Post by dcgrava on Apr 6, 2007 9:22:54 GMT -5
The ‘Koga Papers’, the Leyte Landing, and Col. Quesada
By Dionesio C. Grava
(This is the third in a series of articles touching on some of our heroes and events of WWII that BALITA Media (Midweek Balita/Weekend Balita/www.balita.com), in coordination with the Filipino Veterans Foundation headed by Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, is publishing in connection with this year’s commemoration of the heroic stands at Bataan and Corregidor.)
The fulfillment of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s “I shall return” effectively recouped the gloss of the American image badly tarnished by the easy decimation of its vaunted USAFFE forces at the start of the war in the Philippines that ultimately led to the surrender of allied forces in Bataan and Corregidor. What largely remained as an unanswered question to this day is why the General decided on Leyte as the embarkation point from which to liberate the entire Philippines from the occupying Japanese Imperial Forces.
A monograph by Col. Manuel F. Segura and kindly lent to BALITA by the Rev. Fr. Prisco Entines entitled “The Koga Papers” sheds light on this missing page of our history. The book tells of an enemy plane that crashed off the coast of Cebu in April 1, 1944, which led to the capture of ten Japanese survivors and the recovery of a portfolio of documents in Japanese characters by VGs (Volunteer Guards) of the guerilla Cebu Area Command under the legendary Col. James M. Cushing. Two of the prisoners were later executed and the rest were returned in a swap to spare more civilians from being killed by hordes of elite Japanese forces sent to recover the prisoners and the documents.
The documents made their way to MacArthur’s headquarters in Australia and were translated, their informative content exploited. Author Segura wrote:
“Parts of these documents were the result of the inspection of the Japanese defenses in the whole Southwest Pacific Area by Admiral Koga, Commander of the Combined Japanese Imperial Fleet, accompanied by his Chief of Staff. The inspection revealed that in the Philippines, Leyte was the softest underbelly of the Japanese defenses, for it was meagerly defended by only a few troops. This vital information triggered the finest light in the sharply tactical mind of the famous General. The planned liberation of the Philippines to support his promise “I shall return,” had been scheduled late in December 1944 with a landing at Sarangani Bay in South Cotabato, southern Mindanao and an airborne drop on northern Mindanao.”
And so with the change of plans prompted by the receipt of new intelligence secured from the scene of a plane crash, the liberation of the homeland advanced by months and in the process saving possibly thousands of lives.
Colonels Cushing and Segura and three other American soldiers were among the freedom fighters that figured in this historic episode. They were among those who fought on against the brutal enemy despite orders from higher command to surrender. We will write about Cushing in the next segment of this series but on Segura, a few words.
Segura was a college senior in civil engineering when called to active duty as a third lieutenant (he earned his reserved commission after completing the ROTC advanced course at UP-Manila). Inducted into the USAFFE, he saw immediate action against the Japanese forces in Cebu and later joined the resistance movement. He rose in rank to become the adjutant general of the Cebu Area Command. After the war, he completed his engineering course, taught for five years at the Philippine Military Academy and then joined the now defunct Philippine Constabulary. He became deputy commander of the Third PC Zone and retired in 1972 with the rank of colonel. This writer remembers well the kindly officer who was ROTC commandant at the University of the Visayas in Cebu City. I was a basic cadet then of that very competitive unit but was designated its PRO (I was then editor-in-chief of the university’s official student organ, The Visayanian, and was vice president for the Visayas of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines).
The saga of Colonel Quesada
“Is there any other cause greater than losing one's life so that others may live? Your first person account, having survived a near death experience before the sword of the enemy needs to echo in the Halls of Congress, to remind the younger legislators that freedom does not come cheap.”
Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, herself a worthy daughter of a noble USAFFE officer, the late Col. Erasto R. Batongmalaque, wrote to convince Quesada to bare his memoir of the war, a copy of which was made available to BALITA. Space limitation prompts us to digest the item culled from an earlier interview.
In his early 20’s and an officer of the most wanted (by the Japanese troops) Hunters-PMA-ROTC Guerrilla, Quesada was among those who refused to accept defeat from the invaders. The ragtag unit quickly learned the art of beg-borrow-steal procurement system and famous for ambushing and inflicting heavy damages upon the enemy during the dark days of what he termed the Japanese barbarians.
