On a sleepless night in the summer of 1945, under the Japanese sky, as the shadow of war grew thicker, an indescribable tension and fear permeated every corner of the country. At that time, not only was the artillery fire on the front line terrifying, but the choice faced by men in the country was equally cruel – a choice of life and death, a struggle for honor and survival.
At this time, men in Japan are facing the most difficult choices of their lives. The enforcement of the Military Service Act is relentless, and almost every healthy adult man cannot escape the fate of being drafted into the army. However, as the war situation continued to deteriorate, the conscription system escalated further, creating a harsh reality that has been metaphorized as a "death draw". In this lottery, every draw can mean a family's nightmare come true.
The grim demands of the conscription system
In Japan at the end of World War II, conscription orders drifted into thousands of households like autumn leaves, announcing the coming separation and sacrifice. Japan's Selective Service Law has become unusually strict, and every man of the right age who is in good health is held accountable, regardless of his personal will, is included in the cogs of the state apparatus. On the streets, the ranks in front of the enlistment offices grew stronger, and young people, under the tears of their families, walked into checkpoints to undergo medical examinations, waiting for their fate to be decided by a conscription order.
According to the regulations, any man who is more than 1.45 meters tall and has no major disability or disease cannot escape this call to an unknown fate. In this regard, conscription shows its ruthlessness, not just for individuals, but for entire families, communities, and even nations. Despite the horrors of war, the call for conscription still rings in the sky, forcing every man to face the test of life and death.
As the Japanese army's losses on the battlefield grew, the need for soldiers in the country became more urgent. In this context, the scope of conscription has expanded to almost every corner of society. Young students in schools, farmers in the fields, and even street vendors are included in the list of conscripts as long as they meet the basic requirements for conscription. Every time a conscription order is issued, it creates an atmosphere of tension and anxiety in the community. Families are anxious about the loss of their loved ones, and the men who have been drafted have stepped onto the battlefield in desperation.
At the recruitment checkpoint, doctors and officers are busy conducting medical examinations to confirm that each conscriptor meets the requirements for conscription. The process is both mechanical and indifferent, and everyone is given a number and examined like a product in a factory. Those who pass the examination will undergo further military training, while those who have been exempted for health reasons return home with mixed emotions, feeling both good and guilty for their compatriots who are about to go to war.
Graded conscription: a different choice of fate
In Japan at the end of World War II, conscription orders became the key to determining the fate of tens of thousands of men. These conscription orders are divided into three levels, each of which portends a different future and challenges. First, the Home Defence Force (IDF) recruitment is primarily aimed at those who are deemed fit to defend internal security. This level of a call-up order is often seen as a relatively "safe" option, as it means that the call-up will remain in the country and will not have to go straight to the front line of bullets. Those who received this call-up were assigned to military bases in various places to participate in the increasingly intensifying defense of the homeland, such as building fortifications along the coastline or patrolling the cities to enhance the sense of security of the population.
The second level, Reserve Notice, is primarily for veterans who have military experience and soldiers who have been wounded. Because of their past service experience, these individuals are considered to be able to quickly commit themselves to more severe combat environments if necessary. Personnel who have been notified of the reservists are usually grouped together for a series of refresher training sessions to restore or improve their combat skills. They were told that they were ready to be deployed overseas, and the uncertainty of this state put a huge strain on their lives.
The most severe is the red conscription order, which means that the conscripts will directly face the test of life and death. Red conscription orders are usually issued to men who are in good health, young and strong, and who will be quickly sent to the front lines in China, Southeast Asia, or the Pacific. Those who received a red conscription order often had only a brief time to say goodbye to their families, and then were urgently assembled for rapid but intense basic military training. In this training, they are taught how to use weapons, how to survive on the battlefield, and how to perform tasks in extreme conditions.
As the war dragged on, the need for soldiers in Japan became more urgent, and the conscription system became more stringent. From the city to the countryside, from the school to the factory, there is no corner that is completely immune to the effects of this war. The enlistment office has become a place of intense concern for many families, and people are worried about the conscription orders they may receive. Whenever the postman sent a heavy letter, many families were worried about it, fearing that any one of them would be a messenger of the conscription order.
Exemptions for special groups
In the smoke of World War II, although Japan's "Military Service Law" was strictly enforced, it also left a glimmer of life for certain groups. Among them, university students, who are seen as the hope for the country's future, as well as engineers and skilled workers who are vital to military production, would have enjoyed the privilege of exemption or suspension of military service. These policies are designed to ensure that the country's educational system and the productive capacity of the military industry remain preserved and developed even in the face of war.
