In the early morning of March 10, 1974, a Japanese man dressed in the old Japanese military uniform of the Japanese army in World War II came to the Philippine Lupin Island Philippines Philippines, bowed deeply to the people, and solemnly handed the saber to the Commander of the Philippine Army.
He said, "I am Lieutenant Onoda, and I surrender to you on the orders of my superiors!" ”
The Commander of the Philippine Army returned it to him after receiving the saber and said: "You are a sample of the loyalty of the army."
Unaware of Japan's defeat and surrender in 1945, the Japanese fought with their comrades in the Jungles of the Philippines for 30 years.
When told that Japan had been defeated and surrendered as early as 1945, he was stunned and kept asking, "How can Japan be defeated?" Why should I love the gun as much as I love a baby..."
He sat where he was, crying bitterly!
One
His full name was 'Onoda Hiroro' and he was born on March 19, 1922 in Hainan, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan.
In 1942, at the age of 20, Onoda was drafted into the army.
After training in guerrilla warfare at the Nakano School in the Army, he was sent to Lubang Island in the Philippines in November 1944 to perform guerrilla warfare and intelligence gathering tasks.
But in fact, their mission was simple — to resist U.S. attacks and destroy airfields and seaports.
As for the operational strategy, it is also very simple - it is a separate battle, and there is no backup.
All in all, they have to rely on themselves for everything.
However, his superior, Yoshimi Tanida, gave Onoda a "draw a big pie" order when he led his troops to retreat:
"We retreated, but only temporarily. You go into the mountains and fight the enemy by laying mines and blowing up warehouses. I forbid you to commit suicide or surrender. In three, four or five years, I will be back. Only I can cancel this command. ”
At that time, Japan's defeat was a foregone conclusion, and it was impossible to make a comeback, so this order was somewhat "painted".
But it is undeniable that it was this order that made Onoda more determined to hold on, because he always believed that his superiors would definitely lead the large army back.
However, what he never expected was that this wait was 30 years!
Two
On February 28, 1945, U.S. troops landed in the Philippines, and most of the Japanese soldiers entrenched there either became cannon fodder or raised their hands and surrendered.
Except, of course, for Onoda and his three comrades-in-arms: Captain Shimada, The First Class Soldier Kozuka, and First Class Soldier Akatsu. They hid in the dense jungle and continued to resist.
It didn't take long for World War II to end!
Little did they know, however, that they might not believe that Japan would be defeated.
But at this moment, they also knew that without reinforcements, the four of them alone could not reoccupy the entire island, but they could let the Filipinos on the island know of their presence, so that they would always have a sense of fear of them.
Wouldn't they become the de facto controllers of the entire island? This is precisely the supreme goal of guerrilla warfare.
Just do it! They often haunt the neighborhood, shooting local villagers before hiding in the dense jungle.
On one occasion, dozens of farmers were harvesting bananas when they were ruthlessly shot and killed.
In the decades that followed, they committed multiple bloody crimes, resulting in the innocent loss of dozens of lives.
During this period, the local military and police also went into the mountains many times to arrest, but because they maintained a strategy of constant movement, they have not been caught.
In addition to shooting and killing local villagers, they often secretly sneak into the village to steal food, steal chickens, kill buffalo and so on.
Sometimes they also hunt in the jungle, hunting hares, pheasants, etc., to maintain the calories needed by the body.
But the food they hunted each time was very limited, as the dense gunfire would reveal their location.
However, despite their strong will, such a "savage" life is indeed too hard.
Especially during the rainy season, they must be vigilant against each other and stay awake so as not to die of too much body temperature drop while asleep.
In addition, in order to strengthen their convictions, they also hung signs on the walls of the jungle hideouts that read, "Carry the war to the end," and carved portraits of the emperor on banana leaves, in a vain attempt to use these moments to inspire them to continue fighting.
Three
In October 1945, Onoda and his comrades saw a leaflet handed out by the Americans, which clearly stated: "Japan has surrendered on August 14, so hurry down the mountain and surrender." ”
This was the first time they had received a "letter of persuasion," but several people did not believe it to be true, believing that it was nothing more than an American ploy.
What's more, there were gunshots outside the jungle from time to time, which made them more convinced that the war was not over, and the Americans were deceiving them.
Fast forward to 1949, and Onoda and his comrades had unknowingly resisted on the island for nearly 5 years.
For several years, they lived with the slightest bit of faith in their hearts, and now some people are starting to be unable to survive.
In that year, Akatsu, a first-class soldier, could no longer bear the desperate environment and finally surrendered to the Philippine authorities. The remaining three remained stubbornly resisting.
After that, their families continued to write letters and send Japanese newspapers of the time, hoping that the three of them would remember their families and go out of the jungle to surrender.
Onoda's brother even made a special trip to the island and shouted at him with a microphone, but he stubbornly believed that it was nothing more than the enemy using voices like his brother's to induce them to surrender.
Soft can't do it, then it can only come hard!
Since then, the local military police have launched a series of manhunt operations, most of which ended in failure, but in a clash in 1953, Shimada was stabbed in the thigh by local fishermen and killed in a clash the following year.
Now, there are only two people left in the jungle, Onoda and the superior soldier Kozuka!
Soon after, new flyers appeared in the jungle again!
The search team took a microphone and shouted loudly everywhere in the forest: "Onoda, Kozuka, the war is over!" ”
But they always ignored it!
Guerrilla warfare had developed a skepticism about everything and, more importantly, they had always believed that the Japanese would not concede defeat and that their large forces would return. Because That's what Onoda's boss said.
Year after year, Japan has built a series of skyscrapers, but for Onoda and Kozuka, who are wandering in the deep mountains and forests, these have nothing to do with them.