He had a price on his head and Quesada spent most of his time in the Sierras eluding the enemy and the local Quislings (the Makapilis). However, as a result of the Japanese adopting systematic dragnets in towns and barrios, Quesada was captured along with some sick comrades in July 21, 1943 in Paete, Laguna, while in the throes of malaria and bronchitis himself.
What followed was barbaric incarceration and severe, continuous beatings. At times they hung him from an awning or gave him the “water cure” (he was made to pass out under water), denied food and given only filthy water to drink. All the torments were intended to make him betray his American comrades and other escapees from Bataan and Corregidor hiding in the Sierras.
“I preferred to die honorably with my lips sealed, to save my comrades. Others who divulged their American comrades, however, were executed after the enemy secured the much-vaunted information,” Quesada said, adding that the Japanese psyche for telling the truth had no respect for Quislings and/or turn-coats as well as liars.
Quesada called it providential that he escaped execution by the dreaded Japanese Kempi Tai (military police) that already beheaded many of his fellow prisoners-of-war in captivity in July of 1943. Failing to extract information from him despite the savage beatings, a would-be executioner had his razor sharp Samurai sword over the nape of Quesada’s neck when a higher rank officer intervened and took over the interrogation. In perfect English, he asked Quesada why he chose to side “with the unreliable Americans who are high-hat Westerners, rather than the Japanese who are your fellow Asians who understand your sufferings?”
Quesada in his teens learned from his father, Capt. Roman N. Quesada, USAFFE, that Japanese had intense dislike for liars and so, looking straight to the eyes of his interrogator, Quesada replied: “Sir, if you were being cruelly beaten and tortured like this by an Asian newcomer, but if the Americans treat you kindly, then whom will you side?
“On that crucial moment, kindness gave birth to a bizarre benevolence from an enemy officer and a gentleman, with a heart of a plebian‘s sense of logic and pardon… Then the officer turned to the guards and said, ‘Untie him, and set him free!’
“As the Japanese officer returned my bow of respect and profound gratitude, his collar swung open. There, I saw - was a pendant with a crucifix.”
Today, more than six decades after that brutal war, Quesada is still fighting – this time for the sake of fellow veterans who until now are not give their due by an ungrateful nation.
He lamented: “We marched into the jaws of death, and deep into the hellish mouth of harm’s way only – later to be betrayed by a despicable State that trashes war veterans after we came home maimed, and our comrades left behind. And the dead forgotten."
Col. (Ret, US) Frank B. Quesada, an associate of PMA’44, former Senate Committee Secretary of the Veterans and Military Pensions, retired from the US armed services and later from the US Federal Court. He considers himself an avid proponent for justice and fairness of his comrade WWII veterans and their compulsory heirs. He devotes his waking hours as consultant to the official lobby of Fil-Am WWII Veterans (formerly the Office of Veterans Affairs) as the representative of the Veterans Federation of the Philippines in USA.
REMEMBER BATAAN. REMEMBER CORREGIDOR.
Contact: drjennyb@earthlink.net
Filipino Veterans Foundation: (213) 746-9093
The 65th Anniversary of the defense of the Philippine Islands will be observed in a Trilogy of memorial events with the theme, “Remember Bataan and Corregidor,” sponsored by the Filipino Veterans Foundation.
Part I. April 9, Bataan Day, a Day of Valor, will be held at the newly erected
Filipino American Veterans Memorial at 227 Lake Street Park in the Historic Filipinotown, west of Downtown Los Angeles. The program starts at 10 AM. A Parade of surviving heroes will be honored at this event.
The Keynote Speaker is the Ambassador of the Philippines, Willy Gaa, to be introduced by Deputy Consul General Hellen Barber.
The Veterans Center Association is seeking your support in making your Legislator in Congress sponsor the H.R. 760 and S. 57, the Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007, which will amend an existing law to give full equity and recognition of their services in WWII. Luncheon is provided for a donation of $10. Call Linda of FVF (213) 746-9093 for details.
Part II. May 6: Corregidor Day. A memorial program followed by a picnic and tour will be held at the Fort MacArthur Museum, at 3601 S. Gaffey St., in San Pedro. Dennis Leslie, the MacArthur look-alike will give his immortal words of “I shall return.” Honor Guards will present a preview of their re-enactment for the Battle in Bataan, performed by the Buhay na Kasaysayan Historical Society, with the cooperation of the Fort MacArthur Museum. Tickets are at $10 and are limited. Please call Linda of FVF for an early reservation. (213) 746-9093.