The exemption for university students means that they can continue their studies and train future scientific, cultural and technical talents for the country. Engineers and skilled workers are the backbone of the country's military industry, designing and manufacturing weapons, aircraft, ships, and other military equipment, which are essential to maintaining and enhancing national defense in wartime. This policy reflects Japan's wartime concern for maintaining the country's long-term development, that is, to mobilize as many troops as possible to participate in the war effort, while also safeguarding the country's future development potential.
However, as the situation continued to deteriorate, the Japanese military's need for troops became more urgent. The devastation on the battlefield on the outside has forced the Japanese military to consider using almost all of its available human resources, including university students, who were considered the country's hope for the future, and engineers and skilled workers who are critical to maintaining the country's military capacity.
As the enlistment order expanded, the once peaceful nature of the college campus was shattered. From the moment they received the call-up order, the students had to put down their books and move from the lecture hall to the barracks, from the palace of knowledge to the battlefield of defending the country. Even engineers and skilled workers who were buried deep in the laboratory and focused on scientific research and technological development were forced to temporarily put down their tools and change into military uniforms to participate in this war in which all people participated.
For the military industry, this withdrawal of human resources has undoubtedly caused a certain decline in production capacity. Some military factories have had to adjust their production schedules or fill vacancies caused by conscription by training new workers. This state of affairs has affected the supply of military supplies to a certain extent, especially when the war has entered a white-hot phase and the demand for equipment is growing day by day.
Despite this, the wartime government and military worked hard to keep the military industry running to ensure supplies at the front. For those engineers and skilled workers who have been drafted into the military, the military sometimes assigns them to relevant military R&D or production positions based on their professional skills in order to use their expertise to contribute to the war effort. In addition, many universities in China are also required to participate in military research and personnel training, so that educational resources are also militarized to a certain extent.
Resistance and evasion of the people
As the war worsened and the conscription system was strictly enforced, feelings of confrontation and evasion began to brew within Japanese society. Faced with the high mortality rate on the frontline battlefield and the grief of their families, many Japanese men began to try various methods to avoid the fate of being drafted. Although these methods of evading military service are diverse, they all reflect the intuitive resistance of ordinary people to the cruelty of war and the instinctive pursuit of survival.
Self-harm has become an extreme option for some desperate people. Some will cut off their fingers or deliberately injure their own body parts in order to qualify for exemption from service. This act of self-harm, while it can temporarily avoid conscription, also leaves permanent scars on their bodies and minds. In addition, this practice is extremely risky, and if discovered, not only is there no hope of exemption from military service, but also faces serious legal and social consequences.
Falsifying medical reports and faking illness are also tactics employed by some people. By bribing doctors or using their connections, some have managed to circumvent conscription by obtaining false medical reports or by using specific drugs to cause temporary health problems prior to medical examinations. This approach requires certain social resources and context, so not everyone can take it. Despite this, this method is slightly less risky than self-harm, but once it is exposed, it also faces serious punishment.
Fleeing is another, more subtle form of resistance. Some men choose to leave their families and communities and take refuge in the mountains and forests or in remote villages in the hope of avoiding the checks and call-outs of conscription. During their days in hiding, these fugitives lived in extremely difficult conditions, not only to be constantly on guard against being discovered, but also to contend with the harshness of the natural environment and the scarcity of resources for survival. Still, for those in despair, instead of facing the fate of almost certain death on the battlefield, it is better to choose a glimmer of life, even if they live in constant fear and uncertainty.
These evasions of conscription were extremely dangerous and strictly forbidden in the social environment of the time. If discovered by the authorities, not only will the individual face severe legal sanctions, but their family members may also suffer collateral social discrimination and economic hardship. Still, there are many people who take great risks and choose to evade conscription through these means, which is not only an instinctive desire for life, but also a deep resistance to the nature of war.
The end of the war and its far-reaching implications
It was not until August 15, 1945, when the news of Japan's unconditional surrender spread everywhere, that the fear, suffering, and sacrifice that had lasted for those years finally came to an end. Not only did World War II take a heavy toll on the battlefield, but its effects permeated every aspect of Japanese society, especially the draconian conscription system, which changed the lives of millions of families forever.
When the war ended, soldiers returning home and those who had once hid themselves to avoid conscription found that the communities they once knew were unrecognizable. Both the city and the countryside have suffered great damage, the economy is in dire straits, many families have lost their loved ones, and society is full of grief and loss. The rifts created by conscription in war, even after peace comes, are difficult to heal quickly.
As the war ended, former military service evaders gradually emerged from their hiding places, faced with the daunting task of post-war reconstruction and social judgment of past behavior. Those who have avoided conscription because of self-harm, falsification of medical reports, feigning illness or fleeing have escaped the bullets of the battlefield, but the psychological and physical scars left by the war, as well as the prejudices of society, will take longer to heal.
Militaristic Education in Japan (1868-1945)