Title of essay :
Biography & History
Reminiscences of the Japanese Occupation
Name
:
G. JAYHINDY
Year of Intake :
2001
Programme
Advanced Postgraduate Diploma in Primary Social Studies
:
Name of Tutor :
Dr Kevin Blackburn
Date of Submission : 26 October, 2002
Address
: National Institute of Education
1 Nanyang Walkway
Singapore 637616
Reminiscences of the Japanese Occupation
For the purpose of doing this oral history project, I am fortunate to have the
opportunity to interview an individual who had survived the Japanese Occupation. In
his seventies, Mr Rajoo is my uncle. He showed great enthusiasm and related his
experience in Tamil during the 3 hours interview. His accounts shed light on the ways
how individuals inject meanings to a particular subject.
Background
Mr Rajoo was born in 1930. He was the second son in a family of 10 children. His
family lived in a village in Sembawang which was near to one of the Naval Base
which was owned by the British. When the Japanese invaded Singapore, Rajoo’s
family staying in North of Singapore then they moved as far as Tampinese. His family
used a bullock cart to transport some of their properties. They stayed away from their
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home for a year. Then they returned to their village. So he had a chance to witness the
Japanese rule in other parts of Singapore as well as his own hometown.
The Dark Years of Japanese Occupation
The impending presence of the Japanese on Mr Rajoo’s daily life was felt as early as
1941. As a 11 years old boy, his family and he faced severe shortage of food and
other necessities like medical. ( Q1 ) When the British surrendered, they did not want
Japanese to enjoy the fruit of their labour. All the rice in the warehouse was sprayed
with limestone. As limestone is white, the Japanese did not suspect any foul play by
the British . So those who ate the rice had diarrhea . Japanese took over much of the
foodstuffs and other goods for the use of their army. Due to the food shortage,
essential food stuffs like rice, salt and sugar were controlled. Ration cards which
limited the amount of food for each person was given out. ( Q4 ) His family lived on
a simple diet and found other food substitutes for those food items which were scarce.
Tapioca and sweet potatoes were used as substitutes for rice ( Q3 ) and palm oil or
coconut oil was used as cooking oil. Even in schools pupils grew and took care of the
vegetable plots. This was the widespread situation in Singapore during the Syonan-To
years. Many historians have written about the food scarcity during the Syonan rule.
There are a lot of evidence to state that during the Japanese rule, many people
suffered from malnutrition and diseases as they did not have well balanced meal.
Those taken as prisoners of war also suffered under the iron grip of the Japanese and
many died out of malnutrition.
Transport during the Japanese reign
Mr Rajoo recalls bicycles being widely used as mode of transport during the Japanese
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reign. (Q6) So much so that even after the Japanese surrender, Rajoo and the other
villagers working in the Sembawang Shipyard used bicycles as means of transport to
travel to work. Tri-shaw which consisted of a bicycle with a side-car attached for a
fare-paying passenger replaced the former richshaw. He stated that the Japanese
bicycles had only thin solid rubber tyres. He also recalls in the interview to have seen
a lot of motorcars before the Japanese rule and not during the Syonan-To period.
Some historians state that there must have been tens of thousands of vehicles, many
new and the majority of the rest in good condition were used by the Japanese. These
great fleet of transport fell to the Japanese as booty, when they captured Singapore.
However, the lack of spare parts, or technical skill, or both, made the fleet diminish
rapidly to a deplorable state so much so that it almost faded by the time the Japanese
surrendered. Transport was a big problem for the local people throughout the
Occupation.(1) The Japanese were in control of the world’s rubber and many oil
fields.(2) They forced many motor vehicles to run on coal gases or inferior petrol
made from vegetable sources. Public vehicles dwindled and cars ceased to be
available for almost all other than Japanese.
School Experiences
Mr Rajoo recalled how he had to learn Japanese language in his school. He could still
recall some Japanese sentences. ( Q5 ) It is remarkable to know that even after 60
years he is able to remember some Japanese sentences.(Q5) All this had been instilled
in the young minds at a very tender impressionable age to gain people’s allegiance .
School children were taught to face the direction of Tokyo where the Japan Emperor
resided and sing the Japanese Anthem.(Q5 ) So the Japanese tried to influence the
school children to become patriotic towards Japan. This is another aspect of their rule
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where they tried out propagandas. Several historians have concurred the same
evidence regarding the Japanese intention to remove the western influence and
promote the Japanese culture and values. Japanese lessons were published in the
newspapers and broadcast over the radio. In order to encourage people to learn the
Japanese language, job privileges and extra allowances were given. Different methods
were used to influence the minds of the people in Singapore. Radio stations were
controlled by the Japanese and radio sets were sealed so that people could only listen
to local broadcasts. Those caught tuning in to foreign broadcasting stations were
severely punished or killed. Through the interview, I realized that Rajoo’s family and
the villagers also did not own any radios. They were afraid of being punished.
