The Anguish Of Surrender

On December 6, 1941, Ensign Kazuo Sakamaki was one of a handful of men selected to skipper midget subs on a suicide mission to breach Pearl Harbor’s defenses. When his equipment malfunctioned, he couldn’t find the entrance to the harbor. He hit several reefs, eventually splitting the sub, and swam to shore some miles from Pearl Harbor. In the early dawn of December 8, he was picked up on the beach by two Japanese American MPs on patrol. Sakamaki became Prisoner No. 1 of the Pacific War. Japan’s no-surrender policy did not permit becoming a POW. Sakamaki and his fellow soldiers and sailors had been indoctrinated to choose between victory and a heroic death. While his comrades had perished, he had survived. By becoming a prisoner of war, Sakamaki believed he had brought shame and dishonor on himself, his family, his community, and his nation, in effect relinquishing his citizenship. Sakamaki fell into despair and, like so many Japanese POWs, begged his captors to kill him. Based on the author’s interviews with dozens of former Japanese POWs along with memoirs only recently coming to light, The Anguish of Surrender tells one of the great unknown stories of World War II. Beginning with an examination of Japan’s prewar ultranationalist climate and the harsh code that precluded the possibility of capture, the author investigates the circumstances of surrender and capture of men like Sakamaki and their experiences in POW camps. Many POWs, ill and starving after days wandering in the jungles or hiding out in caves, were astonished at the superior quality of food and medical treatment they received. Contrary to expectations, most Japanese POWs, psychologically unprepared to deal with interrogations, provided information to their captors. Trained Allied linguists, especially Japanese Americans, learned how to extract intelligence by treating the POWs humanely. Allied intelligence personnel took advantage of lax Japanese security precautions to gain extensive information from captured documents. A few POWs, recognizing Japan’s certain defeat, even assisted the Allied war effort to shorten the war. Far larger numbers staged uprisings in an effort to commit suicide. Most sought to survive, suffered mental anguish, and feared what awaited them in their homeland. These deeply human stories follow Japanese prisoners through their camp experiences to their return to their welcoming families and reintegration into postwar society. These stories are told here for the first time in English.

Revelations of abuse at Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison and the U.S. detention camp at Guantánamo Bay had repercussions extending beyond the worldwide media scandal that ensued. The controversy surrounding photos and descriptions of inhumane treatment of enemy prisoners of war, or EPWs, from the war on terror marked a watershed momentin the study of modern warfare and the treatment of prisoners of war. Amid allegations of human rights violations and war crimes, one question stands out among the rest: Was the treatment of America's most recent prisoners of war an isolated event or part of a troubling and complex issue that is deeply rooted in our nation's military history?Military expert Robert C. Doyle's The Enemy in Our Hands: America's Treatment of Prisoners of War from the Revolution to the War on Terror draws from diverse sources to answer this question. Historical as well as timely in its content, this work examines America's major wars and past conflicts -- among them, the American Revolution, the Civil War, World Wars I and II, and Vietnam -- to provide understanding of the UnitedStates' treatment of military and civilian prisoners. The Enemy in Our Hands offers a new perspective of U.S. military history on the subject of EPWs and suggests that the tactics employed to manage prisoners of war are unique and disparate from one conflict tothe next. In addition to other vital information, Doyle provides a cultural analysis and exploration of U.S. adherence to international standards of conduct, including the 1929 Geneva Convention in each war. Although wars are not won or lost on the basis of how EPWs are treated, the treatment of prisoners is one of the measures by which history's conquerors are judged.

This unique volume provides a detailed analysis of Australia’s 300 war crimes trials of principally Japanese accused conducted in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War.

The Truth of War unveils a penetrating exploration of the most contentious facets of military combat, delving into the necessity of killing, the complex decisions surrounding the taking or sparing of prisoners, and the intricate dilemmas concerning the targeting of civilians. With a profound analysis of seven significant conflicts, this book challenges conventional beliefs, arguing that war possesses its own set of rules that often diverge from society's established laws and values. At its core, the book confronts the harsh reality that soldiers engaged in close-quarter combat must swiftly adapt to become efficient killers in order to survive, emphasising the stark choice they face, hone their lethal skills or meet a perilous demise. The author contends that the requirements of war demand an unflinching acceptance of this disturbing truth. By drawing from history, encompassing conflicts such as the Boer War, World Wars I and II, the wars in Korea, Vietnam, the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan, the author presents a comprehensive examination of the ethical dilemmas embedded within each episode. Through meticulous research and vivid storytelling, The Truth of War peels back the layers of sanitised perceptions, exposing the gritty realities that within the realm of warfare. In unveiling the hidden truths and complexities of war, this brilliant and thought-provoking book shines a blazing light on the multifaceted nature of combat, challenging readers to reevaluate their preconceived notions and confront the uncomfortable truths that lie at the heart of humanity's most enduring and controversial endeavour - war.

A collection of profound ideas from one of the great spiritual thinkers of our generation. In this authoritative work, readers will be brought to higher levels of awareness, control, and understanding. This book includes ten volumes of Dr. Hawkins’s core teachings that are most beneficial and relevant to today’s world, including his Map of Consciousness calibration process. The Wisdom of Dr. David R. Hawkins also includes one of Dr. Hawkins’s last lectures on the most valuable qualities for a spiritual seeker. Get ready to step off the ego path onto a more rewarding, fulfilling, and service-oriented journey of enlightenment.

Taking the example of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima as a case in point, Francis Winters analyzes the ethics of warfare, demonstrating how the examples of World War II hold relevance to the contemporary world. Unique in concept and approach, the volume links events from WWII with the modern-day war on terror and the impact of the September 11, 2001 assaults on America.

Both concise and wide-ranging, this encyclopedia covers massacres, atrocities, war crimes, and genocides, including acts of inhumanity on all continents; and serves as a reminder that lest we forget, history will repeat itself. The 400-plus entries in Atrocities, Massacres, and War Crimes: An Encyclopedia provide accessible and concise information on the difficult subject of abject human violence committed on all continents. The entries in this two-volume work describe atrocities, massacres, and war crimes committed in the 20th century, thereby documenting how human beings have repeatedly proven their capability to commit horrific acts of inhumanity even in relatively recent times and within the modern era. The encyclopedia covers countries, treaties, and terms; profiles individuals who had been formally indicted for war crimes as well as those who have committed mass atrocities and gone unpunished; and addresses human rights violations, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace.

Lethality in Combat shines a blazing light on the three most controversial aspects of military combat: the necessity of killing; the taking, or not, of prisoners; and the targeting of civilians. This book argues that when a nation-state sends its soldiers to fight, the state must accept the full implications of this, uncomfortable as they may be. Drawing on seven conflicts - the Boer War, World Wars I and II, and the wars in Korea, Vietnam, the Falklands and Iraq - the author considers these ethical issues.