Part III. July 7-8:
A premier Battle re-enactment of Bataan and Corregidor, presented by the Buhay na Kasaysayan Historical Society, will be included in the Old MacArthur Days, an annual event at Fort MacArthur where battles from ancient times to the present are being re-enacted. Call the Fort MacArthur Museum for details. (310) 241- 0846- www.ftmac.org.
The Lake Street Park and the FortMacArthur Park and Museum are special facilities of the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks.
= = =
Gen. Ramsey: Filipino champion then and now
By Dionesio C. Grava
A memorial for Bataan and Corregidor starting on April 9 will recall events of World War II in the Pacific starting immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Historical highlights will focus on our country’s involvement in that global conflict, foremost of which was the stand by the combined Filipino-American forces in Bataan and Corregidor from January to May, 1942.
The under equipped, emaciated soldiers long dismissed by the rest of the world as goners proved to be hard nuts to crack, withstood the repeated vicious onslaught of a much superior enemy for four months – long after resistance movements elsewhere had surrendered. Their valor and tenacity for God, country and glory disrupted the grand plan of the Japanese Imperial Forces that ultimately led to their downfall.
Retired Col. Frank Quesada recalled that the defenders were abandoned “from 1941 to 1945 to fend for ourselves” and that America's proselytizing that time that "so long as the 'Stars and Stripes' fly over the Philippine archipelago, no foreign invader could dare step into Philippine shores" was proven wrong “when the much-vaunted USAFFE (was) decimated in all its shore defenses, thus, retreated to desolate forested Bataan peninsula, and the island fortress of Corregidor at the mouth of Manila Bay.”
Perhaps in clarification to Internet exchanges and elsewhere criticizing the continued celebrations of defeats as exemplified by Bataan and Corregidor, Quesada explained:
"No - we celebrate the triumph of man over evil. Neither do we celebrate the Fall. nor celebrate defeat, albeit, it is giving tribute to the Soldiers who offered their lives on the altar of freedom. And we pray with deep respect and gratitude that he fought for the truth that wins over all lies - even when presented with embellished intent.
We, veterans in the midst of combat squarely staring at the eyes of the enemy, have risen above the din and mud of battles, to be able to provide his fellow men morale and hope, in his humble way of expressing lofty ideals and thoughts no man ever did in combats of wars, with his life. "
In connection with this year’s commemoration of the heroic stand at Bataan and Corregidor, BALITA, in coordination with the Filipino Veterans Foundation headed by Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, will run a series of articles touching on some of our heroes and events of WWII.
Among the heroes of that war is Lt. Col. Edwin Price Ramsey, Aus (Ret). From his testimony during a congressional hearing last month, BALITA learns that he was a lieutenant in 1941 assigned with the 26th Cavalry Regiment, Philippine Scouts, which saw action against the Japanese from the time the enemy landed in Lingayen Gulf and on to the battle of Bataan.
On April 9, 1942, the order to surrender Bataan came out but instead of complying, Ramsey and his troop commander, Capt. Joseph R. Barker, escaped and made their way to Pampanga where they met Col. Claude Thorp, who was sent earlier by Gen. MacArthur to establish resistance behind the enemy lines.
The East Central Luzon Guerilla Area was started at that time, operating under the Luzon Guerilla Army Forces headed by Thorp. Sometime later both Thorp and Barker were arrested and subsequently executed. In early January, 1943, Ramsey became the commander of the “East Central Luzon Guerilla Area” (ECLGA) which, he said, ultimately grew to approximately 45,000 guerilla troops. The exploits of ramsey and his guerilla forces were heroic and even legendary. And long after that war Ramsey is still in the warpath championing the cause of former Filipino fighters as he did during those dark years of our history.
As it has been repeatedly said, the Filipinos were made component members of the US armed forces during World War II, made to fight under the American flag and "subjected to and under the Articles of War." They answered the call for help en masse and in the process of fighting against the cruel Japanese Imperial Forces helped war-weary America defeat the enemy and effectively kept the US mainland away from the field of struggle. After the war was won, however, the Filipinos had the nightmare of finding themselves cut off from veterans’ benefits and their services unrecognized with the passage of the infamous Rescission Act of 1946.
The fight to rescind the discriminatory provision of the Rescission Act has been long and arduous and although many other bills had been approved benefiting our veterans, the fact remains that until now they have not been fully recognized and honored for their loyalty, courage and services during that war.
