Leaflet Calling Japanese Soldiers To Surrender- Long

[Lemming]

Attached is a photo of a surrender request dropped on Guam at the end of the Pacific War asking Japanese soldiers to stop fighting and come out of the jungle. my mother first showed it to me when I was about 12 and she didn't know anything about it other than he had said it was an announcement that the war had ended.

In 1992 I was working on a US Forest Service helicopter delivered fire fighting crew based at Ramona Airport north of San Diego. The USFS does not own any helicopters; since fire season is generally only a few months out of the year. it is not cost effective to maintain such expensive aircraft year round. The helos are contracted from private companies.

The company that provided the ship at Ramona's main job was training Japanese helicopter pilots at their headquarters in Orange county. This was very interesting to me...it was cheaper (and safer apparently due to airspace/traffic density) to bring the pilots over to the US to train rather than to do it in Japan! Anyway, somehow the subject of this document came up in a discussion with the pilot assigned to us in Ramona and he offered to get a translation from one of the Japanese student pilots. I made a photocopy and off it went.

Months later I received the translation below with a postscript "Translation by Mr Tomoyuki Hioki of Hiser Helicopters 2/2/93. The text is below. I was interested to find that Mr. Hioki had some problems as he said the language was very formal and archaic. I reproduce this here as received regarding grammar, spelling, punctuation,capitalization, etc

"To: The Army, Navy, soldiers and Civilians in the Jungle of Guam Island
Date: 1945 August 16
From: Major Sato at Guam Island

I believe this is an exact report about our current condition to the officers and men who have sublime Japanese spirit and have been fighting fiercely for us in the jungle.

It is very unpleasant to say, we attacked towards South East Asia, but it didn't profit our empire. Also, the enemy dropped an atomic bomb which the world has seen kill the people in the whole city. In addition, the Soviets entered the war to defeat us, so it is very difficult to achieve our purpose of this war.

Mr. Ohuchiyama studied the current situation thoroughly, and it is forced to him to decide to stop the war and announce this to you. It seems that the only way that he can go is to retreat as quickly as possible.

We are perplexed because our situation has been changed so drastically, but Mr. Obuchiyama's orders keep our world away from atomic bombs, and he shows the way of development for our country. It seems that not only for the Imperial citizen, but the people all over the world were impressed with his consideration.

The war is over, but it seems that the Imperial household's authority will still contribute to the world. It is not a time to grieve about our personal matters but a crisis when we must work hard for the recovery of our country.
we

This retreat has been suggested to us by the U.S. Army. It is made to you by Mr. Sato (Commander) and some other Japanese officers with great passion. We must take extreme caution and retreat quickly from the jungle. All of you must trust and follow yourofficer's instructions and throw away any doubts. I hope that we will soon see your appearance (that has been fighting so hard) as soon as possible.

Caution

To lead you, please use the following information:

1- We announce this retreat to everybody as much as we can, scattering this flyer from planes and ships.
2- Military officers are going to the jungle to lead you all.
3- Even if a military officer does not come up to lead you, please contact a U.S. Army platoon or barracks. You can also appear on the motor vehicle road. Carry a white flag and show it clearly.
4- Please leave any weapons behind."

One mystery is the reference to "Mr Ohuchiyama", I have never heard of or found any reference to anyone by that name and would be interested in any information. Another note, the flyer didn't work too well; Shoichi Yokoi was the last soldier on Guam to surrender on Sept 24, 1972! Link to that story below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoichi_Yokoi

Hope you enjoyed this

[Guamsst]

Could be multiple possibilities. Mr. Ouichima could be a double translation mistake (U.S. to 1945 Japanese, 1945 Japanese to modern Japanese) Or he could just be an unfamiliar commander or politician. After 1945 the language was simplified and most young Japanese can barely read any of the old writing. Think of giving a high school student now an original copy of the constitution and the want to know what congreff is.

I have been in Yokoi's cave. It is less than a Hobbit hole and his rifle was in worse than relic condition. He said in one interview he almost surrendered around 1951 but he saw American bombers headed to Japan so knew the war must be going again (Korean war) Then he thought about it in the 60s but saw more bombers heading to Japan and knew the war must still be raging (Vietnam)

[Lemming]

Guamsst-
Should have expected you would have some insight here based on your forum name. You've been in his cave...amazing.

It mystifies me that soldiers like Shoichi Yokoi held out for over 20 years believing that the war was still going on. Not just one man but quite a few and in different places. Hiroo Onada, who with a couple of other soldiers, actually carried on guerrilla operations in the Philippines until he came out in 1974. I guess the current record holders are 2 who "surrendered" in 2005! They were afraid they would be court martialed when they returned to Japan! It is amazing to think of men being that indoctrinated or committed. Your relating that Yokoi figured the continuing overflights of bombers led him to believe the war still continued did not apparently dishearten him...it was probably what he expected.

Appreciate the notes on the language. The translator was in his 20s so I guess I should be pleased, IIRC he had to call his father for some help. So, the mysterious Mr Ohuchiyama, will remain so until further notice.

Thanks again,
Mike

[Guamsst]

I still dislike the term cave for where Yokoi lived. It was a spider hole. I could not even sit up inside the hole. I could hunch over and could have slept in it, but there was NO extra space. He had a little bamboo chimney so he could cook in the hole. It is a great example of basic survival shelter. It could be built in a day if you were one hell of a digger and had good equipment. Some of his clothes and fishing gear are at the little "museum". It is a great thing to see if you aren't looking for something flashy and exciting but are looking for something "real".

Sadly, my strong interest in the Pacific war did not hit it's full stride until after I had left Guam. Had I known then, what i know now, it would have been one heck of a 4 years.

On a side note, my second wedding was held in a pit for a coastal gun the Japanese had set on a hilltop overlooking the beaches. Neat place. Even neater when you know that the large circles and winding paths of the park are not just random decoration but actually the pits for the guns and the network of trenches connecting them to the command post.

Oh, one more thing. Apparently my old commander on Guam was the one who found the B-29 at the bottom of the cliff at the end of the runway. This was in 1998 I think. I would not be surprised at all if they found another intact plane or Japanese holdout tomorrow. That jungle can keep a secret for a long long time.