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

Jackebear · 06-01-2005, 06:30 AM

It's official everyone...it is a hoax, fake, scam, not true.

Mediator says story of WWII Japanese soldiers in Philippines was a hoax
10:29 AM EDT Jun 01
TOKYO (AP) - The mediator who tried to arrange a meeting with two alleged Japanese soldiers thought to be hiding in the Philippines since the Second World War has confirmed the story is a hoax, a media report said Wednesday.

The unidentified 58-year-old Japanese man, a trader who first reported the men's existence, told the national Yomiuri newspaper that he had met the two alleged soldiers in the mountains on Mindanao island and found they were not Japanese.

Neither of the men could answer when asked where they were born and to which military unit they belonged, the mediator was quoted as saying in the Yomiuri.

The Japanese Embassy in Manila, however, said the government had not dismissed the possibility that the story is true.

"We will continue to find out what this is all about," said embassy spokesman Shuhei Ogawa.

According to the Yomiuri, after the Japanese trader's Filipino staff notified him about the wartime stragglers, he spent five million yen, or the equivalent of about $46,000 US, paying local residents for information in hopes of tracking them down.

The story of the two soldiers, who were reportedly separated from their unit six decades ago and were afraid to return for fear of being court-martialed, broke as Japanese veterans marked the 60th anniversary of the war's end.

Japan withdrew diplomats from General Santos, in the southern Philippines, on Monday after four days of unsuccessfully trying to verify reports about two surviving Japanese wartime soldiers.

The Japanese Embassy and officials in Tokyo cited security concerns in a region notorious for Muslim guerrilla attacks and criminal gangs. Japan's Kyodo news agency, quoting an unidentified government source, said Tokyo also concluded that the Japanese mediator can't be trusted.

In Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said attempts to arrange a face-to-face meeting with the men would continue despite suspicions that the tale is a hoax.

The Philippines, a U.S. colony during the war, was a major battleground in the Pacific. The Japanese occupation is remembered for its massacres of civilians and deaths of hundreds of thousands of U.S. and Filipino soldiers. Years after the war ended, there were signs indicating Japanese soldiers still lived in the hills.

In March 1974, intelligence officer 2nd Lt. Hiroo Onoda came out of hiding on northern Lubang island, but he refused to give up until the Japanese government flew in his former commander to tell him the war was over.

06-01-2005, 06:30 AM	#15 (permalink)
Jackebear Insane	It's official everyone...it is a hoax, fake, scam, not true. Mediator says story of WWII Japanese soldiers in Philippines was a hoax 10:29 AM EDT Jun 01 TOKYO (AP) - The mediator who tried to arrange a meeting with two alleged Japanese soldiers thought to be hiding in the Philippines since the Second World War has confirmed the story is a hoax, a media report said Wednesday. The unidentified 58-year-old Japanese man, a trader who first reported the men's existence, told the national Yomiuri newspaper that he had met the two alleged soldiers in the mountains on Mindanao island and found they were not Japanese. Neither of the men could answer when asked where they were born and to which military unit they belonged, the mediator was quoted as saying in the Yomiuri. The Japanese Embassy in Manila, however, said the government had not dismissed the possibility that the story is true. "We will continue to find out what this is all about," said embassy spokesman Shuhei Ogawa. According to the Yomiuri, after the Japanese trader's Filipino staff notified him about the wartime stragglers, he spent five million yen, or the equivalent of about $46,000 US, paying local residents for information in hopes of tracking them down. The story of the two soldiers, who were reportedly separated from their unit six decades ago and were afraid to return for fear of being court-martialed, broke as Japanese veterans marked the 60th anniversary of the war's end. Japan withdrew diplomats from General Santos, in the southern Philippines, on Monday after four days of unsuccessfully trying to verify reports about two surviving Japanese wartime soldiers. The Japanese Embassy and officials in Tokyo cited security concerns in a region notorious for Muslim guerrilla attacks and criminal gangs. Japan's Kyodo news agency, quoting an unidentified government source, said Tokyo also concluded that the Japanese mediator can't be trusted. In Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said attempts to arrange a face-to-face meeting with the men would continue despite suspicions that the tale is a hoax. The Philippines, a U.S. colony during the war, was a major battleground in the Pacific. The Japanese occupation is remembered for its massacres of civilians and deaths of hundreds of thousands of U.S. and Filipino soldiers. Years after the war ended, there were signs indicating Japanese soldiers still lived in the hills. In March 1974, intelligence officer 2nd Lt. Hiroo Onoda came out of hiding on northern Lubang island, but he refused to give up until the Japanese government flew in his former commander to tell him the war was over. __________________ Life's jounney is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well-preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally worn-out shouting, "Holy sh*t! What a ride!" - unknown