During the Feb. 15 congressional hearing of the proposed Filipino Veterans Equity Bill intended to rescind the discriminatory provision of the Rescission Act, Ramsey expressed his gratitude that since he is turning 90 years on May 9 of this year, “I will never have another chance to contribute in some small way, to correcting a long standing gross injustice to the Filipino veterans of World War II.” He had appeared before the same committee on Nov. 5, 1993, and again on July 2, 1998, adding that he had “unique position during that time and considerable knowledge in this matter.”
Ramsey testified:
“In July of 1941, President Roosevelt authorized, through the War Department, the formation of the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFE) under the command of General Douglas MacArthur and ordered the induction of the military forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines into and as part of USAFFE. It is impossible to see how these Philipine troops could be federalized into the USAFFE and not be part of the United States Army. Further, when we inducted the Filipinos into the guerilla forces, we required that they all swear an oath of allegiance to the United States of America and the Commonwealth of the Philippines. Therefore, all those guerillas that were recognized after the liberation would have the same status. In that connection, I question why there was a difference in the treatment accorded to the 65,000 or so Commonwealth of Puerto Rico troops, and those from Hawaii and elsewhere, who served in the U.S. Army and were later treated the same as American veterans.”
= = =
Angel of Bataan, 88
By Dionesio C. Grava
They were in the prime of youth and fresh from nursing schools when in the midst of innocence, were thrust into the bowels of a violent war.
The former Jean Kennedy was one of 99 Army and Navy nurses assigned to Bataan to attend to the needs of allies involved in deadly combat with the invading Japanese Imperial forces. It was a one-sided conflict with the Filipino and American combatants grossly under-equipped, malnourished, and virtually given up for lost by Mother America. With the American planes routed before even getting airborne, Japanese aviators had a field day bombing the Bataan emplacements throughout the day and night.
Bataan fell to the enemy in April 1942 and the nurses were relocated to the fortress island of Corregidor. They went on with their duties, treating the wounded and staffing a hospital in one of the underground tunnels.
The following month Corregidor also fell to the enemy and soon after Smith and her fellow nurses became prisoners in the Santo Tomas internment camp in Manila. Lacking nourishment and suffering from disease, the remaining 77 nurses continued to tend to wounded prisoners in the camp.
It was not until February 1945 that American commandos mounted a successful rescue of the prisoners. Back in the U.S., Nurse Kennedy of Philadelphia, Mississippi, later married a fellow war prisoner, Richard Schmidt. They settled in California where she continued her nursing career in the Bay Area and Altadena. In 1963 they moved to Canada Flintridge, not a great distance from the BALITA office in Glendale. She died March 3 at 88 of complications related to a fall, according to her daughter Susan Johnson. The Angel of Bataan also has a son, two sisters, a brother and four grandchildren. Richard passed away in 1994.
With Jean Schmidt's death, only three of the WWII nurses are believed to be alive, it was said. Their war exploits are immortalized in a book by Elizabeth M. Norman entitled
"We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan."
Meanwhile, Dr. Jenny L. Batongmalaque, executive director of the Filipino Veterans Foundation, announced that the FVF will commemorate the 65th Anniversary of the Day of Valor (Remember Bataan and Corregidor) to pay homage to the men and women who died at the altar of freedom during World War II. The theme is "Freedom is not free." The event will be held April 9 starting at 9 am at the Wall of Valor, 227 No. Lake Street, Los Angeles.
The program will consist, among others, of a reveille by Honor Guards, a parade of the Marching Museum, a laying of wreath, and a keynote speech by Ambassador Willy Gaa.
Also, a war reenactment group based in Fort MacArthur, San Pedro, is set to mark the Fall of Bataan and Corregidor with a simulated skirmish involving costumed actors representing members of the 35th Division and the Philippine Scouts against Japanese-attired counterparts on July 7 and 8 starting at 11 am.
= = =
ALL PUBLISHED IN WEEKEND BALITA, LOS ANGELES
By Dionesio C. Grava
NOTE:
Members of this forum who have significant stories to tell about the past World War (with some forms of authentication) may submit them for publication to WEEKEND BALITA (Los Angeles-based with a circulation of 70,000). Decision to publish rests solely on the editor. No payment offered but with sincere thanks from our people and the future generation of Filipinos everywhere.
