Unit 731: The Forgotten Asian Auschwitz

Uncovering Unit 731 #1

by Derek Pua

"Unit 731: The Forgotten Asian Holocaust by Derek Pua, is not for the faint of heart. It is, however, for anyone wanting to more clearly understand the extent of Imperial Japanese war crimes. This brief, dispassionate, and factual book outlines the creation and development of Unit 731, an organization that employed thousands of Japanese scientists who conducted nightmarish experiments on an untold number of human guinea pigs, all in the name of medical research.​ Even if one cannot stomach the details included in Unit 731:The Forgotten Asian Holocaust, a basic knowledge of these atrocities should be more widely known, if only in the hope that history will never repeat itself in this horrific manner."-Kathryn Atwood, Authorkathrynatwood.com The Japanese invasion of China during the Second Sino-Japanese war has left a strong legacy of hate and disgust among many Chinese today. Much of the atrocities committed by the Japanese are now known to most historians, but by far, the most despicable and forgotten act against humanity committed by the Imperial Japanese government was its covert biochemical weapons program. Euphemistically labelled as the "Epidemic Prevention and Water Purification Department" of the Imperial Japanese Army, the Japanese conducted a wide range of cruel and inhumane experiments on prisoner who were often innocent.Under the leadership of Dr. Shiro Isshi, the department subjected 3,000-250,000 innocent men, women, and children to cruel experiments and medical procedures that were carried out by the brightest medical students and staff that Imperial Japan had to offer. In a bid to develop its own germ warfare capability, the government of Imperial Japan resorted to incredibly deprived and inhumane methods of experimentation, like infecting prisoners with virulent strains of anthrax, plague, cholera, and other diseases. These prisoners were often subject to excruciating vivisections without the use of anesthesia in order to observe the real-time effects of these deadly diseases.Perhaps the most shocking development after the war was that the perpetrators of this heinous crime against humanity have largely escaped persecution unlike their Nazi counterparts in Europe. In a cowardly attempt to escape persecution by the Soviets, Dr. Shiro Isshi and his staff were able to trade the information obtained from their experiments with the Americans in return for immunity in the Tokyo Trials.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Asia, War, World War II, Japan, Audiobook

49 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 11, 2018

Reviews

[Paul Ataua · Rating 3 out of 5]

It really is a very dry telling of the story of Unit 731, and one that will only be worth reading if you have no knowledge at all about the horrific experiments and atrocities committed by Unit 731 during the Second Sino-Japanese war and the Second World War. There is a part of me that welcomes the revelations and another part of me that feels there is a need to start writing about these kinds of things from the point of view of the perpetrators rather than from that of the victims who suffered at the hands of, what seems to me, a group of anonymous people. The anonymity seems to allow us to see those perpetrators as non human and unlike us. Let them talk about their reasons, how it felt, and how it feels now. I feel that might push us to begin looking at ourselves in the mirror.

[James Scholz · Rating 2 out of 5]

interesting topic, ok book. the wikipedia article about 731 has more substance

[Serenity · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. Very heartbreaking. If you haven't read anything about Unit 731 or The Rape of Nanking, this is like a cliff notes version. Sickening to read that the USA knew about what was going on and did nothing because they wanted the research results.

[Jana Milutinovic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confronting but important to know what humans are capable of.

[Weixiang · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang, I got interested in the atrocities that was done in the torture chambers of Unit 731. Unit 731 is a set of medical centers for research and development that's headed by Hiroishi. They were set up during the second world war to experiment on methods of biological warfare. Since the Japanese were not in the Genova convention, they could do whatever the hell they want during WWII, which includes human experimentations. This condense book gives a quick overview of the acts that were done by Unit 731.

It's horrific and would not recommend this to anyone who has doesn't have the stomach for it. Since it goes into some details on what was done to the humans in that lab. What surprised me the most from this short pamphlet is the number of prisoners of war that were from the US, Great Britain, and Soviet. According to this book of horrors, out of the 10k human guinea pigs that were experimented on, there were at least 1400 that were from the US, Great Britain, and Soviet Russia. Since I thought all of them were either from Han China, Korea, or the lower southeast Asia region.

This book also spends sometime into the background of Hiroishi, who is pretty much a sociopath.

I wish there was more information on Unit 731. Still, there are not many sources left due to the destruction of lab materials. There is also not much information left about this torture chamber, as many doctors in Unit 731 later lived lovely and calmed lives. Some living as head of Japanese hospitals, and even became committees for the Olympics.

Humans are the greatest devil ever lived, this is Unit 731, the forgotten Asian Auschwitz.

