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Japan's Gestapo: Murder, Mayhem and Torture in Wartime Asia
The book opens by explaining the origins, organisation and roles of the Kempetai apparatus, which exercised virtually unlimited power throughout the Japanese Empire. The author reveals their criminal and collaborationist networks, which extorted huge sums of money from hapless citizens and business. They ran the Allied POW gulag system which treated captives with brutality and a complete lack of mercy.
Other Kempetai activities included biological and chemical experiments on live subjects, slave labour, including 'Comfort Women' drawn from all races.
Their record of reprisals against military and civilians was unrelenting. For example Colonel Doolittle's raid on Tokyo in 1942 resulted in a campaign of revenge not just against captured airmen but thousands of Chinese civilians. Their actions amounted to genocide on a grand scale.
Of particular distaste is the revelation of the Maruta vivisection campaign.
The author backs up his text with first hand testimonies from those survivors who suffered at the hands of this evil organization. He examines how the guilty were bought to justice and the resulting claims for compensation.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2009
164 people are currently reading
340 people want to read
About the author
Mark Felton
32 books160 followersBritish military historian and author. For more information visit www.markfelton.co.uk
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
July 6, 2023
It wasn't long back that I read a book that focused solely on the Gestapo, and which led me to think that I'd much rather fall into the hands of the Stasi than Himmler's secret police.
Now having read this account of Japan's Kempeitai, which I knew very little about before, I'd gladly throw myself into the arms of the Gestapo - basically picking the lesser of two evils - when it comes to torture. When it came to torture, the Kempeitai were the real deal. I don't really want to go into much detail in regards their torture methods, some of which can be traced back as far as the ancient samurai, but let's just say it would be far better to just bite down on a suicide capsule. Genitals - both men and women, and eardrums being the tip of the iceberg. Another big difference was that the Kempeitai played a much larger role in Japan than the Gestapo did in Germany. This included intelligence and espionage divisions, the running of both prisoner of war and civilian camps, propaganda, biological and chemical experiments, and having a specially trained force of commandos similar to that of the SS commando unit that rescued a deposed Mussolini in 1943. Like I said, these guys were the real deal. The book was very informative without being too dense, and I can say at no point was I ever bored. Running just over 200 pages was a good length, so it didn't get bogged down by unwanted information away from its main subjects. It covers not only WW2 right up to the Kempeitai Kamikazes and the end of the war, but also gives valuable insight from as far back as 1881, when the Kempeitai was formed. It was always going to be difficult for the writer not to touch upon the severe barbarity and sadism of the Kempeitai. After all, this was their forte. But thankfully the book isn't saturated in torture. Away from that, it was a fascinating read to learn about so much more.
January 28, 2016
A fairly quick read, sickening though. Tough to work through some of the atrocities committed by the Kempeitai during WWII. I was familiar with their activities from other books, but this one goes into a bit more detail, it is obvious that the author did his research.
Felton also suggests that 100s if not 1000s of British and Allied POWs could have been saved from execution - even after VJ day had the "echelons above reality" been more aggressive in liberating the death camps. General Douglas MacCarthur was one of the Allied leaders the author skewers for ignoring their plight and allowing unnecessary deaths.
There were a few things I didn't know, like the Kempeitai had a special action group that attempted a raid on Yontan airfield (Yomitan) on Okinawa to destroy American aircraft.
The author also makes no bones about the validity of the decision to drop the atomic bombs to end the war due to the barbarity shown by the Japanese on their enemies.
Felton also suggests that 100s if not 1000s of British and Allied POWs could have been saved from execution - even after VJ day had the "echelons above reality" been more aggressive in liberating the death camps. General Douglas MacCarthur was one of the Allied leaders the author skewers for ignoring their plight and allowing unnecessary deaths.
There were a few things I didn't know, like the Kempeitai had a special action group that attempted a raid on Yontan airfield (Yomitan) on Okinawa to destroy American aircraft.
The author also makes no bones about the validity of the decision to drop the atomic bombs to end the war due to the barbarity shown by the Japanese on their enemies.
September 22, 2025
This is a 1 star review, and the only reason I changed it to 2 stars is that I figure no one bothers to read a 1 star review. I do hope to dissuade or at least warn anyone about to read this book.
Unfortunately, the desire to read about a particular and perhaps somewhat obscure topic means that one runs the risk of reading something by an author like Mark Felton. To get some perspective on the Kempeitai, one finds that there isn't much dedicated to the subject. And indeed one of the problems about this book is that the book often strays to the surrounding neighborhood of the Kempeitai rather than strictly focusing on them. A better book to read is Kempeitai: Japan's Dreaded Military Police by Raymond Lamont-Brown (but you will have to acquire a physical copy or read it in archive). Seriously, if you have not bought Felton's book yet, ignore it and read Lamont-Brown's book instead. It is, at least, more objective.
Which brings me to the immediate problem of this book. From the Introduction, Felton's announces how the reader should feel when reading his book, which is the sign of a tabloid historian. It is completely unnecessary. What the Kempeitai did, presented objectively, is more than enough for the reader to understand that they were sadistic and merciless. The reader is capable of having their own gut reaction without a glut of adverbs and adjectives that drag one towards the conclusion he wants to make abundantly clear. Kempeitai = evil! Yeah, we can see that. And for anyone who realizes this is not going to be an objective account, it brings the account's validity itself into question. Inevitably, I started to feel skeptical because I felt as if background music was being played while I read.
And yet, I am completely willing to take every fact presented by Felton as absolutely true. I am not a denier of gruesome inhumanity because one can see it everywhere. However, what began to dawn on me is that Felton wrote this like a bigot who inherently believes that the Japanese are culturally prone to sadism and cruelty. At first it was a speculative feeling. Felton caters to a white audience reading this in English, and for example details the plight of Dutch comfort women particularly while mostly sidestepping the number of other Asians who suffered as comfort women (and also in every other way). In this book for example, Koreans are largely portrayed as assisting the Japanese in their cruelty as camp guards, and not much is noted about how much Koreans were also forced into labor and prostitution. Even if one can allow that Felton was writing using a mostly a set of sources involving war crimes trial transcripts or other works based on white prisoner experience, by using all of the Asian sufferers as an 'and also' group here and there, it is lazy and incomplete. To be fair, he spares a few paragraphs about the Indian soldiers who fought for the British.
But my speculative feeling about bigotry solidified when I read a few other things. Over half way through the book, Felton relates the treatment of caught American flyers after the firebombing of cities in Japan, specifically Tokyo in which up to 100,000 people were killed (although I don't think Felton gives this number; I looked it up separately). One can leave that number objectively, and wonder at the cruelty and inhumanity of war in general, that rules for massive bombing from the air are somehow less sadistic than up close and personal. Actually, Felton doesn't even do this; he writes the following:
"The temperature was tremendous, a searing heat whipped into a howling wind that destroyed whole city blocks in an instant, turning people into blazing torches that struggled helplessly for a moment before collapsing into blackened shapes that melted into the boiling pavements. The Japanese had sowed the wind in December 1941, now they were reaping the whirlwind."