Please advise initially through Dionesio Grava at
dcgrava@aol.com
By Dionesio C. Grava
(This is the third in a series of articles touching on some of our heroes and events of WWII that BALITA Media (Midweek Balita/Weekend Balita/www.balita.com), in coordination with the Filipino Veterans Foundation headed by Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, is publishing in connection with this year’s commemoration of the heroic stands at Bataan and Corregidor.)
The fulfillment of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s “I shall return” effectively recouped the gloss of the American image badly tarnished by the easy decimation of its vaunted USAFFE forces at the start of the war in the Philippines that ultimately led to the surrender of allied forces in Bataan and Corregidor. What largely remained as an unanswered question to this day is why the General decided on Leyte as the embarkation point from which to liberate the entire Philippines from the occupying Japanese Imperial Forces.
A monograph by Col. Manuel F. Segura and kindly lent to BALITA by the Rev. Fr. Prisco Entines entitled “The Koga Papers” sheds light on this missing page of our history. The book tells of an enemy plane that crashed off the coast of Cebu in April 1, 1944, which led to the capture of ten Japanese survivors and the recovery of a portfolio of documents in Japanese characters by VGs (Volunteer Guards) of the guerilla Cebu Area Command under the legendary Col. James M. Cushing. Two of the prisoners were later executed and the rest were returned in a swap to spare more civilians from being killed by hordes of elite Japanese forces sent to recover the prisoners and the documents.
The documents made their way to MacArthur’s headquarters in Australia and were translated, their informative content exploited. Author Segura wrote:
“Parts of these documents were the result of the inspection of the Japanese defenses in the whole Southwest Pacific Area by Admiral Koga, Commander of the Combined Japanese Imperial Fleet, accompanied by his Chief of Staff. The inspection revealed that in the Philippines, Leyte was the softest underbelly of the Japanese defenses, for it was meagerly defended by only a few troops. This vital information triggered the finest light in the sharply tactical mind of the famous General. The planned liberation of the Philippines to support his promise “I shall return,” had been scheduled late in December 1944 with a landing at Sarangani Bay in South Cotabato, southern Mindanao and an airborne drop on northern Mindanao.”
And so with the change of plans prompted by the receipt of new intelligence secured from the scene of a plane crash, the liberation of the homeland advanced by months and in the process saving possibly thousands of lives.
Colonels Cushing and Segura and three other American soldiers were among the freedom fighters that figured in this historic episode. They were among those who fought on against the brutal enemy despite orders from higher command to surrender. We will write about Cushing in the next segment of this series but on Segura, a few words.
Segura was a college senior in civil engineering when called to active duty as a third lieutenant (he earned his reserved commission after completing the ROTC advanced course at UP-Manila). Inducted into the USAFFE, he saw immediate action against the Japanese forces in Cebu and later joined the resistance movement. He rose in rank to become the adjutant general of the Cebu Area Command. After the war, he completed his engineering course, taught for five years at the Philippine Military Academy and then joined the now defunct Philippine Constabulary. He became deputy commander of the Third PC Zone and retired in 1972 with the rank of colonel. This writer remembers well the kindly officer who was ROTC commandant at the University of the Visayas in Cebu City. I was a basic cadet then of that very competitive unit but was designated its PRO (I was then editor-in-chief of the university’s official student organ, The Visayanian, and was vice president for the Visayas of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines).
The saga of Colonel Quesada
“Is there any other cause greater than losing one's life so that others may live? Your first person account, having survived a near death experience before the sword of the enemy needs to echo in the Halls of Congress, to remind the younger legislators that freedom does not come cheap.”
Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, herself a worthy daughter of a noble USAFFE officer, the late Col. Erasto R. Batongmalaque, wrote to convince Quesada to bare his memoir of the war, a copy of which was made available to BALITA. Space limitation prompts us to digest the item culled from an earlier interview.
In his early 20’s and an officer of the most wanted (by the Japanese troops) Hunters-PMA-ROTC Guerrilla, Quesada was among those who refused to accept defeat from the invaders. The ragtag unit quickly learned the art of beg-borrow-steal procurement system and famous for ambushing and inflicting heavy damages upon the enemy during the dark days of what he termed the Japanese barbarians.
He had a price on his head and Quesada spent most of his time in the Sierras eluding the enemy and the local Quislings (the Makapilis). However, as a result of the Japanese adopting systematic dragnets in towns and barrios, Quesada was captured along with some sick comrades in July 21, 1943 in Paete, Laguna, while in the throes of malaria and bronchitis himself.
