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When discussing which country treated Japanese prisoners of war most harshly during World War II, many immediately think of the Soviet Union. After all, countless Japanese soldiers, notorious for their brutal conduct, perished in the freezing wilderness of Siberia under Soviet captivity.
However, beyond the Soviet Union, Australia, located far away in Oceania, was also extremely severe towards Japanese soldiers. The Australian forces reportedly executed as many as 190,000 Japanese prisoners after their surrender.
During WWII, Australian soldiers bore deep scars from their encounters with Japan. But what exactly did Japan do to Australia to provoke such intense hatred? Besides the tough stance on Japanese POWs, how did Australia treat Japanese war criminals? And how does modern Australia view Japan today?
When it comes to animosity toward Japan during the war, China is often considered the most affected, but Australia’s resentment was similarly profound.
At the war’s outset, Australia, distant from the Asian and European continents, seemed detached from the conflict, much like the United States, watching from the sidelines.
Yet as Japan deepened its aggression in China, embroiling the region in a people's war, the small island nation’s limited resources were nearly depleted. Japan lacked substantial colonies and domestic raw materials like oil, steel, coal, and rubber—resources critical for sustaining its war machine.
When the China campaign reached a stalemate, Japan debated whether to push north against the Soviet Union or southward to seize colonial possessions from Britain and France for vital resources. Early in the war, northern expansion had considerable support.
However, as resources dwindled and maritime routes became increasingly hazardous, Japan shifted strategy toward southern expansion, setting the stage for the Pacific War’s outbreak.
On December 7, 1941, the Japanese navy launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Had the U.S. Pacific Fleet’s aircraft carriers not been away on exercises, the U.S. naval presence in the Pacific could have been annihilated.
Emboldened by this success, Japanese high command believed American forces were manageable, prompting a swift move to strike British colonies in Southeast Asia after America declared war.
The day after Pearl Harbor, Japanese aircraft bombed British airfields in Singapore and Malaya, quickly followed by landings. Colonial forces from the Netherlands, Britain, and the U.S. suffered repeated defeats.
Local armies in Southeast Asia, such as those in the Philippines and Malaysia, were quickly overwhelmed by the Japanese advance. Japan’s momentum did not stop there; it soon targeted Malaya, where British garrison forces were insufficient.
The British government urgently called on Australia and New Zealand to send troops. These Commonwealth nations answered decisively, but Australia, inexperienced against Japanese forces, underestimated the enemy.
Upon arrival in Malaya, Australian troops were shocked. The once-feared British Royal Navy could not contain the Japanese navy, and even the substantial British forces in the region were helpless against Japan’s rapid offensive.
With British units retreating or surrendering, over 15,000 Australian and New Zealand soldiers found themselves encircled by the Japanese, cut off from supplies, and forced to surrender without significant combat.
Australian soldiers had expected that surrendering would mean captivity in POW camps until the war’s end, but they soon faced a nightmare.
The Japanese military was notorious for extreme cruelty despite battlefield effectiveness. Their POW camps violated every international convention—prisoners were starved, deprived of clothing, and subjected to brutal forced labor without respite.
Some unlucky POWs were used as live shooting targets or subjected to cruel human experiments. Among the over 10,000 Australian POWs, fewer than half survived.
In the Ambon Island campaign, Australia also sent troops to assist the Dutch. Following defeat, most captured Australian soldiers were massacred, with only a quarter surviving.
After initially occupying Southeast Asia, the Japanese began constructing railways to transport resources. This forced labor included thousands of POWs, among them many Australians.
Scholars estimate that this railway project would have taken six years under normal conditions, but the Japanese forced POWs to work relentlessly, completing it in only 17 months with devastating casualties. Over 3,000 Australian POWs died during construction, none survived.
News of such atrocities ignited furious outrage in Australia. Citizens had never witnessed such shameless brutality or experienced such horrific treatment firsthand, fueling a desire to invade Japan and capture its emperor in vengeance.
However, Australia lacked the military capacity to do so and instead became a vital logistical base for the U.S. military’s Pacific campaign. Darwin, one of Australia’s busiest ports, suffered relentless bombings by the Japanese.
For an entire year, Japanese air raids on Darwin dropped hundreds of tons of explosives, killing countless Australian civilians and intensifying anti-Japanese sentiments across the country.
In 1943, Japanese forces captured an Australian white soldier named Seafright on New Guinea. As a communications operator, he endured horrific torture during interrogation, yet refused to reveal any intelligence.
With no success extracting information, the Japanese executed Seafright and several other prisoners publicly on a New Guinea beach, inviting local witnesses and journalists to the spectacle.
Japanese reporters published photos of the beheadings, hoping to demoralize Australians. But instead, these images only strengthened Australia’s resolve to fight.
The Australians were determined to defeat Japan on the battlefield and avenge those who suffered under Japanese captivity, leading to their major role in the New Guinea campaign.
Disillusioned by British failures, Australia increasingly relied on American military support. Under General MacArthur’s leadership, U.S. forces gained naval and air superiority, encircling Japanese troops on New Guinea.
The 200,000 Japanese soldiers trapped there found themselves cut off, with no way to escape. Australian troops adapted by avoiding direct assaults, instead relying on American air and artillery support to weaken Japanese defenses.
Australia’s strategy forced Japanese soldiers into isolated positions, where harsh jungle conditions, disease, and starvation rapidly depleted their strength.
Some Japanese soldiers tried to surrender, but Australian forces refused to accept it. In desperation, some Japanese resorted to cannibalism of their fallen comrades.
On rare occasions when Japanese troops attempted to surrender, Australian artillery and machine guns unexpectedly opened fire, causing heavy casualties and discouraging further surrenders.
Once the U.S. took over full operations on New Guinea, Japanese soldiers eagerly surrendered, but only about 10,000 remained from the original 200,000, thanks largely to Australia’s brutal campaign.
After the war ended, nations affected by Japanese aggression began prosecuting war criminals. Australia was among the harshest in punishing Japanese offenders.
China, which suffered 14 years of invasion, executed around 110 Japanese war criminals, and only a few top-level criminals were sentenced to death at the Tokyo Trials, with some like Nobusuke Kishi escaping execution.
Australia held over 400 war crime trials and sentenced 148 Japanese prisoners, including lower-ranked offenders, to death by hanging.
Today, Australia’s Pacific War Memorial displays the Japanese imperial rising sun flag at the entrance floor, symbolically requiring visitors to step over it—reflecting the deep historical enmity.
Despite this bitter past, both Japan and Australia now recognize the United States as a key ally. Though once bitter enemies, under U.S. influence, they cooperate pragmatically, forming an uneasy alliance.
Some might condemn Australia’s reported killing of 190,000 Japanese soldiers as a war crime, but considering Japan’s brutal invasions and atrocities, many argue that such consequences were an inevitable outcome of wartime actions.
Ultimately, responsibility lies with Japan’s war architects who unleashed devastation across Asia.
What are your thoughts on these Japanese wartime actions? Feel free to share your views in the comments below.
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