So, not only does he dramatically portray the flaming death of the citizens - not soldiers - so well, he suggests that it is their own fault. In a kind of vengeful spirit after the firebombing of Tokyo, Felton writes that American flyers were brought to Ueno zoo and displayed naked to jeering crowds. Ok, that is horrible and I do not question that it happened. However, he then writes, "It reveals a truly bizarre and sadistic streak rooted in the Japanese character - similar in many ways to the present delight in ritual humiliation and torture to be found in many modern Japanese game shows on television." Felton is relating this sincerely humiliating vengeance - no doubt about its being cruel and unusual - to contemporary game shows and therefore suggesting that sadism is woven into all Japanese. My own note on this section simply reads: "OK, that is just outright bigoted." Almost immediately after, he goes further to compare the Japanese badly against the German army whom he claims did not torture or treat downed pilots poorly. (This is not entirely true since any pilot caught transporting one of the SOE or if the pilot was labeled a spy, they would be handed over to the Gestapo and tortured.) But look, if one is going so far as to say that one group of innocent civilians is deserving of horror in war, and another group of torturing sadists (the Gestapo) is not quite as bad as the Japanese Kempeitai, one is playing favorites in a madhouse.
On outright ignorance and racist remarks, Felton uses the word "coolie" 4 times in this book. 'Coolie' is a derogatory term meaning a native low wage worker, usually an Indian or Chinese person. I swiped that straight from the definition. But, I knew the term was not a nice word because I first heard it in one of the soundtrack cuts of the film What's Up Tiger Lily, a Japanese spy film adapted as a dubbed comedy by Woody Allen. As a child I had no idea what that meant and had to ask my father. What amazed me is that I later found that the comedy soundtrack for the film had a second version which is the only one available nowadays, and one of the edits was the removal of the word 'coolie'. This was decades ago, and they were already being more politically correct. Felton's casual use of the word in publication just shows his ignorance. It stuck in my gullet enough that I wondered whether I was wrong in my assumption that it is not an appropriate word. I looked up its definition and etymology, which I encourage anyone to do if you are not sure. Evidently, Felton was completely sure that this word is fine for a white British person to use of their former lower class subjects of the British Empire.
I regret paying for this book, but I did, so I read it to the end. Even just over half finished I knew this was one of the worst books I had read, but my assessment was buttressed along the way. Whether it is in the beginning when Felton uses words that don't exist like 'formented' instead of 'fomented' or 'whaled on' instead of 'wailed on' - like hitting someone with a whale? - or when he sensationalizes passages to intoxicate his readers like a propagandist, I found myself developing the opposite feeling Felton wanted me to have. Certainly NOT that I had any identification with the Kempeitai or that what they did was anything other than psychopathic, but I found myself just unwilling to accept Felton's perspective at all. I am glad that I read Lamont-Brown's book prior to this (and also Japan's Infamous Unit 731 by Hal Gold). But because I am skeptical of my own perspective as well, I wanted to know whether others felt anything similar, prompting me to read that many others shared my view that he is a lazy historian and (apparently) plagiarizes direct from Wikipedia(?) I don't even care about that, but it doesn't surprise me. Looking at the Felton's career and his written works, he certainly has a bone to pick with the Japanese. Also, seeing that he is a 'YouTube historian' suggests that he is able to tell his version of world events ad nauseam without necessarily any solid legitimacy.
In the end, Felton gave me (and apparently many others by the number of times the passage was highlighted) his summary of his attitude for the Japanese:
"The Japanese actually manage to portray themselves as victims of the war, as anyone unfortunate enough to watch the yearly display of national emotion at Hiroshima can see, those taking part in this nauseating ceremony and those supporting the lie of Japanese innocence conveniently forgetting why the atomic bombs were dropped on the country in the first place. It is a disgusting indictment of the moral weakness of modern politicians in the West that none has pointed this fact out to the Japanese, nor has any Western government demanded that Japan pays proper compensation to its victims."
There you have it, Mark Felton's summation: the Japanese deserved the atom bomb and should feel ashamed that they ALL brought this on themselves. Well, here is my 'even the Germans' moment for Felton. In Brighter Than A Thousand Suns by Robert Jungk (and also Before the Deluge: A Portrait of Berlin in the 1920s by Otto Freidrich), it is written that even the German physicists were appalled that the Americans and British had built and used the atom bomb. The entire justification of building it was that the allied scientists believed that the Germans were in a race to build their own first. They hadn't even pursued it. The German physicists didn't really trust their own leaders. And, a group of the allied physicists who'd worked on the bomb desperately argued against using it outright against a population and to use it instead in a test that world leaders would be invited to view first. The final decision may have been simply that the work had been done, and it was built to be used. It was built for use with the Germans in mind, but the mostly beaten Japanese were what was left.
Felton seems to think that the Japanese are unique in their wartime inhumanity, which is what confuses me if Felton is trying to be any kind of total historian. Sadism and cruelty are unique to no one culture or country. It lurks and is approved of in the dark recesses of the human's soul all over the planet, and all it requires is the few in any tribe, political party, or nation who cultivate it for the many whose morals sadly swim in an uncertain balance, and a lot of those people are our next door neighbors. This is repeated over and over. Gulags, concentration camps, cultural 'revolutions', ethnic cleansing, genocide... Suggesting that any innocent human being deserves this or that entire populations are devoid of innocent and good people is just evidence of being a colossal douchebag.
Unfortunately, the desire to read about a particular and perhaps somewhat obscure topic means that one runs the risk of reading something by an author like Mark Felton. To get some perspective on the Kempeitai, one finds that there isn't much dedicated to the subject. And indeed one of the problems about this book is that the book often strays to the surrounding neighborhood of the Kempeitai rather than strictly focusing on them. A better book to read is Kempeitai: Japan's Dreaded Military Police by Raymond Lamont-Brown (but you will have to acquire a physical copy or read it in archive). Seriously, if you have not bought Felton's book yet, ignore it and read Lamont-Brown's book instead. It is, at least, more objective.
Which brings me to the immediate problem of this book. From the Introduction, Felton's announces how the reader should feel when reading his book, which is the sign of a tabloid historian. It is completely unnecessary. What the Kempeitai did, presented objectively, is more than enough for the reader to understand that they were sadistic and merciless. The reader is capable of having their own gut reaction without a glut of adverbs and adjectives that drag one towards the conclusion he wants to make abundantly clear. Kempeitai = evil! Yeah, we can see that. And for anyone who realizes this is not going to be an objective account, it brings the account's validity itself into question. Inevitably, I started to feel skeptical because I felt as if background music was being played while I read.
And yet, I am completely willing to take every fact presented by Felton as absolutely true. I am not a denier of gruesome inhumanity because one can see it everywhere. However, what began to dawn on me is that Felton wrote this like a bigot who inherently believes that the Japanese are culturally prone to sadism and cruelty. At first it was a speculative feeling. Felton caters to a white audience reading this in English, and for example details the plight of Dutch comfort women particularly while mostly sidestepping the number of other Asians who suffered as comfort women (and also in every other way). In this book for example, Koreans are largely portrayed as assisting the Japanese in their cruelty as camp guards, and not much is noted about how much Koreans were also forced into labor and prostitution. Even if one can allow that Felton was writing using a mostly a set of sources involving war crimes trial transcripts or other works based on white prisoner experience, by using all of the Asian sufferers as an 'and also' group here and there, it is lazy and incomplete. To be fair, he spares a few paragraphs about the Indian soldiers who fought for the British.
