CO129-590-22 Situation in enemy occupied Hong Kong 19-1-1943 - 20-11-1943 — Page 34

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6.

points: -

All members of the party now await definite instructions on the following

date of start of leave.

amount of money available to them regularly per month and amount which may be drawn as a lump sum for re-equipment purposes.

(c) Whether expenses from date of arrival in Montreal to date of reaching their final destinations and going on leave are payable by the government. (Hotels in Montreal, for example, cost 30/- per day without food: the repatriates, even on full pay, are not equipped to face unavoidable expenditure on this scale).

(a) other they (and their families) may be medically examined and

undergo whatever treatment is necessary at government expense.

(e) In the case of Mr. Morris and Sgt. Fyffe, definite arrangements for

them to proceed to Australia and Scotland respectively, as soon as possible.

It is in my opinion important to convey authoritative decisions on these points to them as urgently as possible

7.

All complain (among other things) of loss of memory and very few were pre- pared to say in detail what their salaries were on December 8th, 1941 I asked each to think it over and to report what details they could by letter to the High Commissioner's office as soon as possible.

Apart from

8 Brief accounts of their interviews with me are attached. kirs. Zaitzeff they have little of first-rate importance to report. It is obvious that outside contacts are very scarce in the camp.

9. Points on which there was complete unanimity are as follows:- (a) All have been sterly warned of reprisals against those remaining in Stanley if any of the exchange prisoners talks against the Japanese or discloses information damaging to them. None of the repatriates thinks

the Japanese are bluffing about this and each pleads with anything he or she says or writes may be treated with the utmost discretion. (20) Conditions in the camp are very bad and are approaching a crisis with this coming winter. Further exchanges or an almost instantaneous alleviation are imperative.

(c) No one in the camp has any doubt about how the war is going. None of the government servants doubts but that he and his dependents are being and will be looked after.

The stunt

(a) The reactions to American bombing are indescribable. flight of the P. 38's over the camp is the greatest moment in these people's lives. Asked what would have been the result had the P.38's been R. A.F. Spitfires, words failed the repatriates: I can describe their attitude to this thought only as one of awed wonder and prayer. None thinks it is feasible for planes to drop anything in the camp without previous arrangements approved by those inside.

(e) All have lost weight (the average is upwards of 30 lbs. per man) and in varying degrees they suffer from impairment of vision and memory. (f) All deeply appreciated (as an carest of the authorities continuing interest in them) the fact that the Colonial Office had taken the trouble to send an officer to meet them: and all, with the exception of Dr. Greaves, are anxious to return to the Far East to attend to "unfinished business" as soon as may be

(g) None could suggest any new technique of raising morale in the camp. (h) It was possible from what they did not say to deduce that Mr. Gimson is having a hard and thankless task as commandant of the camp. I tried without success to draw indirectly from them any suggestions for strengthening his position from the outside, vis-a-vis the rest of the internees (i) The internal politics of the camp are not worthy of repetition here but when the day of liberation comes I am afraid that the air will be thick with charges and counter-charges, and old scores to be settled.

(j) Mr. Žindle, the Red Cross representative is no good. The general feeling is that, great as the difficulties are, a more resolute man would achieve far greater results.

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