It is indisputable that Allied POWs suffered greatly as forced laborers on the Burma-Siam Railway. The extent to which the Japanese could have alleviated this suffering is debatable. Certainly, they could have avoided constructing the railway altogether; but this would have been tantamount to accepting defeat in Burma. Perhaps this is what should have been done in light of the fact that the only way to complete the railway was through the illegal use of POWs as workers. However, even if the POWs had been simply detained and exempted from work, the death rate among POWs would most likely have remained high. The Japanese lacked the resources to support such a large number of POWs due to increasing military setbacks. Food and medical supplies were scarce for the Japanese army as well as for the POWs. It is important that these details be remembered so that the Japanese are not demonized. Conversely, the Japanese army should not be exempt from close examination and criticism of its actions regarding the treatment of Allied POWs.

Bibliography

This exhibit was researched and designed by Hill Davis.

This exhibit and museum were created during an introductory seminar on the Asia-Pacific War, taught at Wake Forest University during the spring semester 2002.

The material and opinions are those of their respective authors and do not represent the views of the University or the Department of History.