By Jason A. Dixon, grandson Name: Richard E. Coert Born: October 5, 1922, Dutch East Indies Died: October 17, 2003, California, USA POW: Burma-Siam Railway Richard E. Coert was born in 1922 in what is now Indonesia, where he grew up. He dreamed of becoming a pilot in the Dutch air…
This is a remarkable web site called Pacific War Animated. How did the war end up in the Dutch East Indies ? With dramatic music in the background, you can follow the progression of invading Japanese forces (link below). At the bottom is a red arrow pointing to each red-framed window which you click.…
By Sylvia Boon Couto, daughter Name: William Boon Born: December 17, 1917, Java, Dutch East Indies Died: June 10, 2011, California, USA POW: Camp Tjimahi, West Java, Nov 20 , 1942 camp 4e Bataljon The Early Years Dad was born on December 17, 1917 on the island of Java, Indonesia to a…
By Jan Krancher, California, USA Overview of the Japanese Imprisonment Experience The Japanese High Command on Java attempted to coerce the Indo-European members of the former Royal Netherlands-Indies Army, Navy and Air Force to enlist in the Japanese army. A goodly number of Indos who refused were summarily executed and many ended up in…
By Joyce Kater, New Mexico, USA LITTLE MOMENTS OF HUMANITY AT WARTIME Although this incident happened a lifetime ago in the Second World War in South East Asia, it still lingers in my memory. It took place in the months before our family was torn apart and put in different Japanese concentration camps on Java…