But my speculative feeling about bigotry solidified when I read a few other things. Over half way through the book, Felton relates the treatment of caught American flyers after the firebombing of cities in Japan, specifically Tokyo in which up to 100,000 people were killed (although I don't think Felton gives this number; I looked it up separately). One can leave that number objectively, and wonder at the cruelty and inhumanity of war in general, that rules for massive bombing from the air are somehow less sadistic than up close and personal. Actually, Felton doesn't even do this; he writes the following:
"The temperature was tremendous, a searing heat whipped into a howling wind that destroyed whole city blocks in an instant, turning people into blazing torches that struggled helplessly for a moment before collapsing into blackened shapes that melted into the boiling pavements. The Japanese had sowed the wind in December 1941, now they were reaping the whirlwind."
So, not only does he dramatically portray the flaming death of the citizens - not soldiers - so well, he suggests that it is their own fault. In a kind of vengeful spirit after the firebombing of Tokyo, Felton writes that American flyers were brought to Ueno zoo and displayed naked to jeering crowds. Ok, that is horrible and I do not question that it happened. However, he then writes, "It reveals a truly bizarre and sadistic streak rooted in the Japanese character - similar in many ways to the present delight in ritual humiliation and torture to be found in many modern Japanese game shows on television." Felton is relating this sincerely humiliating vengeance - no doubt about its being cruel and unusual - to contemporary game shows and therefore suggesting that sadism is woven into all Japanese. My own note on this section simply reads: "OK, that is just outright bigoted." Almost immediately after, he goes further to compare the Japanese badly against the German army whom he claims did not torture or treat downed pilots poorly. (This is not entirely true since any pilot caught transporting one of the SOE or if the pilot was labeled a spy, they would be handed over to the Gestapo and tortured.) But look, if one is going so far as to say that one group of innocent civilians is deserving of horror in war, and another group of torturing sadists (the Gestapo) is not quite as bad as the Japanese Kempeitai, one is playing favorites in a madhouse.
On outright ignorance and racist remarks, Felton uses the word "coolie" 4 times in this book. 'Coolie' is a derogatory term meaning a native low wage worker, usually an Indian or Chinese person. I swiped that straight from the definition. But, I knew the term was not a nice word because I first heard it in one of the soundtrack cuts of the film What's Up Tiger Lily, a Japanese spy film adapted as a dubbed comedy by Woody Allen. As a child I had no idea what that meant and had to ask my father. What amazed me is that I later found that the comedy soundtrack for the film had a second version which is the only one available nowadays, and one of the edits was the removal of the word 'coolie'. This was decades ago, and they were already being more politically correct. Felton's casual use of the word in publication just shows his ignorance. It stuck in my gullet enough that I wondered whether I was wrong in my assumption that it is not an appropriate word. I looked up its definition and etymology, which I encourage anyone to do if you are not sure. Evidently, Felton was completely sure that this word is fine for a white British person to use of their former lower class subjects of the British Empire.
I regret paying for this book, but I did, so I read it to the end. Even just over half finished I knew this was one of the worst books I had read, but my assessment was buttressed along the way. Whether it is in the beginning when Felton uses words that don't exist like 'formented' instead of 'fomented' or 'whaled on' instead of 'wailed on' - like hitting someone with a whale? - or when he sensationalizes passages to intoxicate his readers like a propagandist, I found myself developing the opposite feeling Felton wanted me to have. Certainly NOT that I had any identification with the Kempeitai or that what they did was anything other than psychopathic, but I found myself just unwilling to accept Felton's perspective at all. I am glad that I read Lamont-Brown's book prior to this (and also Japan's Infamous Unit 731 by Hal Gold). But because I am skeptical of my own perspective as well, I wanted to know whether others felt anything similar, prompting me to read that many others shared my view that he is a lazy historian and (apparently) plagiarizes direct from Wikipedia(?) I don't even care about that, but it doesn't surprise me. Looking at the Felton's career and his written works, he certainly has a bone to pick with the Japanese. Also, seeing that he is a 'YouTube historian' suggests that he is able to tell his version of world events ad nauseam without necessarily any solid legitimacy.
In the end, Felton gave me (and apparently many others by the number of times the passage was highlighted) his summary of his attitude for the Japanese:
"The Japanese actually manage to portray themselves as victims of the war, as anyone unfortunate enough to watch the yearly display of national emotion at Hiroshima can see, those taking part in this nauseating ceremony and those supporting the lie of Japanese innocence conveniently forgetting why the atomic bombs were dropped on the country in the first place. It is a disgusting indictment of the moral weakness of modern politicians in the West that none has pointed this fact out to the Japanese, nor has any Western government demanded that Japan pays proper compensation to its victims."
There you have it, Mark Felton's summation: the Japanese deserved the atom bomb and should feel ashamed that they ALL brought this on themselves. Well, here is my 'even the Germans' moment for Felton. In Brighter Than A Thousand Suns by Robert Jungk (and also Before the Deluge: A Portrait of Berlin in the 1920s by Otto Freidrich), it is written that even the German physicists were appalled that the Americans and British had built and used the atom bomb. The entire justification of building it was that the allied scientists believed that the Germans were in a race to build their own first. They hadn't even pursued it. The German physicists didn't really trust their own leaders. And, a group of the allied physicists who'd worked on the bomb desperately argued against using it outright against a population and to use it instead in a test that world leaders would be invited to view first. The final decision may have been simply that the work had been done, and it was built to be used. It was built for use with the Germans in mind, but the mostly beaten Japanese were what was left.
Felton seems to think that the Japanese are unique in their wartime inhumanity, which is what confuses me if Felton is trying to be any kind of total historian. Sadism and cruelty are unique to no one culture or country. It lurks and is approved of in the dark recesses of the human's soul all over the planet, and all it requires is the few in any tribe, political party, or nation who cultivate it for the many whose morals sadly swim in an uncertain balance, and a lot of those people are our next door neighbors. This is repeated over and over. Gulags, concentration camps, cultural 'revolutions', ethnic cleansing, genocide... Suggesting that any innocent human being deserves this or that entire populations are devoid of innocent and good people is just evidence of being a colossal douchebag.
August 14, 2018
Kempeitai = "Corpul Soldatilor Legii"
Generalul Hideki Tojo, prim-ministru si ministru de razboi al Japoniei = "parintele Kempeitai"
Crimele comise de Kempeitai rivalizeaza, ca intindere si cruzime, cu cele ale Gestapoului german, iar in multe cazuri, japonezii au mers mult mai departe pe calea raului absolut. Kempeitai a fost produsul urii istorice, neincrederii si fricii Japoniei de Occident. A fost de asemenea o reflexie a vastului complex de inferioritate pe care multi japonezi l-au avut mereu fata de puterile occidentale si de intentiile acestora cu privire la Japonia. Kempeitai a fost apogeul tuturor acestor sentimente si teorii politice complicate, expresia credintei japonezilor in superioritatea inerenta a Sfintelor Insule si a ideologiilor pe care se intemeiau ambitiile imperiale ale Japoniei.
