CO129-590-25 Accounts of events leading up to surrender and subsequent treatment of prisoners- etc 23-4-1942 - 28-9-1943 — Page 174

良

V

A plm for medicines, disinfectants etc, was again met with the

reply that the I.J.A. was very busy and that we would get everything in time. Unfortunately for my promise to postpone my attempt to escape, an order to barbwire the Chinese Volunteers in an area within the camp compelled me to put my plans for escape into immediate action, and the first step was taken this evening which meant that I must attempt to leave the camp on the following night.

22.

9th January.

On this day there was terrific Japanese activity in and around the camp. Barbed wire was rushed in, bags of lime were delivered together with about a dozen bottles of some Japanese vitamin preparation and I was ordered to provide beds for all hospital patients. The Japanese would discuss no requirements but medical and it then transpired that the Japanese General was coming to interview General Maltby and to inspect the camp and all this fuss about medioal matters was so much look-see- pigeon. Col. Simson, the A.D.M.S. was allowed to come over from the island to the camp today (he had to walk from the ferry to the camp and back) and he gave news of similar treatment at the North Point camp on the island where there were 2500 prisoners.

23.

During our conversation with Col. Simson which took place at the main gate and at which the General and the Brigadier were present a Middlesex private was brought in under armed escort; he had apparently made rather a foolish attempt to escape and the General was ordered to warn all his troops that, although this man would be let off, in the future anyone caught trying to escape would be shot immediately. The Brigadier later passed this order on to unit commanders but was careful to add that it did not mean that people were not to attempt to escape but that they had to be very careful about their plans.

After this interview I told both the General and the Brigadier that I was making my attempt to get away that night and again the General suggested that I should leave my final decision till after he had his interview with the Japanese General. I witnessed that "interview" that afternoon; sentries were placed along either side of the main road in the camp and our soldiers were forbidden to cross the road or to stand around, From 25 to 30 cara laden with officers drove on to the parade ground together with 6 lorries of armed soldiers, each lorry mounting a Bren gun. When the Japanese General arrived, they all assembled in a group which General Maltby and the Commodore had to join, a photograph was taken, and

That the cavalcade disappeared in the reverse order of their arrival. constituted the camp inspection and the interview.

24.

I called to see General Maltby but both he and the Brigadier were busy and the preliminaries connected with my escape imoved so rapidly afterwards that I had no time to see them again or to get any letters they may have wished to give me. In fact I doubt whether they had any letters for me for I had the impression that they did not really believe that I would make the attempt, or if I did, I had very little chance of bringing such a foolhardy scheme off. This I regret to say, was the opinion of most of the people with whom I entrusted my secret.

25.

That statement must not be taken to mean that there are none in the camp willing to make the attempt to escape there are, but they need help and with that they will succeed; they do not realise that their war is not over till peace is declared and that the fighting spirit must be maintained even in P.0.W. camps;

there it must be fostered by promoting the will to escape. In Sham Shui Po there is not enough of the fighting spirit in evidence, the inevitable seems to have been accepted. One officer whom I asked to come with me said no after some days deliberation because he "felt sure things would improve"! Another when I told him I was going simply remarked, "Good Lord, whatever for and wherever will you go," But what was more serious than the degree of fighting spirit in the camp was the degree of fighting spirit during hostilities and although this deviates slightly from my thesis, perhaps it may be of use if I record here the opinions which I hold on that

subject /