What followed was barbaric incarceration and severe, continuous beatings. At times they hung him from an awning or gave him the “water cure” (he was made to pass out under water), denied food and given only filthy water to drink. All the torments were intended to make him betray his American comrades and other escapees from Bataan and Corregidor hiding in the Sierras.
“I preferred to die honorably with my lips sealed, to save my comrades. Others who divulged their American comrades, however, were executed after the enemy secured the much-vaunted information,” Quesada said, adding that the Japanese psyche for telling the truth had no respect for Quislings and/or turn-coats as well as liars.
Quesada called it providential that he escaped execution by the dreaded Japanese Kempi Tai (military police) that already beheaded many of his fellow prisoners-of-war in captivity in July of 1943. Failing to extract information from him despite the savage beatings, a would-be executioner had his razor sharp Samurai sword over the nape of Quesada’s neck when a higher rank officer intervened and took over the interrogation. In perfect English, he asked Quesada why he chose to side “with the unreliable Americans who are high-hat Westerners, rather than the Japanese who are your fellow Asians who understand your sufferings?”
Quesada in his teens learned from his father, Capt. Roman N. Quesada, USAFFE, that Japanese had intense dislike for liars and so, looking straight to the eyes of his interrogator, Quesada replied: “Sir, if you were being cruelly beaten and tortured like this by an Asian newcomer, but if the Americans treat you kindly, then whom will you side?
“On that crucial moment, kindness gave birth to a bizarre benevolence from an enemy officer and a gentleman, with a heart of a plebian‘s sense of logic and pardon… Then the officer turned to the guards and said, ‘Untie him, and set him free!’
“As the Japanese officer returned my bow of respect and profound gratitude, his collar swung open. There, I saw - was a pendant with a crucifix.”
Today, more than six decades after that brutal war, Quesada is still fighting – this time for the sake of fellow veterans who until now are not give their due by an ungrateful nation.
He lamented: “We marched into the jaws of death, and deep into the hellish mouth of harm’s way only – later to be betrayed by a despicable State that trashes war veterans after we came home maimed, and our comrades left behind. And the dead forgotten."
Col. (Ret, US) Frank B. Quesada, an associate of PMA’44, former Senate Committee Secretary of the Veterans and Military Pensions, retired from the US armed services and later from the US Federal Court. He considers himself an avid proponent for justice and fairness of his comrade WWII veterans and their compulsory heirs. He devotes his waking hours as consultant to the official lobby of Fil-Am WWII Veterans (formerly the Office of Veterans Affairs) as the representative of the Veterans Federation of the Philippines in USA.
REMEMBER BATAAN. REMEMBER CORREGIDOR.
Contact: drjennyb@earthlink.net
Filipino Veterans Foundation: (213) 746-9093
The 65th Anniversary of the defense of the Philippine Islands will be observed in a Trilogy of memorial events with the theme, “Remember Bataan and Corregidor,” sponsored by the Filipino Veterans Foundation.
Part I. April 9, Bataan Day, a Day of Valor, will be held at the newly erected
Filipino American Veterans Memorial at 227 Lake Street Park in the Historic Filipinotown, west of Downtown Los Angeles. The program starts at 10 AM. A Parade of surviving heroes will be honored at this event.
The Keynote Speaker is the Ambassador of the Philippines, Willy Gaa, to be introduced by Deputy Consul General Hellen Barber.
The Veterans Center Association is seeking your support in making your Legislator in Congress sponsor the H.R. 760 and S. 57, the Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007, which will amend an existing law to give full equity and recognition of their services in WWII. Luncheon is provided for a donation of $10. Call Linda of FVF (213) 746-9093 for details.
Part II. May 6: Corregidor Day. A memorial program followed by a picnic and tour will be held at the Fort MacArthur Museum, at 3601 S. Gaffey St., in San Pedro. Dennis Leslie, the MacArthur look-alike will give his immortal words of “I shall return.” Honor Guards will present a preview of their re-enactment for the Battle in Bataan, performed by the Buhay na Kasaysayan Historical Society, with the cooperation of the Fort MacArthur Museum. Tickets are at $10 and are limited. Please call Linda of FVF for an early reservation. (213) 746-9093.
