REMAINS OF SOLDIER WHO SURVIVED THE TRAGIC BATAAN DEATH MARCH FOUND


By bblouin
bataan death march

Maybe it's the sensationalism found in movies, shows, and video games. Maybe it’s the privilege of having oceans between most modern conflicts that the U.S. has found itself in. The futility of war is largely not fully recognized by the American public, but make no mistake about it, war is h*ll. There’s perhaps no greater example of this unfortunate sentiment than the Bataan Death March that occurred during World War II. Producing various war crimes, which included inhumane treatment and killings, the death march of Bataan was one of the defining moments in the Pacific Theater that would evoke fury throughout the United States. Suggested read:Remembering the Battles of Lexington and Concord on Their Anniversary

What Was the Bataan Death March?

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Where Did the Bataan Death March Take Place?

Bataan, Philippines, is the peninsula in which these horrendous war crimes occurred. The beginning of the Death March happened in Mariveles, which is on the south side of the Bataan Peninsula on the island of Luzon. The Bataan Death March distance would force prisoners to walk around 85 miles. This torturous trek took no less than six days and possibly as many as ten days to complete. Prisoners were subjected to cruel treatment from the Japanese forces, as well as intense physical conditions due to heat, harsh terrain, and malnourishment.

How Many Died in the Bataan Death March?

Around 10,000 people were lost during the Bataan Death March. An overwhelming amount of the victims were Filipino men, who would account for around 9,000 deaths. The Americans would lose around 1,000 of their men during the arduous trek. The deaths suffered at the hands of the Japanese forces were caused by a variety of factors. To start, forcing anyone to walk such a distance after suffering through the realities of war is a hard enough task in and of itself. The conditions for such a transport were not conducted with comfort in mind. Next, there is the unfortunate treatment by Japanese fighters, which included torture, beheadings, extreme physical abuse, wanton killings, beatings, stabbings, executions, and much more. Trucks would even run over those who lagged behind, and those who asked for water would be killed. As inhumane as the Death March already was, the heat made conditions literally unlivable. The mistreatment of these POWs only enhanced the heat’s effects as dehydration, overexertion, and a lack of food during this period took vulnerable men pushed to their limits and exacerbated them even further. In the aftermath of WWII, Allied forces would arrest many of the leaders involved with the Bataan Death March and try them for their war crimes. General Masaharu Homma was charged with 43 crimes and eventually executed by firing squad. In 1948, an American military commission tried Major General Yoshitaka Kawane and Colonel Kurataro Hirano due to the evidence found in the Homma trial. Both were executed at Sugamo Prison in 1949 after being sentenced to death by hanging. Masanobu Tsuji, an officer in the Japanese military, ordered executions but was never tried, as he escaped to Thailand to evade authorities after the conclusion of the war.

How Did the Bataan Death March Impact the War?

The Bataan Death March’s significance can’t be understated. Such brutality from Japanese forces sparked outrage across the United States and helped lead the Allies to victory. Military personnel were furious, and this all helped create a path that made the invasion of Guadalcanal a realistic prospect and bolstered soldiers against their enemy. Although the general public wouldn’t find out about the Bataan Death March until almost two years later, the reaction was intense. This was particularly true in New Mexico, where both the 200th and 515th Coast Artillery of the National Guard were stationed. Both groups suffered heavily in Bataan, and the local communities were outraged at what they discovered. The Bataan Death March Memorial called “Heroes of Bataan” can be found at Veterans Park in Las Cruces, NM. The long-term effects would unfortunately also produce nationalist and racist views against Japanese and Japanese-American people during a time when the U.S. was already suffering from such issues. Propaganda was produced to embolden Americans against the Japanese, as public opinion continued to dwindle following the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The Bataan Death March POW Remains Finally Returned to United States

The remains of World War II service member Charles R. Powers had been unidentified for decades following the Bataan Death March. He was a member of the 28th Material Squadron and the 20th Air Base Group whenever Japanese forces attacked the Philippines. After the surrender of U.S. forces, Powers was one of the many POWs who was subjected to the Bataan Death March, as well as being held at the Cabanatuan prisoner of war camp. Powers passed on July 18th, 1942, thrown into a common grave with other Bataan Death March POWs. Powers’ remains were finally recovered and shipped back to the United States to California in 2024, finally putting Powers to rest in his homeland. After the war had ended, three sets of unidentified remains were recovered and reburied at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.

Remembering Those Lost and Honoring Survivors

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Bataan Memorial Death March is an annual marathon that takes place in the deserts of White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, that remembers those affected. It’s important to remember the legacy of those who served during these conditions and to tell their stories. Walt Straka, the last of the Bataan Death March survivors, passed away in 2021 at 101 years of age.

The Bataan Death March Victims Fought and Died as Heroes

What happened to those fighting for freedom in the Pacific Theater is inexcusable. The mistreatment and lack of dignity suffered at the hands of the Japanese military is a wound that is still felt in the families of those brave Veterans and within Filipino communities that also deeply suffered. The Bataan Death March is a stark reminder of the worst in humanity and a talking point that should not be forgotten so that we may never repeat such atrocities towards our fellow man, even during war. Read next:

Image: Bettmann Archive/Getty Images

Updated by: Ian Kempf


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