Kempeitai raspundea de administrarea retelei japoneze de lagare in care erau internati prizioneri de razboi si civili, iar, sub controlul ei, viata in aceste lagara era la fel de dura si de sinistra ca in lagarele de concentrare ale lui Himmler sau in Gulagul lui Stalin. Kempeitai a fost de asemenea un instrument de propaganda, avand sectii care imitau ministerul lui Joseph Goebbels de la Berlin. Alte sectii secrete ale Kempeitai, cu un rol mai sinistru, efectuau experimentele biologice si chimice, intr-o serie de centre special construite pe intreg teritoriul Asiei, care rivalizau cu experimentele imorale efectuate pe oameni de dr. Josef Mengele si de alti medici la Auschwitz. Kempeitai era de asemenea o organizatie de lupta, avand trupe special instruite, foarte asemanatoare faimoaselor comandouri SS conduse de Otto Skorzeny, care, in 1943, l-au salvat, in Italia, pe detronatul dictator italian Benito Mussolini, iar, in 1944, au reusit sa se infiltreze printre trupele Aliatilor din Belgia, imbracate in uniforme ale politiei militare americane, in timpul Ofensivei din Ardeni.
Kempeitai era o organizatie veche, mult mai veche decat orice alta institutie nazista sau sovietica asemanatoare. Fusese creata in 1881, intr-o vreme in care Japonia se indrepta cu pasi repezi spre modernitate si occidentalizarea institutiilor si economiei proprii.
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In nordul Chinei, in orasul Pingfang, langa Harbin, in provincia Heilongjiang, exista un loc care sintetizeaza astazi, pentru multi chinezi, adevarata fata a ocupatiei japoneze. Este la fel de reprezentativ pentru suferintele indurate de chinezi din partea Japoniei imperiale intre 1937 si 1945 ca si muzeul memorial dedicat masacrului de la Nanjing. La Pingfang, o serie de cladiri reprezinta vestigiile unui experiment urias in materie de razboi biologic si chimic, realizat de armata japoneza in Manciuria ocupata (Manciuko). Denumirea: Unitatea 731.
Pentru a construi centrul de la Pingfang, Ishii (general-locotenent dr. Shiro Ishii, medic specialist in razboiul bacteriologic) a cerut sa fie rase de pe fata pamantului opt sate manciuriene. Complexul de la Pingfang cuprindea o pista de aterizare, o gara cu triaj, cazarmi pentru Kempeitai, lagar pentru subiectii testelor, buncare subterane, carcere subterane si camere de gazare, laboratoare, sali de operatii si crematorii folosite pentru incinerarea cadavrelor prizonierilor. Pentru intretinerea bunei dispozitii a oamenilor de stiinta existau in perimetrul respectiv un bar si un cinematograf, ba chiar si un templu sintoist.
"Misiunea incredintata de Dumnezeu unui doctor este sa impiedice si sa trateze boala", le spunea Ishii oamenilor de stiinta din grupul sau, "dar munca pe care urmeaza s-o incepem acum este total opusa acestor principii."
Unitatea 731 era impartita in opt divizii, aflate sub comanda generalului Ishii.
Divizia 1 - cercetari in domeniile ciumei bubonice, antraxului, febrei tifoide si tuberculozei, folosind subiecti umani vii
Divizia 2 - cercetari in domeniul armelor bacteriologice folosite de soldati pe teren si se concentra indeosebi asupra crearii unor dispozitive noi de propagare a bacteriilor si parazitilor infectati
Divizia 3 - administrarea unei fabricei in care se produceau de fapt proiectile de artilerie continand agenti bacteriologici, aceasta fiind amplasata in afara complexului, in orasul Habrin
Divizia 4 - producerea altor agenti patogenici letali
Divizia 5 - instruirea personalului
Divizia 6, 7, 8 - ingrijirea echipamentului, rezervelor de materiale medicale si administrarea lagarului
(alte centre: Unitatea 100 la Changchung , Unitatea 1855 la Beijing, Ei-1644 la Nanjing, Unitatea 8604 in Guangzhou etc)
Mai exista un centru in Manciuria, Unitatea 571, care avea stranse legaturi cu cel de la Pingfang, dar locul in care se gasea acesta nu este cunoscut in prezent, iar natura cercetarilor efectuate acolo ramane un mister.
Experimente:
Prizonierii erau infectati in mod intentionat cu diverse boli, dupa care erau disecati inca in viata fiind, astfel incat doctorii sa poata observa efectele produse de boala asupra corpului omenesc. Membrele erau adeseori amputate pentru a studia efectele hemoragiei. Uneori, chirurgii japonezi reatasau membrele taiate in alte parti ale corpului, cosand, de exemplu, picioare in incheieturile bratelor si asa mai departe. Unor prizonieri li se scotea stomacul, iar esofagul era reatasat la intestine. Au fost construite centrifuge uriase pentru a afla ce acceleratie gravitationala poate suporta corpul omenesc, aceste experimente fiind bineinteles fatale subiectilor, deoarece viteza crestea nelimitat.
Unele experimente n-au produs niciun rezultat stiintific, insa multe chiar au contribuit la imbogatirea cunostintelor despre om. Este trist faptul ca, atunci cand doctorii japonezi si germani au putut sa faca ce voiau cu pactientii, teribilele suferinte au oferit informatii de o valoare inestimabila, care, dupa razboi, au contribuit la dezvoltarea armelor folosite in timpul Razboiului Rece si la trimiterea omului in spatiu. Fara cercetarile efectuate de germani si japonezi in domeniul motoarelor cu reactie si al capacitatii de rezistenta a corpului omenesc, Statele Unite ale Americii n-ar fi ajuns niciodata pe Luna in 1969. Statele Unite au fost cele care i-au aparat cu cinism pe oamenii de stiinta si pe doctorii germani si japonezi implicati in comiterea acestor crime impotriva umanitatii cu scopul de a obtine un avantaj tehnologic in fata Uniunii Sovietice in cursul Razboiului Rece.
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"Imparatul este pentru noi Dumnezeu Revelat printre oameni, este o Divinitate Manifestata."-crez specific sintoismului de stat din Japonia
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La 2 septembrie, a avut loc in golful Tokyo semnarea actului oficial al capitularii Japoniei. De Anul Nou, MacArthur a autorizat crearea Tribunalului Militar International pentru Orientul Indepartat, un fel de versiune ieftina a Tribunalului de la Nurnberg destinat judecarii criminalilor de razboi nazisti. In ianuarie 1946, guvernul japonez a fost curatat de politicienii din timpul razboiului, iar vanarea criminalilor de razboi a inceput. In total, au fost acuzate si judecate 5700 de persoane, obtinandu-se 3000 de condamnari. Dintre acestea, 920 au fost executate ulterior prin spanzurare sau impuscare, printre ele aflandu-se multi membri ai Kempeitai. cei care n-au fost executati au primit condamnari cu inchisoarea. Putem deduce insa numai din aceste cifre ca foarte, foarte putini militari japonezi au vazut vreodata interiorul unei sali de judecata, cu atat mai putin o celula de inchisoare.