Part III. July 7-8:
A premier Battle re-enactment of Bataan and Corregidor, presented by the Buhay na Kasaysayan Historical Society, will be included in the Old MacArthur Days, an annual event at Fort MacArthur where battles from ancient times to the present are being re-enacted. Call the Fort MacArthur Museum for details. (310) 241- 0846- www.ftmac.org.
The Lake Street Park and the FortMacArthur Park and Museum are special facilities of the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks.
= = =
Gen. Ramsey: Filipino champion then and now
By Dionesio C. Grava
A memorial for Bataan and Corregidor starting on April 9 will recall events of World War II in the Pacific starting immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Historical highlights will focus on our country’s involvement in that global conflict, foremost of which was the stand by the combined Filipino-American forces in Bataan and Corregidor from January to May, 1942.
The under equipped, emaciated soldiers long dismissed by the rest of the world as goners proved to be hard nuts to crack, withstood the repeated vicious onslaught of a much superior enemy for four months – long after resistance movements elsewhere had surrendered. Their valor and tenacity for God, country and glory disrupted the grand plan of the Japanese Imperial Forces that ultimately led to their downfall.
Retired Col. Frank Quesada recalled that the defenders were abandoned “from 1941 to 1945 to fend for ourselves” and that America's proselytizing that time that "so long as the 'Stars and Stripes' fly over the Philippine archipelago, no foreign invader could dare step into Philippine shores" was proven wrong “when the much-vaunted USAFFE (was) decimated in all its shore defenses, thus, retreated to desolate forested Bataan peninsula, and the island fortress of Corregidor at the mouth of Manila Bay.”
Perhaps in clarification to Internet exchanges and elsewhere criticizing the continued celebrations of defeats as exemplified by Bataan and Corregidor, Quesada explained:
"No - we celebrate the triumph of man over evil. Neither do we celebrate the Fall. nor celebrate defeat, albeit, it is giving tribute to the Soldiers who offered their lives on the altar of freedom. And we pray with deep respect and gratitude that he fought for the truth that wins over all lies - even when presented with embellished intent.
We, veterans in the midst of combat squarely staring at the eyes of the enemy, have risen above the din and mud of battles, to be able to provide his fellow men morale and hope, in his humble way of expressing lofty ideals and thoughts no man ever did in combats of wars, with his life. "
In connection with this year’s commemoration of the heroic stand at Bataan and Corregidor, BALITA, in coordination with the Filipino Veterans Foundation headed by Dr. Jenny Batongmalaque, will run a series of articles touching on some of our heroes and events of WWII.
Among the heroes of that war is Lt. Col. Edwin Price Ramsey, Aus (Ret). From his testimony during a congressional hearing last month, BALITA learns that he was a lieutenant in 1941 assigned with the 26th Cavalry Regiment, Philippine Scouts, which saw action against the Japanese from the time the enemy landed in Lingayen Gulf and on to the battle of Bataan.
On April 9, 1942, the order to surrender Bataan came out but instead of complying, Ramsey and his troop commander, Capt. Joseph R. Barker, escaped and made their way to Pampanga where they met Col. Claude Thorp, who was sent earlier by Gen. MacArthur to establish resistance behind the enemy lines.
The East Central Luzon Guerilla Area was started at that time, operating under the Luzon Guerilla Army Forces headed by Thorp. Sometime later both Thorp and Barker were arrested and subsequently executed. In early January, 1943, Ramsey became the commander of the “East Central Luzon Guerilla Area” (ECLGA) which, he said, ultimately grew to approximately 45,000 guerilla troops. The exploits of ramsey and his guerilla forces were heroic and even legendary. And long after that war Ramsey is still in the warpath championing the cause of former Filipino fighters as he did during those dark years of our history.
As it has been repeatedly said, the Filipinos were made component members of the US armed forces during World War II, made to fight under the American flag and "subjected to and under the Articles of War." They answered the call for help en masse and in the process of fighting against the cruel Japanese Imperial Forces helped war-weary America defeat the enemy and effectively kept the US mainland away from the field of struggle. After the war was won, however, the Filipinos had the nightmare of finding themselves cut off from veterans’ benefits and their services unrecognized with the passage of the infamous Rescission Act of 1946.
The fight to rescind the discriminatory provision of the Rescission Act has been long and arduous and although many other bills had been approved benefiting our veterans, the fact remains that until now they have not been fully recognized and honored for their loyalty, courage and services during that war.
