocates stressed the importance of recording the stories of war heroes for the benefit of future generations.

100 stories

So far, only about 100 stories from some 400,000 veterans have been recorded for posterity.

“We hope to do more and to preserve as much of history (as we can), because when these veterans are gone, we are left with only secondhand information about the war,” said Miguel Angelo Villa-Real, vice president for corporate affairs of Philippine Veterans Bank.

Philippine Veterans Bank has linked up with other veterans groups, as well as Spyron AV Manila, a group of cinematic storytellers that have produced seven documentaries, three coffee table books and another book on the heroism of Filipinos during World War II.

Lucky Guillermo, managing director of Spyron AV Manila, said the group was making the rounds of schools to publicize the stories of World War II veterans and bring war history closer to today’s generation.

“We have an advocacy to bring our roadshow to the youth. We will do our best so that these stories are not forgotten,” Guillermo said.

Villa-Real lamented that an average of 6,000 veterans pass away each year due to old age or illness.

Out of around 385,000 veterans recognized by the Philippine government, only 10,000 are still alive. The veterans’ widows number around 40,000.

War trauma

“We have done several projects with veterans’ groups,” Villa-Real said.

So far we have recorded on video the experiences and statements of around 100 veterans. It has to be the effort of many, and we are planning to publicize it through the Internet,” he added.

But getting veterans to talk about their war experiences isn’t easy, the corporate affairs official said. Some choose not to talk about the war even with their families because of the trauma it had caused them.

“We try to get them in a good mood to talk, but so many pass away each year. It’s a rush for us (to work on this) before it’s too late,” Villa-Real said.

Dee, who remains nimble despite his age, recounted how the war changed his life. He was 18 when war broke out in the Philippines the day after Pearl Harbor was bombed.

He was in San Pablo, Laguna, then, he said, adding that he immediately joined the Wha Chi 48th Squadron, a group of Chinese volunteer fighters who helped liberate several towns from Japanese control.

“The Japanese claimed that Asia was for us Asians. But it was very difficult to live in those times. Thousands of people were being killed, and there was nothing to eat,” Dee recalled.

Comfort women

In San Pablo alone, some 600 Chinese were killed at the start of the war, he said. Thousands more were killed in Manila, Laguna, Batangas and Iloilo.

“The Japanese said they had work for the people. They made the people dig a trench, and then separated them into groups of five. The people were tied up, while officers were stabbed with a bayonet and soldiers were shot. The Japanese also looted stores,” the veteran recalled.

Filipino “comfort women,” young women taken from their families and forced to serve as sex slaves of Japanese soldiers, shared their war memories as well. Out of 174 members of the comfort women advocacy group Lila Pilipina, only four are alive.

Rechilda Extremadura, executive director of the group, lamented that the Japanese government failed to act on the UN recommendation that asked Japan, as a state, to take responsibility for the war atrocities.

The remaining women, now in their 90s, never wavered in their demand for an unequivocal apology, inclusion in Japan’s history, and compensation, Extremadura said.

“I don’t think we have much time left. The lolas (former comfort women who are now grandmothers) are aging fast and becoming weak(er). Some 70 years after the lives of these women were ruined, they still do not have justice,” said the Lila Pilipina leader.

Defining moment

Japanese Emperor Akihito, who was expected to make a state visit next year should address his country’s responsibility over the issue of militarized sex slavery that victimized Asian women, Extremadura added.

Sen. Cynthia Villar called on Philippine Veterans Bank to also document the personal stories of the four remaining comfort women.

Jerry Adevoso, a former assistant secretary for veterans’ affairs, said that some 3,000 stories of war veterans had been written down for posterity in the veterans’ archives.

The war was a defining moment in Philippine history, he said, and one that revealed the courage of Filipinos in the face of danger.

“Filipinos prefer oral, rather than written history,” Adevoso said. “(But) I’m afraid that future generations will forget if we don’t write it down.” With a report from Marjorie T. Sia, trainee