THE SOOK CHING MASSACRE

Photo (above) Japanese soldiers bayoneting the executed victims of the massacre to ensure that they are really dead.

The Sook Ching massacre took place three days after the fall of Singapore to the Japanese forces on 15 February 1942. It was a sixteen days campaign launched by the Japanese army to eliminate all anti-Japanese elements in the country. Many of those who were tortured and killed were ethnic Chinese who were loyal to the British or had connections to China's anti-Japanese movement (both enemies of Japan). The Japanese also routinely eliminated gang members and troublemakers in the process. In the later stage, even women and children were not spared from the Sook Ching campaign.

It is unclear as to how many people have died from this atrocity as there is a lack of accurate records. Official Japanese figures show that there are around 5,000 people killed, while the Singapore Chinese Community figures shows a shocking total of 100,000.

Till today, no official apology was made by Japan over their atrocities committed in Asia.

Click on the link below to watch a documentary about the Fall of Singapore and the Sook Ching massacre:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRS51StHJGY&noredirect=1


Photo resource: National Archives of Singapore

ACTIVITY
Do you think the Japanese should apologise for their war crimes committed in Asia, given the fact that the war took place 70 years ago? Why?


Write your answers in the comment box below.

Shingapōru Daikenshō (シンガポール大検証)

Shingapōru Daikenshō (シンガポール大検証) meaning "great inspection of Singapore" took placed from 18 February to 4 March 1942 at various places around Singapore. The locals have another term for this event, it is known as the Sook Ching massacre (肅清大屠殺). The Chinese term "Sook Ching" means "to purge through cleansing". Similar to how the Nazis rounded up the Jews for persecution in Poland during WWII, this was a systematic extermination of anti-Japanese Chinese in Singapore by the Japanese soldiers.

According to history scholars, this purge was believed to have been planned even before the Japanese troops landed in Singapore. Its purpose was to to remove any anti-Japanese elements and to frighten the locals in order to swiftly impose military administration to the country. The Japanese knew that there were many locals such as Eurasians who had strong loyalty to Britain, as well as Chinese who supported the Chinese National Revolution Army from the Republic of China at that time. The Japanese military authorities, led by General Tomoyuki Yamashita decided upon a policy of exterminating those who had strong anti-Japanese sentiments.

"Screening centers" were set up all over Singapore to "screen" all Chinese males between the ages of 18 to 50. Sometimes, even women and children were inspected as well. Those who did not report to the screening centers were hunted down after a door-to-door search of each household. The Kempeitai or Japanese military police's inspection process were often indiscriminate and non-standardised. Many times, they would simply rely on hooded informants to weed out the anti-Japanese suspects. Those who passed the screening process would receive a paper bearing the word "jian" meaning "examined" in Chinese, or have a square ink mark stamped on their arms or shirts. Those who failed the inspection would be packed into trucks and sent to killing sites to exterminated

There were several sites for these killings. The more notorious sites were Changi, Punggol and Sentosa beaches. Many of the victims were shot or bayoneted (jabbed with a long knife attached to their military rifles) by the Kepeitai in cold blood. Not all the victims were male. According to eyewitness accounts at that time, even women and children were among those killed. The figures of death toll varies according to who is reporting it. Official Japanese statistics indicate a figure of less than 5000, while locals claimed as many as 100,000 people were massacred from this event.

References cited:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sook_Ching_massacre
http://www.mindef.gov.sg/imindef/about_us/history/world_war2/v04n02_history.html

EXERCISE:
Describe how you felt (in your role as a Chinese/Indian/Malay/Allied POWs/Japanese) during the re-enactment of the Sook Ching incident. (Write a 3-4 sentence answer in the comment box below. Remember to include your Class and Register Number.)

Suggested Activity:
Take a nice evening stroll along the Civilian War Memorial site near City Hall and reflect on the peace and stability that you are enjoying in Singapore today.