Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - They don't make soldiers like they used to

Glava · 05-29-2005, 06:43 PM

Copied and pasted from here.

Japanese soldiers story 'a scam'
By Mynardo Macaraig in General Santos, Philippines
May 30, 2005
From: Agence France-Presse

SECURITY forces on the insurgency-wracked Philippine island of Mindanao are increasingly sceptical of reports that two elderly Japanese men have been hiding in the jungle since World War II.
While Japanese diplomats tried for a fourth day to establish the veracity of the reports, suspicion grew today that kidnapping gangs on the island might have invented the rumours as a scam to lure foreigners into the region.

Newspaper reports that unidentified rebels were asking for money for the two Japanese soldiers were a sign the whole thing could be simply a "money-making scheme", warned a regional police intelligence chief.

"If you give money, how do you know you will get anything?" asked Superintendent Robert Kiunisula, adding that those holding the alleged Japanese soldiers should prove their sincerity by bringing the men out into the open.
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Japan's Mainichi Shimbun newspaper said unidentified Philippine rebels were demanding a $US232,000 ($304,800) ransom for delivering the soldiers, said to have been hiding in the jungle unaware that World War II had ended.

Japan's Kyodo News agency, citing Japanese government sources, identified the two men as Yoshio Yamakawa, 87, and Tsuzuki Nakauchi, 85.

If the reports which emerged late last week prove to be genuine, Mr Yamakawa and Mr Nakauchi would be the first so-called Japanese "stragglers" from World War II to be uncovered in over 30 years.

Japan was stunned in 1974 when former imperial Japanese army intelligence officer Hiroo Onoda was found living in the jungle on the Philippine island of Lubang. He did not know of Japan's surrender 29 years earlier.

Tokyo has dispatched its embassy staff and an official from the ministry of welfare to Mindanao, some 1300km south of Manila, to track down the Japanese soldiers.

But police and the military in General Santos have expressed concern about the safety of the diplomats and the hordes of Japanese and other foreign journalists who have descended on the port city.

"I think they could be making this story up just to kidnap foreigners," warned Supt Kiunisula.

The area is home to both the communist New People's Army and the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and other Muslim extremist groups. Muslim rebels are known to have carried out kidnappings for ransom.

The MILF has said it has information on where the old soldiers are and offered to act as a go-between for the Japanese Government.

Embassy staff posted a warning in Japanese for journalists on Mindanao not to venture into the hills in search of the two soldiers or to follow anyone who offered to lead them to the men.

Colonel Medardo Geslani, the chief military officer in General Santos, said that his own forces had looked into the allegations of World War II stragglers.

"As far as the military and national police are concerned, there is no indication" of any Japanese having been left behind after World War II, he said.

"If there are new faces in town, there are lawless elements who may take advantage," he warned.

It is unclear how two Japanese soldiers hiding in the mountains could have survived over three decades of communist and Muslim guerrilla activity.

Japan attacked the Philippines, then a US colony, hours after its 1941 air raid on America's Pearl Harbour, leading to a brutal occupation before US-led forces recaptured the islands.

Another former Japanese soldier, Shoichi Yokoi, was found on Guam in 1972. He returned home and died in 1997.

05-29-2005, 06:43 PM	#12 (permalink)
Glava Betitled	It's looking more and more like a fake. Copied and pasted from here. Japanese soldiers story 'a scam' By Mynardo Macaraig in General Santos, Philippines May 30, 2005 From: Agence France-Presse SECURITY forces on the insurgency-wracked Philippine island of Mindanao are increasingly sceptical of reports that two elderly Japanese men have been hiding in the jungle since World War II. While Japanese diplomats tried for a fourth day to establish the veracity of the reports, suspicion grew today that kidnapping gangs on the island might have invented the rumours as a scam to lure foreigners into the region. Newspaper reports that unidentified rebels were asking for money for the two Japanese soldiers were a sign the whole thing could be simply a "money-making scheme", warned a regional police intelligence chief. "If you give money, how do you know you will get anything?" asked Superintendent Robert Kiunisula, adding that those holding the alleged Japanese soldiers should prove their sincerity by bringing the men out into the open. Advertisement: Japan's Mainichi Shimbun newspaper said unidentified Philippine rebels were demanding a $US232,000 ($304,800) ransom for delivering the soldiers, said to have been hiding in the jungle unaware that World War II had ended. Japan's Kyodo News agency, citing Japanese government sources, identified the two men as Yoshio Yamakawa, 87, and Tsuzuki Nakauchi, 85. If the reports which emerged late last week prove to be genuine, Mr Yamakawa and Mr Nakauchi would be the first so-called Japanese "stragglers" from World War II to be uncovered in over 30 years. Japan was stunned in 1974 when former imperial Japanese army intelligence officer Hiroo Onoda was found living in the jungle on the Philippine island of Lubang. He did not know of Japan's surrender 29 years earlier. Tokyo has dispatched its embassy staff and an official from the ministry of welfare to Mindanao, some 1300km south of Manila, to track down the Japanese soldiers. But police and the military in General Santos have expressed concern about the safety of the diplomats and the hordes of Japanese and other foreign journalists who have descended on the port city. "I think they could be making this story up just to kidnap foreigners," warned Supt Kiunisula. The area is home to both the communist New People's Army and the Muslim separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and other Muslim extremist groups. Muslim rebels are known to have carried out kidnappings for ransom. The MILF has said it has information on where the old soldiers are and offered to act as a go-between for the Japanese Government. Embassy staff posted a warning in Japanese for journalists on Mindanao not to venture into the hills in search of the two soldiers or to follow anyone who offered to lead them to the men. Colonel Medardo Geslani, the chief military officer in General Santos, said that his own forces had looked into the allegations of World War II stragglers. "As far as the military and national police are concerned, there is no indication" of any Japanese having been left behind after World War II, he said. "If there are new faces in town, there are lawless elements who may take advantage," he warned. It is unclear how two Japanese soldiers hiding in the mountains could have survived over three decades of communist and Muslim guerrilla activity. Japan attacked the Philippines, then a US colony, hours after its 1941 air raid on America's Pearl Harbour, leading to a brutal occupation before US-led forces recaptured the islands. Another former Japanese soldier, Shoichi Yokoi, was found on Guam in 1972. He returned home and died in 1997.