In 1958, dand dovada de o aroganta extraordinara, guvernul japonez i-a eliberat din inchisoare pe toti criminalii de razboi, indiferent de crimele pentru care fusesera condamnati. Mesajul era simplu - japonezii nu se simteau vinovati de cele petrecute in timpul razboiului, considerand ca executiile si condamnarile la inchisoare pronuntate de Aliati nu fusesera decat rezultatul "justitiei aplicate de invingator". Aceasta este o idee si o ideologie populara in Japonia zilelor noastre, unde prezentarea deformata a faptelor comise de japonezi in timpul razboiului si conceptia aroganta privind dreptul acestei tari de a porni razboiul s-au intrepatruns, in sanul generatiilor postbelice, intr-un soi de negare in masa a crimelor de razboi comise de japonezi si intr-un refuz de a plati despagubirile cuvenite celor care au supravietuit acelor atrocitati.
Japonia nu si-a cerut niciodata iertare pentru felul in care i-a tratat, si nici nu-si va cere.
"Este absolut inspaimantator", a declarat O'Herne, una dintre "femeile de reconfortare", in 2007. "Sunt atat de furioasa ca, dupa toti acesti ani si atatea dovezi... Japonia nu-si recunoaste in mod deschis responsabilitatile in fata istoriei."
"Aceasta nu-i priveste doar pe chinezi; priveste intreaga omenire." declara custodele muzeului Unitatii 731, rezumand semnificatia atat a complexului, cat si a atrocitatilor comise de japonezi.
Generalul Hideki Tojo, prim-ministru si ministru de razboi al Japoniei = "parintele Kempeitai"
Crimele comise de Kempeitai rivalizeaza, ca intindere si cruzime, cu cele ale Gestapoului german, iar in multe cazuri, japonezii au mers mult mai departe pe calea raului absolut. Kempeitai a fost produsul urii istorice, neincrederii si fricii Japoniei de Occident. A fost de asemenea o reflexie a vastului complex de inferioritate pe care multi japonezi l-au avut mereu fata de puterile occidentale si de intentiile acestora cu privire la Japonia. Kempeitai a fost apogeul tuturor acestor sentimente si teorii politice complicate, expresia credintei japonezilor in superioritatea inerenta a Sfintelor Insule si a ideologiilor pe care se intemeiau ambitiile imperiale ale Japoniei.
Kempeitai raspundea de administrarea retelei japoneze de lagare in care erau internati prizioneri de razboi si civili, iar, sub controlul ei, viata in aceste lagara era la fel de dura si de sinistra ca in lagarele de concentrare ale lui Himmler sau in Gulagul lui Stalin. Kempeitai a fost de asemenea un instrument de propaganda, avand sectii care imitau ministerul lui Joseph Goebbels de la Berlin. Alte sectii secrete ale Kempeitai, cu un rol mai sinistru, efectuau experimentele biologice si chimice, intr-o serie de centre special construite pe intreg teritoriul Asiei, care rivalizau cu experimentele imorale efectuate pe oameni de dr. Josef Mengele si de alti medici la Auschwitz. Kempeitai era de asemenea o organizatie de lupta, avand trupe special instruite, foarte asemanatoare faimoaselor comandouri SS conduse de Otto Skorzeny, care, in 1943, l-au salvat, in Italia, pe detronatul dictator italian Benito Mussolini, iar, in 1944, au reusit sa se infiltreze printre trupele Aliatilor din Belgia, imbracate in uniforme ale politiei militare americane, in timpul Ofensivei din Ardeni.
Kempeitai era o organizatie veche, mult mai veche decat orice alta institutie nazista sau sovietica asemanatoare. Fusese creata in 1881, intr-o vreme in care Japonia se indrepta cu pasi repezi spre modernitate si occidentalizarea institutiilor si economiei proprii.
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In nordul Chinei, in orasul Pingfang, langa Harbin, in provincia Heilongjiang, exista un loc care sintetizeaza astazi, pentru multi chinezi, adevarata fata a ocupatiei japoneze. Este la fel de reprezentativ pentru suferintele indurate de chinezi din partea Japoniei imperiale intre 1937 si 1945 ca si muzeul memorial dedicat masacrului de la Nanjing. La Pingfang, o serie de cladiri reprezinta vestigiile unui experiment urias in materie de razboi biologic si chimic, realizat de armata japoneza in Manciuria ocupata (Manciuko). Denumirea: Unitatea 731.
Pentru a construi centrul de la Pingfang, Ishii (general-locotenent dr. Shiro Ishii, medic specialist in razboiul bacteriologic) a cerut sa fie rase de pe fata pamantului opt sate manciuriene. Complexul de la Pingfang cuprindea o pista de aterizare, o gara cu triaj, cazarmi pentru Kempeitai, lagar pentru subiectii testelor, buncare subterane, carcere subterane si camere de gazare, laboratoare, sali de operatii si crematorii folosite pentru incinerarea cadavrelor prizonierilor. Pentru intretinerea bunei dispozitii a oamenilor de stiinta existau in perimetrul respectiv un bar si un cinematograf, ba chiar si un templu sintoist.
"Misiunea incredintata de Dumnezeu unui doctor este sa impiedice si sa trateze boala", le spunea Ishii oamenilor de stiinta din grupul sau, "dar munca pe care urmeaza s-o incepem acum este total opusa acestor principii."
Unitatea 731 era impartita in opt divizii, aflate sub comanda generalului Ishii.
Divizia 1 - cercetari in domeniile ciumei bubonice, antraxului, febrei tifoide si tuberculozei, folosind subiecti umani vii
Divizia 2 - cercetari in domeniul armelor bacteriologice folosite de soldati pe teren si se concentra indeosebi asupra crearii unor dispozitive noi de propagare a bacteriilor si parazitilor infectati
Divizia 3 - administrarea unei fabricei in care se produceau de fapt proiectile de artilerie continand agenti bacteriologici, aceasta fiind amplasata in afara complexului, in orasul Habrin
Divizia 4 - producerea altor agenti patogenici letali
Divizia 5 - instruirea personalului
Divizia 6, 7, 8 - ingrijirea echipamentului, rezervelor de materiale medicale si administrarea lagarului
(alte centre: Unitatea 100 la Changchung , Unitatea 1855 la Beijing, Ei-1644 la Nanjing, Unitatea 8604 in Guangzhou etc)
Mai exista un centru in Manciuria, Unitatea 571, care avea stranse legaturi cu cel de la Pingfang, dar locul in care se gasea acesta nu este cunoscut in prezent, iar natura cercetarilor efectuate acolo ramane un mister.