Japanese – The Disciplinarians
Throughout the Syonan-To rule, the people were constantly living in fear because the
Japanese took harsh action to establish control over the people. Those caught looting
were shot or beheaded and their heads were displayed at public places. Those who
were passing by must witness such a scene if not they will be called back to look
directly at the decapitated head. ( Q8 ) Barbed wire was also put up across roads to
form roadblocks. The Japanese guards would make the people passing by to bow to
them as a sign of respect. Anyone who did not do so would be slapped, killed or
punished in some ways. When the children forget to show respect to the Japanese
soldiers, these soldiers will use their knuckles to hit on the children’s forehead . Those
strong men found at home not working will be immediately sent to work. ( Q8 )
Those who were sick should still report to work. They despised men idling.
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The Japanese Treatment of the 3 main races in Singapore
According Mr Rajoo the Chinese suffered the most during the Japanese Occupation.
Many Chinese in Singapore had sent money to help China fight Japan. So the
Japanese wanted to weed out the anti-Japanese sentiment among the population. They
carried out the Sook Ching Operation. They ordered all Chinese men between 18 to
50 years of age to report at the mass screening centers. Then the men will be
questioned. The Japanese, however, had no proper way of finding out who were
against them. Those who the Japanese thought were against them were taken away in
lorries. Thousands of Chinese were taken in this way to Changi Beach or other
beaches where they were shot.( Q7 ) Some Chinese who very desperate to save their
lives disguised themselves as Indians or Malays to avoid the scrutiny of the Japanese
soldiers.
Mr Rajoo recalled that Japanese were not overly suspicious of Indians nor the
Malays. However, anybody who were thought to have acted against the Japanese
interest were severely dealt with. They will be either punished or killed. (Q7)
Japanese role in instigating nationalistic feeling
According to Mr Rajoo, the Japanese associated Indians in Singapore with Gandhi
and his movement in India. Gandhi was fighting for India’s freedom from the British
Colonial power. Japanese told the Indians in Singapore that Japan would help India to
get rid of the British rulers. They also wanted all Indians to join the Indian National
Army to fight the British in India. Subhas Chandra Bose, the founder of INA was
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allowed to come to Singapore to collect funds for his establishment. Historical facts
also seemed to prove the relevance of his statement.
From the interview, Mr Rajoo didn’t portray as someone anti-Japanese. Probably his
family and he did not really undergo much torture by the Japanese. He definitely
seemed to have welcomed the Japanese for one reason.
The Light of the South
From the interview one would deduce that Mr Rajoo strongly feels that the Japanese
brought on the nationalistic fervor among the citizens. ( Q9 ) Nationalistic feeling
caught onto some people like the forest fire and the thirst for independence was
ignited due to Syonan-To. He sincerely feels that Singaporeans have to thank the
Japanese for opening their eyes and realizing how vulnerable they were. Abandoned
by the Colonial master- the Supreme British, Singapore faced three and half years of
darkness in the hands of the Japanese. He believes that Syonan-To which means ‘the
Light of the South’ was shone in Singapore. He states that if the Japanese didn’t
occupy Singapore, till today we would have been a colonial state. So he ends off the
interview by stating that the ends justify the means. We owe our freedomindependence- to the Japanese. (Q9) Historians feel that Japanese Occupation had
awaken political consciousness of the masses.
Conclusion
This Oral History project has helped me to recover and record descriptions and
interpretations of ‘The Japanese Occupation’. Men like Mr Rajoo may not write
memoirs, biographies or diaries for the future generation to understand the subject but
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he carries with him the wealth of information. I am glad I interviewed him because his
contributions and perceptions are captured in this project.
Footnotes:
1.
Gilmour, O.W. With Freedom To Singapore Ernest Benn Limited , London
1950. p.122
2. Gilmour, O.W. With Freedom To Singapore Ernest Benn Limited , London
1950. p.122
Bibliography:
1. Chou, Cindy. Beyond the Empires. Memories Retold by Cindy Chou
National Heritage Board, 1995.
2. Donald A. Ritchie, Doing Oral History , New York: Twayne Publishers,
1995.
3. Gilmour, O.W. With Freedom To Singapore Ernest Benn Limited , London
1950
4. Goh, Chor Boon. Living Hell. Story of a WWII Survivor at the Death
Railway. Asiapac Books Pte Ltd, 1999.
5. Paul Ashton, On The Record: A Practical Guide to Oral History , Sydney:
North Sydeny Council, 1994
6. Shinozaki, Mamoru. My Wartime Experiences In Singapore
Institute Of SouthEast Asian Studies
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Reference:
Curriculum Planning & Development Division, Ministry of Education, Singapore.
Social Studies Textbook 4B : Discovering our world. The Dark Years, 1999.
History Alive – A Lower Secondary Oral History Project By Bukit Panjang
Government High School.
Http:// www.nhb.gov.sg/
PROFILE OF THE INTERVIEWEE :
Name of interviewee : Mr Rajoo
Age
: 72 years old
Nationality
: Singaporean
Pre-War occupation : Student
Language
: Tamil
Duration
: 3 hours
Venue
: Mr Rajoo’s Living room
Oral History Transcript
Excerpts From the Transcript of the Interview
Life during the Syonan-To period
Q1 : How do you know that the Japanese have invaded S’pore ?