[R Nair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time I delve into the history of mankind:



And yet, it is important to continue finding and reading such books, irrespective of how heart-rending the stories within them may be.
To remember these people and these stories might be the only way to keep the worst of human history from repeating itself.

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

wikipedia told me more about this then this book did

[Joe Borg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why were the atrocities done by the Japanese during the last war kept hidden from the public unlike what everybody knows what the Germans did ? Did the Americans have a hand in the cover up ? Was it because the victims were not Jews but prisoners of war from the Far East? The Japanese did a good job in burning everything from the places of experimentation to the papers and the victims or "logs" as they were called . Why were the perpetrators of these atrocities were never brought to justice ? The Japanese tried to defend the work undertaken by the unit as research on epidemic prevention. But what about the planned US biological attack "cherry blossoms at night " on San Diego California?
The atrocities of units 731 and 100 are skimmed through in this booklet but I feel that its value is in the number of references where one can delve deeper in to the subject. Up to some years ago there were still victims suffering as a result of the biochemicals used during the war Something I was not aware was the fact that the hidden casks with the bio chemicals which were hidden in the ground were still effective and builders in China stumbled upon them in 2003.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard to leave a rating for something like this - it's a very difficult subject to read about, but I believe that it is something that everyone should at least know about.
Book was very short and to the point - could have been longer with more details/stories from survivors etc.

[Jason Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. History is so fucked up.

[Norma · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was well written but EXTREMELY short. It had potential to be a good book but instead it was meh.

[Krisko Isackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

reads like a long wikipedia article, which is to say this works well as an adequate if bland introduction to what unit 731 was

[Ceri Westcott · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was this written by copy and pasting wikipedia articles?

[issy sellek · Rating 3 out of 5]

informative but also really horrible

[George Florin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great read to introduce the topic. I would have liked more details on it. Although he mentions that most of the info was burned at the end of the war.

[Luis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ufff… i had hear over this but I didn’t know all the atrocities that were committed. Too brutal :(

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know Unit 731 was a thing until I saw it on a history page on social media. I started off with the kindle unlimited version since it would be a quick read. The author mentions another book in the beginning that goes into further details of this horrifying part of history. I gave this book 3 stars because it seemed very repetitive. The details of the tests and experiments that were conducted seemed to be written over and over again but in different words.

I looked more into Unit 731 and read horrible things about raping women, cutting people open still awake etc. The book mainly talked about biological warfare, which is interesting, but I would have liked to have a broader spectrum of everything that went on.

After reading this book I will be reading other books based on unit 731.

[Jesse Deleon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A shameful truth is exposed.

Thank you Derek Pua for your writing of this historic truth. I had only read of this this unit in fiction thrillers. Am hopeful that others will share hidden secrets from that time. The truth is out there and will be told.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a sobering account of World War 2 history that is not well known. It's astounding to think this hasn't been publicized widely.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good albeit tragic read. A sad part of history not often taught in school.

[Brianne Ingraham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting. I wish there was more

This is a good read if you don't know much about Unit 731. I would have liked a little more.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a very short read & wish It contained more information. I would recommend reading the Rape of Nanking and then follow up with this book so it gives you a better understanding.

[Mustakim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too short.

[M_ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unit 731: The Forgotten Asian Auschwitz is a very short book (only 82 pages with large font and several blurry photos and maps) with very little expansion on bullet points, all of which can be found on the Internet.

There ARE reasons one cannot find much information on Unit 731, however. A mass cover-up by the Japanese government, the destruction of most incriminating evidence, and the obscure existence of survivors living in shame, all lend a hand in making Unit 731 disappear from history. It was also mentioned that the U.S. had dismissed charges in exchange for information against the Soviet Union at the time. This quote within a quote sums it up: "It is clear in this source, as well as in others, that the value of the biological warfare research was 'of such importance to national security as to far outweigh the value accruing from war crimes prosecution'."

The most detailed part of this book actually came from another book called 'Blood-Weeping Accusations' by LI XIAO FANG. It's a paperback, which, on Amazon, sells for $36, used. It has horrid and graphic survivor accounts and testimonies. I wish I had read that book, instead, not because i wish to read something so horrible, but simply because nearly everything I read in this short book, I had already read on the Internet.

I AM glad there are, at least, a couple of books out there on these covered-up atrocities, which need desperately to be spotlighted. There are still possibly up to 2 million chemical bombs, still being found in China today. There are war criminals who, not only escaped justice, but who went on to lead very prominent lives. Most importantly, there are still victims who are suffering in silence, hidden away from the world. It's infuriating, and it is frightening beyond measure to know human beings can torture other human beings so brutally in the name of "military advancement".