Experimente:
Prizonierii erau infectati in mod intentionat cu diverse boli, dupa care erau disecati inca in viata fiind, astfel incat doctorii sa poata observa efectele produse de boala asupra corpului omenesc. Membrele erau adeseori amputate pentru a studia efectele hemoragiei. Uneori, chirurgii japonezi reatasau membrele taiate in alte parti ale corpului, cosand, de exemplu, picioare in incheieturile bratelor si asa mai departe. Unor prizonieri li se scotea stomacul, iar esofagul era reatasat la intestine. Au fost construite centrifuge uriase pentru a afla ce acceleratie gravitationala poate suporta corpul omenesc, aceste experimente fiind bineinteles fatale subiectilor, deoarece viteza crestea nelimitat.
Unele experimente n-au produs niciun rezultat stiintific, insa multe chiar au contribuit la imbogatirea cunostintelor despre om. Este trist faptul ca, atunci cand doctorii japonezi si germani au putut sa faca ce voiau cu pactientii, teribilele suferinte au oferit informatii de o valoare inestimabila, care, dupa razboi, au contribuit la dezvoltarea armelor folosite in timpul Razboiului Rece si la trimiterea omului in spatiu. Fara cercetarile efectuate de germani si japonezi in domeniul motoarelor cu reactie si al capacitatii de rezistenta a corpului omenesc, Statele Unite ale Americii n-ar fi ajuns niciodata pe Luna in 1969. Statele Unite au fost cele care i-au aparat cu cinism pe oamenii de stiinta si pe doctorii germani si japonezi implicati in comiterea acestor crime impotriva umanitatii cu scopul de a obtine un avantaj tehnologic in fata Uniunii Sovietice in cursul Razboiului Rece.
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"Imparatul este pentru noi Dumnezeu Revelat printre oameni, este o Divinitate Manifestata."-crez specific sintoismului de stat din Japonia
---
La 2 septembrie, a avut loc in golful Tokyo semnarea actului oficial al capitularii Japoniei. De Anul Nou, MacArthur a autorizat crearea Tribunalului Militar International pentru Orientul Indepartat, un fel de versiune ieftina a Tribunalului de la Nurnberg destinat judecarii criminalilor de razboi nazisti. In ianuarie 1946, guvernul japonez a fost curatat de politicienii din timpul razboiului, iar vanarea criminalilor de razboi a inceput. In total, au fost acuzate si judecate 5700 de persoane, obtinandu-se 3000 de condamnari. Dintre acestea, 920 au fost executate ulterior prin spanzurare sau impuscare, printre ele aflandu-se multi membri ai Kempeitai. cei care n-au fost executati au primit condamnari cu inchisoarea. Putem deduce insa numai din aceste cifre ca foarte, foarte putini militari japonezi au vazut vreodata interiorul unei sali de judecata, cu atat mai putin o celula de inchisoare.
In 1958, dand dovada de o aroganta extraordinara, guvernul japonez i-a eliberat din inchisoare pe toti criminalii de razboi, indiferent de crimele pentru care fusesera condamnati. Mesajul era simplu - japonezii nu se simteau vinovati de cele petrecute in timpul razboiului, considerand ca executiile si condamnarile la inchisoare pronuntate de Aliati nu fusesera decat rezultatul "justitiei aplicate de invingator". Aceasta este o idee si o ideologie populara in Japonia zilelor noastre, unde prezentarea deformata a faptelor comise de japonezi in timpul razboiului si conceptia aroganta privind dreptul acestei tari de a porni razboiul s-au intrepatruns, in sanul generatiilor postbelice, intr-un soi de negare in masa a crimelor de razboi comise de japonezi si intr-un refuz de a plati despagubirile cuvenite celor care au supravietuit acelor atrocitati.
Japonia nu si-a cerut niciodata iertare pentru felul in care i-a tratat, si nici nu-si va cere.
"Este absolut inspaimantator", a declarat O'Herne, una dintre "femeile de reconfortare", in 2007. "Sunt atat de furioasa ca, dupa toti acesti ani si atatea dovezi... Japonia nu-si recunoaste in mod deschis responsabilitatile in fata istoriei."
"Aceasta nu-i priveste doar pe chinezi; priveste intreaga omenire." declara custodele muzeului Unitatii 731, rezumand semnificatia atat a complexului, cat si a atrocitatilor comise de japonezi.
March 6, 2022
Well Researched
I first saw Mark Felton on some American History Channel documentary and then watched several of his YouTube videos. I was impressed with how thorough his research and his ability to make history palatable for popular consumption.
The stories of Japanese atrocities during World War 2 is disturbing and horrifying. Felton in his introduction said this book is not for the squeamish. He was right. For those who had grandparents who fought the Japanese in the PTO, they probably didn't want to talk because they may have witnessed nightmarish scenes. Felton presented his work in a good way that places the blame in the right place without overly moralizing.
I first saw Mark Felton on some American History Channel documentary and then watched several of his YouTube videos. I was impressed with how thorough his research and his ability to make history palatable for popular consumption.
The stories of Japanese atrocities during World War 2 is disturbing and horrifying. Felton in his introduction said this book is not for the squeamish. He was right. For those who had grandparents who fought the Japanese in the PTO, they probably didn't want to talk because they may have witnessed nightmarish scenes. Felton presented his work in a good way that places the blame in the right place without overly moralizing.
June 10, 2019
Very well written and informative.
October 22, 2023
Ive just finished read Mark Felton's Book but in the process looked up other books by Mark Felton. It seems he specialises in this type of WW II horror stuff. And there is plenty of horror in this book. I think he makes his point very well that the Japanese Kempeitai were a cruel, and sadistic organisation that exhibited little common decency or humanity. In fact, Felton's book is an unrelenting record of savage torture, beatings, and murders carried out in cold blood. I had some inkling of this before reading the book. The rape of Nanking is notorious throughout the world for the savagery of the occupation ....but this was not just the Kempetai ...the military police...... but the much wider rank and file of the Japanese Army. And, I guess, in historical terms this was not unique. Similar invasions (eg by Gengis Khan's hordes) were similarly brutal and inhuman. But I've ended up suitably horrified and repulsed by the actions of the Japanese Army and, in particular, by the actions of the Kempetai but wondering how it all came to this. And this is where Felton shows no insight or analysis. There is one throwaway line by a Chinese comfort woman who was tortured alongside her husband......when asked about revenge after the war.....commented something to the effect : "No I don't want revenge....these people would be ordinary citizens were it not for the war". I have married into a Japanese family, some of whom were caught up in the war and understand how the militaristic forces that carried sway in the 1920's (and beyond) crushed any opposition and "talked up" military expansionism. Mind you, I have also read Lafcario Hearn who was a teacher in Japan around the 1890's commenting that when he asked his students what they wanted to achieve in life......most of them said they wanted to "die for the emperor". He commented that he would not expect the equivalent answer from his students in Manchester. And this hints at the yawning gap in what Felton presents. There is no analysis of how or why the Japanese acted like this or why there was the rise in militarism. Was it due to the rejection of any Japanese claims at the Paris Peace accords of 1919? Including the rejection of Japan's racial equality proposal? (Strongly opposed by both South Africa and Australia who put pressure on the British delegation). Certainly, some historians think that the defeat of their proposal influenced Japan's turn from cooperation with the western world into more nations and militarist policies and approaches. And, following the Japanese defeat in WW II there was a strong reaction against the militarism that had led their country to be humiliated. Though, as pointed out to me by one of my wife's uncles...General Macarthur found it most convenient to work with the right wing parties that had supported the militarism. The uncle's view was that whilst the Nazi's had been deposed and reviled in Germany after the war, in Japan, nothing much changed ......the "Nazi's" were still in control and continued so, more or less, until the present day. (I think that's a bit overstated...but it contains an element of truth). One has to remember that modern Japan emerged from 400 years of a Military dictatorship and the modern state was initiated by the Samurai class...with all their militaristic traditions. So there is a bit of history there.
