The Los Baños Raid: At What Cost?
The arrival of the Japanese in Manila during the 1940s was truly historical for the cruelty and brutality they brought to the nation. As it is known, Japan invaded the Philippines as early as December 8, 194, and formally occupied Manila on January 2, 1942. Their occupation lasted for three years, and during their stay here, the Japanese took nationals and foreigners who were in the country into internment camps, taking them in as prisoners, and among these was the small town of Los Baños, which was one of the places where foreign nationals, mostly Americans, resided in during the Japanese occupation.
Rescue at Dawn: The Los Baños Raid Documentary was a documentary that reviewed the experiences the said internees had during their imprisonment in the camp. The documentary focused on gaining perspective from the internees themselves who were present in the documentary. The documentary started out by recalling how the Japanese slowly took control of Manila during December of 1941 and then moved on towards the disposition the Americans were at during their imprisonment. Various internees mentioned that when they were first held captive, the situation was not necessarily bad, but was bearable, to say the least. However, when Lieutenant Sadaaki Konishi took command over the camp, everything changed. His ruling over the Americans who were held captive was marked with sadism and inhumanity. Random acts of hate towards the Americans were mentioned, such as the order for them to carry heavy sacks of rice for no apparent reason, as well as the cutting down of rations in order that the internees would starve. However, one of the main points of the documentary was to highlight the heroic liberation of the internees. Their liberation was made possible because of the efforts of the American parachute troopers who had been planning an attack on the camp in order to free the internees from the Japanese. In short, the Americans were saved and were able to flee finally from Japanese imprisonment, however, this came at a price for the local townspeople who were left after the victorious liberation of the foreign internees–these local townspeople were murdered as an act of retaliation for the victorious liberation of the Americans.
With this at hand, this is what I’d like to highlight in this reaction post. While the documentary did considerably well in giving the audience a point of view in regard to the cruelty of the Japanese in the Los Baños internment camp, it failed, in my opinion, to give enough credit to the Filipino guerillas who played a vital role in the liberation. The guerrillas worked together with the American troops during the attack on Los Baños, aiding the Americans in various ways. For example, Lieutenant Skau, along with his men, were ordered to go to the southern shore of Laguna De Bay as the first part of the ambush against the Japanese. They were helped by Filipinos who were in charge of taking the crew to their destination on bancas, or shipping boats. Another example would be that during the actual attack on the camp, Filipino guerrillas along with other soldiers took charge of killing some of the Japanese guards as soon as the paratroopers started jumping out of the plane. The guerrillas were also the ones who passed the message onto the American soldiers about the plan of the Japanese to execute the camp prisoners on the morning of February 23rd. These are just some of the ways the Filipinos and guerrillas played a vital role in the liberation of the internees.
In regard to the raid itself, it was really relieving to hear the liberation of the internees after being held captive by the Japanese for a period of time. However, it was truly painful to hear about the local townspeople who were slaughtered as a result of the Japanese troops’ vengeance against the successful rescue mission. This all the more showed how wrapped the Americans were in their own world, forgetting to properly secure the territory early on, leaving room for the Japanese to mercilessly kill the locals.
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Considering all that has been said, I believe that while the documentary was informative and gave the audience an adequate outlook based on the experiences of the American internees, it really did fail to give the credit the Filipinos and the guerrillas deserve in regard to the help they provided the American troops with during the liberation of Los Baños. Although, I do understand that the documentary featured an American-centric point of view, which is what makes the lack of credit understandable. However, in remembering the event, it is important to recall the efforts our countrymen put into helping the Americans, risking their lives to valiantly display the Filipino spirit.
References:
Japanese Occupation of the Philippines. https://www.philippine-history.org/japanese-occupation.htm.
“Raid on Los Baños Internment Camp.” Owlcation, https://owlcation.com/humanities/Raid-on-Los-Baos-Internment-Camp.
Rescue at Dawn The Los Banos Raid Documentary. YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oebl8r8Q8eE&fbclid=IwAR3gE4TsnLEH2wEmycpx2PaeE_tpbkgeDXFPQiPVh2kpzp0zx7q-Xn5Hm5E.
lougopal. “Los Baños Internment Camp Liberation — 70th Anniversary.” Manila Nostalgia, 23 Feb. 2015, http://www.lougopal.com/manila/?p=2844.
“The Los Baños Raid.” Warfare History Network, 28 Sept. 2016, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2016/09/28/the-los-banos-raid/.
By. “World War II: Liberating Los Baños Internment Camp.” HistoryNet, 12 June 2006, https://www.historynet.com/world-war-ii-liberating-los-banos-internment-camp.htm.