Their compatriots are enjoying the convenience and happiness that modern technology has brought them, while they are still quietly struggling for an unrealistic belief.
The same Japanese, but the two live in different spatial dimensions.
The long wait made Onoda confused, and he had doubted whether his boss Tanata had forgotten him.
On one occasion, Onoda had suicidal thoughts, but he immediately gave up because his superiors would not allow him to do so, leaving him to hold on and wait for him to lead a large army back.
Without receiving orders from his superiors to retreat and surrender, Onoda and Kozuka continued to fight guerrillas in the mountains and forests, continuing to fight for the so-called emperor.
They plan to attack military vehicles once a month and shoot drivers to prove their existence.
In 1965, they stole a radio and heard reports on international relations in the news.
Through the report, they know that China and Japan are no longer hostile countries, and the two countries are developing in the direction of friendly cooperation.
However, despite this, they still refuse to admit that the world has changed, and they still maintain their nature, burning and looting, and acting recklessly.
Four
One day in October 1972, Onoda planted a mine in a nearby village.
However, due to rust, the mine did not explode, so he had to attack the patrol with Kozuka.
As a result, during this operation, Kozuka was unfortunately killed, and the two squad became him alone.
At this time, 27 years after Japan's surrender, the death of the Japanese soldier soon attracted the attention of Tokyo.
To this end, the Japanese authorities immediately sent people to Burma, Malaysia, the Philippines and other places to find Japanese soldiers hidden in the deep mountains and dense forests.
There are many leaflets in the mountains, including reports of Japan's surrender, reports of the current situation in Japan, and news of Kozuka's funeral in Japan...
But the stubborn Onoda Hiroro never believed that all this was true.
On February 20, 1972, Onoda met Japanese explorer Norio Suzuki in the jungle.
In fact, one of the purposes of Suzuki's expedition is to find Onoda Hiroro and try to persuade him to go out of the jungle and surrender.
The two began a conversation!
Onoda said: If you want me to retreat, you can, but you must have the order of my captain, otherwise you don't have to talk!
Suzuki promised on the spot that he would come back with his captain's orders.
However, it is not so easy to find his captain!
It took Suzuki a lot of effort to find Onoda's boss, Yoshimi Tanida, who ordered Onoda to stick to Lubang Island.
After the war, Yoshimi Tanida changed her name to business.
For Tanida, he didn't seem to know that this order of his would have such an impact on Onoda.
Soon, Suzuki took Yoshimi Tanida to an agreed place in the jungle of Lubang Island.
Five
On March 9, 1974, Onoda found a note left to him by Suzuki stating that his former boss, Yoshimi Tanida, had arrived and attached a photocopy of the complete evacuation order.
Two days later, Onoda put on her makeup, climbed the mountain, and came to the designated place to meet her old boss.
At the order of Yoshimi Tanida, the already thin lieutenant Onoda Hiroro surrendered on the spot. At this time, Onoda was already more than half a hundred years old.
He fought guerrilla warfare in the dense jungle for 30 years, killing and wounding 130 Filipino military police and civilians.
Supposedly, such a person should have been sentenced to capital punishment, but Marcos, then president of the Philippines, pardoned him, released him back home, and praised him as a "good soldier."
After 30 years, Onoda finally returned to his hometown, and everywhere he went, he was welcomed by the Japanese people, and he has become a symbol of Japan's "heroic" spirit.
Soon, his autobiography "Never Surrender, My Thirty Years' War" became a bestseller, and his legendary deeds became the talk of the Japanese people after dinner.
After that, he participated in many activities to "summon the soul" of militarism.
But 30 years of closed life has derailed him from the world and simply cannot adapt to life at home.
In 1975, Onoda bought a large ranch in the forests of Brazil and settled here.
After 21 years, Onoda returned to the place where he had fought, Lubang Island.
During this time, a Filipino farmer who had been wounded by him with a rifle was able to accept Onoda's embrace.
The Filipino farmer said, "I don't have any resentment, that's what happened a long time ago, and why mention it!" ”
But most of the other locals did not intend to forgive the "demon" and "executioner" who killed their loved ones, and Onoda was still what they called the "criminal assassin".
So, for Onoda, who has committed many crimes, what kind of attitude does he have towards what he has done?
In this regard, he said with a shameless face: "Soldiers are obeying orders, and I have no responsibility without violating the laws of the country." ”
It can be seen from this that the poison of militarism has long penetrated into his marrow, and he has lost the ability to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil.
Six
In Japan, he may be a hero, but for the Asian people who have been poisoned by the Japanese invaders, Onoda is an out-and-out "demon".
But then again, how could he not have been a victim of Japanese militarism?
But this does not mean that we can forgive him for what he did, but on the contrary, we should bear in mind the crimes committed by him and other Japanese aggressors, which can never be forgiven.
On the afternoon of January 16, 2014, Hiroro Onoda, a former second lieutenant in the former Japanese Army and known as the "last Japanese soldier to surrender," died of illness at the age of 91.
Onoda's life is both pathetic and shameful!
After the withdrawal of the large troops, he persisted in the struggle for 30 years for the so-called faith in his heart and the orders issued by his superiors;
During this period, he shot and killed many innocent local military police and civilians, committing many unforgivable crimes.
After surrendering and being acquitted, he returned to Japan as he wished, and was once regarded as a "hero" by the Japanese people.
In his later years, he still refused to admit the crimes he had committed, believing that this was just the duty that a soldier should perform...
In Wen Shijun's view: Although his life is full of legends, it is not worthy of our praise and affirmation.
He may have been a hero to his countrymen, but to us he was no different from the Japanese soldiers who invaded China.