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| - Dark Side of the Sun - George Palmer's Journey From Prince Edward Island to Hong Kong and the Omine Camp in WWII His Story Chronology Capt. Wilson Interview Dr. Gingras Interview |
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| DR. GINGRAS INTERVIEW |
| SECTION 10: MALTREATMENT AND BRUTALITY A. HAVE YOU BEEN BRUTALIZED BY THE JAPANESE? Yes. B. EXPLAIN: I was hit. We all had a block with our number on it and wherever you went you had to hang up your block. If they came along and you were not where your block was they would beat you about the head, etc. C. HAVE YOU SEEN FELLOW PRISONERS BEING BRUTALIZED? Yes. D. EXPLAIN: I have seen them beat a man, knock him down, throw water on him to revive him and then beat him again. I saw them beat and knock down Sgt. Sheppard from Quebec and then stick a bayonet in his arm. I don't think they intended to stick it in his arm, I think they meant to kill him, but he sort of rolled over and he got it in the arm. I gave testimony about this incident at the War Crimes Trials in Manila. E. HAVE YOU BEEN SLAPPED BY THE JAPANESE? Yes. F. OFTEN? Myself, not too often. G. HAVE YOU SEEN OTHER PRISONERS BEING SLAPPED BY THE JAPANESE? Yes. H. OFTEN? All the time. I. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION? Not very good. There was nothing you could do. If you did anything to a Japanese everybody got punished. I remember once one of the fellows stole a leek at work and the whole 12 in the work party had to go without supper. So you would get mad but there was nothing you could do. They delighted in that - punishing someone and we all had to watch. J. IT HAS BEEN REPORTED THAT 264 CANADIANS DIED IN CAPTIVITY. ARE YOU AWARE OF SOME OF THESE DEATHS? Yes. K. IF YES, WOULD YOU KNOW THE CAUSE OF SOME? Sickness, malnutrition, accidents. L. DO YOU KNOW IF ANY PRISONERS COMMITTED SUICIDE? I don't know, unless you call giving up suicide. Some just refused to eat and died, which I suppose is a form of suicide. They just got weary and gave up. M. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FACT THAT YOU HAD NO FORMAL MEDICAL TRAINING, CAN YOU TELL ME IF YOU NOTICED ANY MENTAL PROBLEMS AMONG YOUR FELLOW PRISONERS? Yes. N. IF YES, CAN YOU DESCRIBE SOME OF THE PROBLEMS? Some got very mixed up. This was particularly true of those with night blindness - it seemed to affect their heads as well. O. FOLLOWING YOUR LIBERATION, WERE YOU AFFECTED BY DREAMS RELATING TO YOUR INCARCERATION? Yes. P. IF YES, ARE YOU STILL? Hardly ever now. Q. IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT ONE OF THE MOST DEVASTATING SITUATIONS FACING PRISONERS OF WAR IN JAPAN WAS THE CONSTANT FEAR OF THE FUTURE. ONE NEVER KNEW IF HE WOULD LIVE THROUGH THE NEXT DAY. IS THAT YOUR EXPERIENCE? Yes. R. IF YES, WHY? Because we heard about a whole bunch in Manila that they put in a shelter and set fire to them and burned them. We had a shelter, too, and we always thought they would do the same to us if invaded. S. HAVE YOU MET SOME OF YOUR FORMER EX-FELLOW PRISONERS SINCE YOUR LIBERATION? Yes. T. IF YES, DO YOU FEEL THAT THEY HAVE AGED FASTER THAN THE AVERAGE VETERAN? Yes - quite a bit more than the average person. U. DO YOU KNOW IF DEATHS OCCURRED DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTABLE TO BRUTALITY? Yes, I would say so. I would think quite a few died on account of it. |