Section 42: Bahau Concentration Camp for Eurasians
What is Eurasian The constitution and publications of the Singapore Eurasian Association stated: " Eurasians are the offspring of the combination of Europeans and Asians. We are living witnesses to the first batch of intermarriages with Asians between the 16th and 18th centuries The descendants of Europeans who have experienced the three colonial eras of Portuguese, Dutch and British rule on this land. Although our blood comes from our ancestors many generations ago, it is certain that we have put down our roots in Singapore group. "
Multiple sources describe the tragic story of the Mahsan Concentration Camp. Mahsan is the only concentration camp for Eurasians. Some people think that this concentration camp is located in Johor, but it is not. It is located in Negeri Sembilan. There is a railway station in Bahau Town, Negeri Sembilan. Take the train from Singapore Tanjung Pagar Railway Station , and you will arrive at this town in about 8 hours and 15 minutes. The concentration camp is about 4.2 kilometers away from Bahau Town, and the small mountainous area where the concentration camp is located called Mashan.
Some commentators say that the Japanese developed Mashan into a self-sufficient village for Eurasians to live in. In fact, Mashan is a temporary construction, a barren place to settle 3400 Eurasians. Mamoru Shinozaki, a welfare official during the Japanese occupation period, decided to relocate Eurasians to other places in order to alleviate the food shortage in Singapore. The Japanese call Bahau Fuji Village , but Eurasians don't like this Fuji Village. Fuji Village is desolate, and land planning, reclamation and construction have to start from scratch. To make matters worse, infectious diseases such as dysentery and malaria quickly spread, plundering many lives and becoming a death trap for Eurasians.
Some Singaporean historians have written that the Eurasians chose to relocate their families to Bahau, which is also incorrect. No one wants to go to a concentration camp. In fact, the Japanese did not need to treat Eurasians in the same way that the Nazis treated millions of Jews, but Eurasians were treated like Jews. Although the Eurasians try to avoid going to the barren mountains of
Original: Associate Professor Antonio L Rappa , SIM University Translated by: Li Guo liang Published in "Yuan" magazine, published by Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations, Issue 5, 2015, total 117 issues
Bahau, just like the Jews, they are forced to go to Bahau when they have no choice. Only a few of them took the car, and at least 50 died during the arduous trek. People think that the fate of the Jews is tragic, but they mistakenly think that the life of the Eurasians is much better. In fact, the Mashan concentration camp is not suitable for living at all, and the whole resettlement plan ended in dismal.
By 1945 , at least 2,400 Eurasians were forced to take trains and then walk to Bahau, and many elderly and infirm died on the way. Some walked slowly, making fun of the Japanese or chatting while walking, all of which were tortured by the Japanese secret police . This is because the language barrier with the Japanese army made the Japanese army not trust foreigners. For some Eurasians, the Japanese soldiers' walking posture and language are very funny, which makes them laugh .
The Eurasians who died on the way to Bahau pale in comparison to the many who died during the Japanese War. Thousands of Chinese and white soldiers died on the Bridge of the River Kwai, and many Australian, British, New Zealand and a few American soldiers died in Changi Prison. About 100 Eurasians who joined the Singapore Volunteer Corps ( D Company) were said to have been tortured or shot to death by the Japanese army.
With regard to the allied forces fighting the Japanese in Malaya, colonial records focus on soldiers from Britain, India, and other parts of Europe, while ignoring the Eurasians who joined the army. From 1943 to 1944 , the families of these Eurasian soldiers were forced to give up everything in Singapore, walk to Bahau Town, and then continue to Bahau Concentration Camp. Those Eurasians living in Katong or urban areas are more fortunate, avoiding the bad luck of going to Bahau.
Where the bishop sent to Bahau was buried remains a mystery. Some believe that the bishop's body was brought back to Singapore for burial, but I could not find his burial site. The Malacca Cemetery, the Choa Chu Kang Christian Cemetery, and the vanished Bidadari Cemetery all have well-preserved records of the deceased in Europe and Asia, but there is no bishop's name.
There is a row of Eurasian tombstones beside the city wall of Fort Canning Hill, all of whom are descendants of the British. The ancestors buried under the tombstone of St. Paul's Church in Malacca are of Dutch descent. From the moment the Japanese army landed in Kelantan, the British army tried to blow up all facilities in Malaya, including the tomb of the famous missionary St. Francis Xavier. Even so, there are still traces of these ruins. The majority of Eurasians during World War II were Catholic, but surprisingly, there is no trace of religious buildings or medical facilities in Bahau.
Original: Associate Professor Antonio L Rappa , SIM University Translated by: Li Guo liang Published in "Yuan" magazine, published by Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations, Issue 5, 2015, total 117 issues
During the Japanese Occupation, Dr. Charles Paglar, a respected captive, a Eurasian in his 70s , shared interesting stories about Paglar. Paglar was a notoriously fat man. Before the war, he gave medicine and medicine to the poor and provided free food. Some people speculated that Paglar secretly colluded with the Japanese secret police and received special treatment. The Japanese gave him food, accommodation and even banana bills. When other Eurasians were starving and skinny, he was as round and tender as ever. It was later medically proven that how plump a person looks is mainly due to genetics rather than food.
Many people believe that Paglar cooperated with the Japanese and obtained many benefits through his professionalism. Lee Kuan Yew also frankly cooperated with the Japanese, and wiretapped radio broadcasts during the Japanese occupation, but he was not convicted. During the war, no matter whether Malays, Indians, Eurasians or Europeans, we are all in the same boat and must defend ourselves for survival.