During the Feb. 15 congressional hearing of the proposed Filipino Veterans Equity Bill intended to rescind the discriminatory provision of the Rescission Act, Ramsey expressed his gratitude that since he is turning 90 years on May 9 of this year, “I will never have another chance to contribute in some small way, to correcting a long standing gross injustice to the Filipino veterans of World War II.” He had appeared before the same committee on Nov. 5, 1993, and again on July 2, 1998, adding that he had “unique position during that time and considerable knowledge in this matter.”
Ramsey testified:
“In July of 1941, President Roosevelt authorized, through the War Department, the formation of the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFE) under the command of General Douglas MacArthur and ordered the induction of the military forces of the Commonwealth of the Philippines into and as part of USAFFE. It is impossible to see how these Philipine troops could be federalized into the USAFFE and not be part of the United States Army. Further, when we inducted the Filipinos into the guerilla forces, we required that they all swear an oath of allegiance to the United States of America and the Commonwealth of the Philippines. Therefore, all those guerillas that were recognized after the liberation would have the same status. In that connection, I question why there was a difference in the treatment accorded to the 65,000 or so Commonwealth of Puerto Rico troops, and those from Hawaii and elsewhere, who served in the U.S. Army and were later treated the same as American veterans.”
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Angel of Bataan, 88
By Dionesio C. Grava
They were in the prime of youth and fresh from nursing schools when in the midst of innocence, were thrust into the bowels of a violent war.
The former Jean Kennedy was one of 99 Army and Navy nurses assigned to Bataan to attend to the needs of allies involved in deadly combat with the invading Japanese Imperial forces. It was a one-sided conflict with the Filipino and American combatants grossly under-equipped, malnourished, and virtually given up for lost by Mother America. With the American planes routed before even getting airborne, Japanese aviators had a field day bombing the Bataan emplacements throughout the day and night.
Bataan fell to the enemy in April 1942 and the nurses were relocated to the fortress island of Corregidor. They went on with their duties, treating the wounded and staffing a hospital in one of the underground tunnels.
The following month Corregidor also fell to the enemy and soon after Smith and her fellow nurses became prisoners in the Santo Tomas internment camp in Manila. Lacking nourishment and suffering from disease, the remaining 77 nurses continued to tend to wounded prisoners in the camp.
It was not until February 1945 that American commandos mounted a successful rescue of the prisoners. Back in the U.S., Nurse Kennedy of Philadelphia, Mississippi, later married a fellow war prisoner, Richard Schmidt. They settled in California where she continued her nursing career in the Bay Area and Altadena. In 1963 they moved to Canada Flintridge, not a great distance from the BALITA office in Glendale. She died March 3 at 88 of complications related to a fall, according to her daughter Susan Johnson. The Angel of Bataan also has a son, two sisters, a brother and four grandchildren. Richard passed away in 1994.
With Jean Schmidt's death, only three of the WWII nurses are believed to be alive, it was said. Their war exploits are immortalized in a book by Elizabeth M. Norman entitled
"We Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan."
Meanwhile, Dr. Jenny L. Batongmalaque, executive director of the Filipino Veterans Foundation, announced that the FVF will commemorate the 65th Anniversary of the Day of Valor (Remember Bataan and Corregidor) to pay homage to the men and women who died at the altar of freedom during World War II. The theme is "Freedom is not free." The event will be held April 9 starting at 9 am at the Wall of Valor, 227 No. Lake Street, Los Angeles.
The program will consist, among others, of a reveille by Honor Guards, a parade of the Marching Museum, a laying of wreath, and a keynote speech by Ambassador Willy Gaa.
Also, a war reenactment group based in Fort MacArthur, San Pedro, is set to mark the Fall of Bataan and Corregidor with a simulated skirmish involving costumed actors representing members of the 35th Division and the Philippine Scouts against Japanese-attired counterparts on July 7 and 8 starting at 11 am.
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ALL PUBLISHED IN WEEKEND BALITA, LOS ANGELES
By Dionesio C. Grava
NOTE:
Members of this forum who have significant stories to tell about the past World War (with some forms of authentication) may submit them for publication to WEEKEND BALITA (Los Angeles-based with a circulation of 70,000). Decision to publish rests solely on the editor. No payment offered but with sincere thanks from our people and the future generation of Filipinos everywhere.
Please advise initially through Dionesio Grava at
dcgrava@aol.com