Chapter 3-US-Japanese War in Dayhagan, Pilar, Capiz

I remembered one time all residents of Dayhagan, Pilar, Capiz were ordered to leave their homes. They would be transferred, all of them to the center of village. Each family was ordered to build small huts in the village. All families were concentrated in that area.

A playground was built around the houses. I heard this was on order from Japanese officers. In few weeks we were all living in huts in the center of the village.

During the day time farmers go to their farms. The fisherfolks go to the seashores or the seas to fish. But they return home in the afternoon after work to sleep with their families. Families concentrated in a small area could be monitored easily by village leaders and Japenese soldiers.

I remembered our Sunday School and Worship service before were in the bigger homes of some members. Now huts were too small for a few people inside . Group meetings were now under the trees. I heard the reason for the concentration of the residents were the coming soon by Americans to the Philippines.

I remembered stories of Japanese soldiers coming into our village looking for guerrillas. My grandmother and most people were afraid of the Japanese. I heard stories of the Japanese tyranny on civilians. In nearby villages and towns civilians were shot or killed by the Japanese. Some mothers were bayoneted together with their child by the Japanese. Every time we heard Japanese coming we disappeared to the heavily forested swamp a kilometer away.

Our home was 7 kilometers from Balasan town in Iloilo. Here the Japanese built an airport. The Japanese warplanes were being maintained and repaired there. From Balasan airport, the Japanese warplanes made surveillance of Northern Panay areas. These

warplanes reached out to monitor activities in nearby island provinces of Masbate, Romblon, Negros and Cebu.

During the war years, my two uncles built what they called “air raids” inside a one- hectare banana plantation of my grandmother. They built the “air raids” one meter wide, 4 meters long and one and one- half meters deep. Here we run to hide every time, we heared Japanese planes that flew low and roaring.

The “air raids” was our sanctuary and refuge in case of air strapping by the Japanese warplanes. But I remembered no Japanese planes strapped our areas during that time.

One day, about 10:00 a.m. there were two men who arrived at home. I had never seen them before. One was short and the other a bit taller. They came to me when I came inside to drink water. We were playing with my friends outside. The taller man came and talked with me and tried to lift me. But I refused. When my mother came in from the kitchen, she told me that the taller man was my father. Father tried to befriend me. The following day, he brought me to the field to get some fruits and make traps for birds. He tried to talk to me and told me some stories. Slowly, we became friends.

I learned that was the first time my father came home. He left in mid- 1939 to train in the army in Dingle, Iloilo. Few months after his training, he was sent to Mindanao. The Japanese -American war brook out. In Mindanao the American-Filipino forces fought hard against the Japanese forces that arrived in the conquest of Mindanao

It was a deadly war. Many of father’s comrades have fallen. And many Japanese have died. After some weeks, they were ordered to surrender. My father said he refused to surrender. Together with some soldiers, they tried to escape. They plan to continue fighting the Japanese as guerrillas. But they were prevailed upon by their commanders to surrender.

They surrendered to the Japanese with their weapons. After a few months, they were sent to Tarlac in Luzon as Prisoners of War. In Tarlac, they joined with the Prisoners of
War from Luzon who surrendered and was part of the Death March. My father told me how hard the lives of Filipino and American prisoners in the Concentration Camps in Tarlac.

Those were a very hard life. About 25,000 Filipinos died in Tarlac concentration camp, together with 6,000 American soldiers. The major causes of death were desentery, typhoid fever and cholera. Every day for several months, they buried more than 500 dead soldiers.

Father said he worked very hard to survive the sickness and diseases in the Japanese concentration camp. One of the things that helped him was chewing ginger. He always carried and chew ginger every day.

He brought some ginger roots and planted it in their prison garden. He told me that ginger has anti-biotic properties and a good disinfectant. He used it as beverage. Every morning and evening he gets some ginger and crushed it with his knife. Then he boiled it in 6 cups of water for about 10 minutes. Hr drunk four ginger salabat glasses the whole day. He made sure he and the surrounding areas were always clean.

When he was thirsty, he drank boiled water from the rivers or wells. He had a canteen and a canteen cup to boil water. In 3 years' time as a prisoner of war, he never drank unboiled water. Some soldiers drank water from the wells and rivers without boiling. Many of them got sick. The deaths in the prison camp was very heavy.

Father said he always prayed to ask God for health and strength. He did not know when they will be released from prison. He and his friends tried to find a way to make life a little bit easier. They were always hungry. And they planted vegetables in some small plots. Eating vegetables gave strength and good health.

Some prisoners were released and allowed to go home. Unfortunately, some of them who went home were arrested by the guerrillas who suspected them loyal to the Japanese . Some were detained and investigated. Some were killed. Some were also allowed to return to their places.

Every day, Prisoners of War in Capas, Tarlac hoped and dreamed of freedom. And my father was hoping and dreaming with them.

1Wilson D Guanzon

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