Ans : Mmm.. We received some flyers dropped by Japanese fighter planes that they
are going to attack Singapore. The moment the first bomb was dropped in front
of my house in Sembawang , we knew the Japanese have come.
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Q2 : What did your family and you do when the Japanese bombed Singapore.
Ans : My father will bring the whole family to the bomb shelter to be protected. You
know our bomb shelters are very strong. There will be a candle and my mother
will always remember to take some dry food like nuts for us to eat if we have to
be stuck in there for hours.
Q3 : Can you tell me about the kind of food the people ate during the Japanese
Occupation.?
Ans : I was then 11 years old. I can still remember eating tapioca and sweet
potatoes. We hardly saw sugar. We only managed to get palm sugar“Gula Melaka”. Our coffee was without milk and that’s “ Kopi- O”. The
Japanese told us to grow our own food and vegetables. My father will put us on
guard duty to look after our plot of vegetables because we were afraid someone
will steal our food away. We hardly saw rice. Sometimes I catch the rice
floating in the drain because when the Japanese Soldiers finished eating, their
plates will be washed. So drain water will wash down the little left over food.
Then we bring back home and boil the same rice and eat.
Q4:
When did the situation of shortage of food improved?
Ans : Ah! I think when the Japanese started to give us ration food. We got
everything but in smaller quantities. They gave food according to the number
of people at home. Yeah! We got dried prawns, white maize flour to make
home bread, coffee and some other food. You see before the British
surrendered they didn’t want the Japanese soldiers to get all the rice which they
had stored in their warehouse. So they poured limestone onto the rice.
As limestone was white it blended well with the rice. So when the Japanese
occupied Singapore they did release the rice to us but many people
suffered from diarrhea .
Q5 :
Can you relate your school experience?
Ans : Mmm…I went to a Tamil medium school. If children were at home not
attending school then the Japanese will threaten us to attend school. At the
start of school, we have to bow to the North-East direction where the Japanese
Emperor is in Tokyo. The Japanese Anthem and a few patriotic songs
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must be sung. We had to learn the Japanese language. “Oh high yo go zai E
must. That’s –Good Morning. “Cone bun wa” that’s -Good Evening. “Oh ya su
mi na sai” That’s -Good Night. Actually I can still remember some Japanese
sentences. Then we start our lesson. Even in school we had a plot of land to
grow vegetables.
My response : You have good memory.
Q6: Can you tell me about the transport system during the Syonan-To period?
Ans: Yeah! Bicycles -you know and that’s their favourite. Before the Japanese, there
were richshaws , bullock carts, horse-carriages, cars and trolley buses. Japanese
introduced bicycles to us. Their bicycle tyres were different from what we have
today . Very thin solid tyres were used in bicycles. After the Japanese
occupation I was working in Sembawang Shipyard. So I travelled in a bicycle to
work. Many of my friends enjoyed riding bicycles. Then they had a bicycle
attached with a side-car attached for a fare paying passenger.
Q7:
How did the Japanese treated the different races in Singapore?
Ans : You know, I think they hated the Chinese the most. Ah ! I must tell you this.
My family and I were staying opposite the old K.K. Hospital near Farrer Park .
One morning you know, around ..mmm..5 a.m. a truck loaded with some men
arrived near the river. All the men were lined in a straight row along the river
The Japanese soldiers shot them. Some bodies fell into the river and some
collapsed. We were very scared of that incident. Those men were Chinese.
Who else could it be ? Some Chinese also came to my house to hide away
from the Japanese. My mother also gave her sari to one Chinese woman to
disguise her as an Indian. She applied charcoal on her face and hand to
blacken herself and pretended she was an Indian. I think ah ! The Malays and
Indians didn’t get the same treatment as the Chinese. Especially the Indians.
When they search your house they see us, they ask Gandhi, are you Gandhi ?
Then they leave you alone. To them Gandhi means the Indian leader fighting
the British Colonial rule. We were lucky in that sense.
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Q8: What sort of control did the Japanese had on the people?
Ans : Oh! They were strict. We must bow when we see them. They hated thieves
and looters. I have seen an amputated head and that was put on a pole and
displayed on the street. This is to deter the others from following suit. When I
passed by this head, I tried to look away. But the Japanese soldier made me spit
on the face of the head.
Q9 : What was your feeling about the Japanese Occupation?
Ans: ..Mmm. We all suffered but not so much. They were kind at times. They carried
out propaganda to influence our minds and made us show loyalty to Japan.
I think they tried to remove the western influence and promote Japanese culture
and values. But one thing about the Japanese – they must be considered as
someone who showed us the light to independence. They opened our eyes to the
outside world. You see the British – the big power couldn’t take care of us. The
Japanese, the Asian symbol proved that we needn’t be afraid of the British. If the
Japanese had not come to Singapore, then even today we maybe the British
colony. Oh! They made us realize the need for independence. Thanks to them, we
are not under anybody’s rule now.
Thanks a lot for sharing with me your invaluable experience about the Japanese
Occupation, uncle Rajoo.
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