Anyway, Felton's book is really just one unrelenting account of horror stories and cruelty by the Kempetai against civilians, soldiers and POW's. Actually, there is very little about the treatment dished out to Japanese who crossed paths with the Kempetai. My understanding is that they were very harsh and cruel with their own people. And maybe this is in keeping with with social norms in Japan that emphasise conformity...."The nail that sticks up must be hammered down". But Felton doesn't go there. It's not a thoughtful book. Nor is it insightful. Lots of references to enquiries held after the war (by the victors) and other sources. And it's reasonably well written. Held my attention. But not at all insightful. I give it two stars.
Anyway, Felton's book is really just one unrelenting account of horror stories and cruelty by the Kempetai against civilians, soldiers and POW's. Actually, there is very little about the treatment dished out to Japanese who crossed paths with the Kempetai. My understanding is that they were very harsh and cruel with their own people. And maybe this is in keeping with with social norms in Japan that emphasise conformity...."The nail that sticks up must be hammered down". But Felton doesn't go there. It's not a thoughtful book. Nor is it insightful. Lots of references to enquiries held after the war (by the victors) and other sources. And it's reasonably well written. Held my attention. But not at all insightful. I give it two stars.
September 15, 2025
The Kempeitai (Law Soldiers in English) were the very personification of evil during the Imperial period and to the end of World War II. The brutality of their ranks is comparable to only a few other police forces in human history, namely the SS and the Gestapo in Nazi Germany and the NKVD in the Soviet Union. In “Japan’s Gestapo: Murder, Mayhem and Torture in Wartime Asia,” Mark Felton gives the reader a glimpse into just who these agents of evil and torment really were, while also showing us specific examples of the horrific atrocities they committed. From the beating and torture of other Asian ethnicities and Allied POWs to the so-called “Comfort Women” forced into prostitution to the heinous human experimentation by Kempeitai doctors, and finally the torture and execution of prisoners in the days after Japan’s surrender, this is by far the gruesomely interesting book I have read on wartime Japan. Though I knew such things did occur, seeing examples of it through first-hand stories have truly made it clear that it was worse than any tip of the iceberg documentation can do justice.
Speaking of justice, what caught this reader’s eye the most in reading this book is the sad reality that many of these Kempeitai officers were not held to account for their crimes against humanity after the war. The decision of Douglas MacArthur to hold off on sending occupation forces into Japan bought these men crucial time to blend in and disappear while also committing final acts of cruelty along the way. It was no secret that MacArthur had an ego the size of Mount Everest, but the evidence shared by Felton is truly damning in the case of the general’s responsibility for further bloodshed and the lack of justice that was done. It also struck me to see how little today’s Japanese government and society acknowledge the mere existence of the Kempeitai, let alone the crimes they committed. Other than the annual remembrance ceremonies for the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear strikes to end the war, there is evidence to support the claim that Japan indeed does play the victim in many cases when it comes to World War II and the years leading up to it. Felton does an excellent job in being brutally honest and accurate in telling of this mentality.
As the first review I am writing on here, this is a slam dunk five-star rating for me. Felton cites his sources extensively, and really backs it all up with oral history, too. I fully recommend this book! Now, who were the Kempeitai? Buy it and find out!
Speaking of justice, what caught this reader’s eye the most in reading this book is the sad reality that many of these Kempeitai officers were not held to account for their crimes against humanity after the war. The decision of Douglas MacArthur to hold off on sending occupation forces into Japan bought these men crucial time to blend in and disappear while also committing final acts of cruelty along the way. It was no secret that MacArthur had an ego the size of Mount Everest, but the evidence shared by Felton is truly damning in the case of the general’s responsibility for further bloodshed and the lack of justice that was done. It also struck me to see how little today’s Japanese government and society acknowledge the mere existence of the Kempeitai, let alone the crimes they committed. Other than the annual remembrance ceremonies for the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear strikes to end the war, there is evidence to support the claim that Japan indeed does play the victim in many cases when it comes to World War II and the years leading up to it. Felton does an excellent job in being brutally honest and accurate in telling of this mentality.
As the first review I am writing on here, this is a slam dunk five-star rating for me. Felton cites his sources extensively, and really backs it all up with oral history, too. I fully recommend this book! Now, who were the Kempeitai? Buy it and find out!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 5, 2021
Just as the book's title reads: the countless acts of murder, mayhem and torture by Japan's Kempeitai during the Second World War.
The book focuses on Japanese atrocities towards westerners: Allied prisoners of war, western civilians, Russian refugees. It's surprising how little westerners are aware of Japan's vicious war crimes towards people unlucky enough to live under Japanese occupation. This is probably because western popular culture of the Second World War focuses almost exclusively on the Jewish holocaust, and because Japan became a vital Cold War ally of the US. Almost all Japanese war criminals- the Kempeitai probably all being guilty of this- were never brought to justice, and remained unrepentant.
It's staggering that the most heinous of the Japanese war criminals- Dr Shiro Ishii, who conducted the 20th century's most gruesome medical experiments on live victims without anaesthetic- not only avoided punishment by the American occupiers, but was even given a job in America to assist in scientific research and he died there peacefully over a decade later.
There is more that could be written about the Kempeitai that isn't covered in this book. Iris Chang's The Rape of Nanking gives an excellent explanation of why Japanese soldiers became so merciless and gruesome in their treatment of others. All Japanese military recruits were brutalised by their superiors to destroy their feelings and humanity, thereby normalising extreme cruelty within their military environment. The Kempeitai were a special branch of the armed forces,so most would probably have volunteered for this sort of behaviour. It would still be worth knowing more about Kempeitai training, but this book doesn't claim to be definitive and focuses mostly on the grim atrocities the Kempeitai committed against innocent people.
The book focuses on Japanese atrocities towards westerners: Allied prisoners of war, western civilians, Russian refugees. It's surprising how little westerners are aware of Japan's vicious war crimes towards people unlucky enough to live under Japanese occupation. This is probably because western popular culture of the Second World War focuses almost exclusively on the Jewish holocaust, and because Japan became a vital Cold War ally of the US. Almost all Japanese war criminals- the Kempeitai probably all being guilty of this- were never brought to justice, and remained unrepentant.
It's staggering that the most heinous of the Japanese war criminals- Dr Shiro Ishii, who conducted the 20th century's most gruesome medical experiments on live victims without anaesthetic- not only avoided punishment by the American occupiers, but was even given a job in America to assist in scientific research and he died there peacefully over a decade later.