[Kalina Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before reading please understand you are going to learn very horrifying information that was basically rumored to have happened but there was no clear evidence as to the events actually happening other than eye witness testimony. The experiments conducted within unit 731 are sickening, but at the same time show me a country that has not been guilty of mistreatment of people. That does not excuse the atrocities that were carried out. At one point an account was given about a prisoner being operated on while still awake, not put under any sort of anesthesia or pain medication, the testimony described the screaming the patient exhibited and how horrifying it was. How the screams were unlike anything the person has ever heard come from a human before. There is great detail into the background of Dr. Isshi and his interest in...I feel the best word is torture. I found myself wondering if he was some sort of sociopath or sadist. I wonder that same when reading about Hitler and other within the Nazi party, these people who believed another human being was so far beneath them that they lack any sort of remorse for causing them pain. I found myself wondering also about the other Japanese citizens working at unit 731 and how they could inflicted so much pain and destruction on the prisoners, what kind of brainwashing was conducted in order for them to carry out such acts.

[James Malik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope more people learn about the atrocities commited by the japanese government during ww2. It's sad how no *legitimate* retribution has faced the Japanese government, unlike The nazis during the Nuremberg trials and Germany's present government paying reparations and Educating its younger generation. My heart breaks reading the experiences chinese citizens had to endure. Shattered when I read what happened In Nanking. I've read scholarly articles about what the Japanese did here in Java during its 4 year occupation.This is Important stuff and more people should learn. I'm usually enthralled by the Japanese people and culture and I'm sure that what their government did 70+ years ago doesn't reflect who they are as a people now but justice needs to be upheld.Innocent people who died needlessly need to be honored.

10/10. If anyone's interested in the happenings during the Sino-Japanese war i reccomend reading Iris chang's "The Rape of Nanking"


Tangent while reading:

Doomed to die so why not torture?
Death factories
Prevention of dieses Hahahaha just another bullshit not a reasln⛔
Testing diseasses on people
So many innocents dead
Fucking head scientist fucking immunity from prosecution by the US for fucking data
Complicit bullshit
No reprecussions for warfare because of US cold war agenda bulshitfuckery fucking cunts goddammit

You can see how I get angry and angrier further down the review. Cause we're talking about the present day now and still no specific recognition of japanese war crimes/ crimes against humanity has been done. The United States was also complicit so please dismiss and never go along with any "Holier than thou" argument they try to make. Atrocities are still happening now in China and Yemen, and the US, the so called "leAdER oF ThE FrEE WOrlD" is complicit.

Be better duds, educate yourself.

[David Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

After having just read the book about the Twins of Dr. Mengele in Auschwitz, the only thing different in Unit 731 is their research and experimentation with biological and chemical warfare. The question I have is why were the main perpetrators not brought to justice regardless of what the Soviets might have thought? The trial by the Soviets was a farce! The Soviets gave the guilty Japanese just 5-25 years in prison and most were released after 15 years, but no death sentences. On the other hand, Russian POW's were transferred from German prison camps straight to the Gulag with usually a 25 year sentence.

[Darlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had never read anything about the Japanese and their chemical war weapons that they tested on POWS and the Chinese during WWII.
Its scary to know that they have still gotten away with it all these years and the US knew about it and the people were not punished. Kinda reminds me of Covid in our in age. I feel so sorry for the Chinese that were children at the time and are older adults now still living with the affects of what the Japanese did to them like the flesh eating chemicals, flea bombs and mustard gas bombs that are still to this day lying around.
The book is short but has enough information that I want to find other books to read up on this.

[Captain Pants · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bought this on Kobo assuming it was a history book on unit 731.

This is not a book, it is a short collection of facts about unit 731, probably not as exhaustive as the Wikipedia article on same. It reads like it was written in Chinese and then translated, with the stilted quality of an information leaflet you might get if you visited the unit 731 museum.

This is printed in large text and has pictures,, meaning that it is really about 30 pages long and you will read it in about 20 to 30 mins.

Unless you get it for free, dont waste your money.

[Ralph Fischer · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book gives an overview to the topic, but not more. It’s way too short to give deeper insights. In fact it feels more like a magazine article than a book and reading the Wikipedia article of Unit 731 gives way more information than this book does
Also the book is not emotionally involving the reader. There’s almost no horror felt when reading about the very vaguely mentioned atrocities, which doesn’t feel right when reading about a topic like this. Even the few short comments of victims feel more like a medical description than personal statement of the suffering experienced.