There is more that could be written about the Kempeitai that isn't covered in this book. Iris Chang's The Rape of Nanking gives an excellent explanation of why Japanese soldiers became so merciless and gruesome in their treatment of others. All Japanese military recruits were brutalised by their superiors to destroy their feelings and humanity, thereby normalising extreme cruelty within their military environment. The Kempeitai were a special branch of the armed forces,so most would probably have volunteered for this sort of behaviour. It would still be worth knowing more about Kempeitai training, but this book doesn't claim to be definitive and focuses mostly on the grim atrocities the Kempeitai committed against innocent people.
May 28, 2022
First part of book a hard read
I found the first part of the book kind of "thick" and hard to read. I greatly enjoyed the last half of the book. It never ceases to amaze me how military commanders point the finger when things go wrong. It's always the other guy that screwed up. The Japanese culture is not understood because we were not raised in that culture. War is made up of screw ups and victories. Could more. pow lives have been saved? I would say yes but the big shots running the show put their ego ahead of the little guy. It's not the generals digging fox holes on the front line but the private who only wants to go home. The best way to end a war is not to start it in the first place. But as long as man has a desire to take from each other there will be wars and the little guy will be the victim of the ego of our leaders.
I found the first part of the book kind of "thick" and hard to read. I greatly enjoyed the last half of the book. It never ceases to amaze me how military commanders point the finger when things go wrong. It's always the other guy that screwed up. The Japanese culture is not understood because we were not raised in that culture. War is made up of screw ups and victories. Could more. pow lives have been saved? I would say yes but the big shots running the show put their ego ahead of the little guy. It's not the generals digging fox holes on the front line but the private who only wants to go home. The best way to end a war is not to start it in the first place. But as long as man has a desire to take from each other there will be wars and the little guy will be the victim of the ego of our leaders.
October 5, 2022
Evil Beyond Belief
My Da fought in Burma and liberated Jap POW camps. Until his dying day he hated them. Not PC but we didn’t see what he saw. This mob outdid anything the SS / Gestapo did. Torturing people for weeks on end. Making guys build railways, dig coal down mines etc on a cup of rice a day and no medication. I understand if you don’t publish this but my Da’s opinion was the Americans should have dropped 100 atom bombs on Japan. I was shocked though at McArthur’s orders not to take any territory until he had grandstanded in Tokyo Bay at the formal surrender. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of our boys died in those two weeks. Shameful.
My Da fought in Burma and liberated Jap POW camps. Until his dying day he hated them. Not PC but we didn’t see what he saw. This mob outdid anything the SS / Gestapo did. Torturing people for weeks on end. Making guys build railways, dig coal down mines etc on a cup of rice a day and no medication. I understand if you don’t publish this but my Da’s opinion was the Americans should have dropped 100 atom bombs on Japan. I was shocked though at McArthur’s orders not to take any territory until he had grandstanded in Tokyo Bay at the formal surrender. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of our boys died in those two weeks. Shameful.
March 30, 2024
The cover doesn't really do this book justice, it's not a detailed description of atrocities for people who like reading about that kind of thing. The author is fairly sparing when it comes to the more graphic details. It's an interesting book, and a quick read about a subject which is still not often discussed.
Where this falls down is, as other readers commented, the analysis. Or rather total lack thereof. We don't get any sense of why these war crimes were committed except that (according to the author) the Japanese have "a bizarre and sadistic streak to their character". If you want anything more from a book of this type than shock and outrage, this probably isn't the one for you.
Where this falls down is, as other readers commented, the analysis. Or rather total lack thereof. We don't get any sense of why these war crimes were committed except that (according to the author) the Japanese have "a bizarre and sadistic streak to their character". If you want anything more from a book of this type than shock and outrage, this probably isn't the one for you.
March 24, 2025
Harrowing account of Australians killed in Japanese Camps
History is not always what is only found in history books. The records which were destroyed by the Japanese as they surrendered to the American and British forces were incomplete, and hundreds of deaths were not known about until the Australians started searching for their men who had been captured by them. When the communal graves were found and the truth started to come out the Australians were horrified just as I was as I read this book. Thank heaven for human memories because in so cases that was all there was as evidence of what brutality had taken place. Good read but you need a strong stomach to finish it.
History is not always what is only found in history books. The records which were destroyed by the Japanese as they surrendered to the American and British forces were incomplete, and hundreds of deaths were not known about until the Australians started searching for their men who had been captured by them. When the communal graves were found and the truth started to come out the Australians were horrified just as I was as I read this book. Thank heaven for human memories because in so cases that was all there was as evidence of what brutality had taken place. Good read but you need a strong stomach to finish it.
June 23, 2021
The Dirty Wartime Truth
Good work on the horrors of war and what can happen to a captive people. I had always thought that the Japanese Army controlled the POW camps, until I read this Felton opus. Felton's hatred of the Japanese and their treatment of civilians and POWs was obvious. I would have appreciated a more objective approach to the topic.
Good work on the horrors of war and what can happen to a captive people. I had always thought that the Japanese Army controlled the POW camps, until I read this Felton opus. Felton's hatred of the Japanese and their treatment of civilians and POWs was obvious. I would have appreciated a more objective approach to the topic.
January 27, 2024
The author spared us nothing in describing the torture of the Kempitai during world war 2.
Apart from the Japanese he is scornful of the way the Americans behaved in refusing to allow POWs to be iberatef before the fimal surrender
Apart from the Japanese he is scornful of the way the Americans behaved in refusing to allow POWs to be iberatef before the fimal surrender
August 6, 2019
Great book ... it has a detailed context of the brutal behavior japanese soldiers had during the WW2, i trully recommend it!
December 7, 2020
True History
This is a recollection os just what the Japanese IDF did. Savage in all ways. They walked away from murdering tens of thousands POW and civilians. No remorse from them.
This is a recollection os just what the Japanese IDF did. Savage in all ways. They walked away from murdering tens of thousands POW and civilians. No remorse from them.
December 29, 2022
2.5 stars rounded down
I found this an ideologically driven book. I'm not saying it is a bad thing for an author's intention, etc. to come through but I found this one a bit heavy-handed.
I found this an ideologically driven book. I'm not saying it is a bad thing for an author's intention, etc. to come through but I found this one a bit heavy-handed.
May 4, 2023
Japanese Inhumanity to Man
An outstanding and positive account of Japan's inhumanity to man.
It is tragic that more criminals were not brought to justice.
An outstanding and positive account of Japan's inhumanity to man.
It is tragic that more criminals were not brought to justice.
May 17, 2024
Well researched with amazing facts revealed.
January 8, 2025
Very absorbing and true to life
It was a brilliant book to read superbly very excact and true to life shows what really happened out there
It was a brilliant book to read superbly very excact and true to life shows what really happened out there
April 29, 2025
I had an idea of Japan's cruelty during WWII but I didn't imagine the extent of the actions. It's hard to believe the cruelty and sadism of the japanese, and I wonder if all that culture of violence disappeared in just 79 years.
This book was very informative but I would like if the author had focused a little bit more in Unit 731.
This book was very informative but I would like if the author had focused a little bit more in Unit 731.
March 10, 2013
well written
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews