Recounting the horrors of war
KOTA BARU: Three days of starvation and seeing rotting bodies — these were among the experiences of a senior citizen from Kampung Semut Api here during the Japanese occupation.
Husain Hasan, 94, remembers vividly the horrors villagers had to endure at the hands of their captors.
He was in high spirits as he recounted the traumatic episode.
“On the night the Japanese army arrived in 1941, we were watching a spiritual ritual near Pantai Cahaya Bulan.
“Japanese soldiers yelled to announce their arrival and ordered us to run. That night, battles broke out between Japanese and British soldiers. Many people died in the fighting or drowned at sea in their bid to escape.”
Husain was 21 at the time. He even saw a Japanese soldier beheading his British opponent.
Husain and his family wasted no time in saving themselves. They took a sampan and “camped out” in the ocean for several days. He said the other villagers also did the same.
He said they cooked rice on the sampan, while taking care not to give away their positions.
“Our food supply eventually ran out.
“We starved for about three days before we worked up the courage to head ashore.”
That was when he saw scores of rotting bodies strewn on the beach.
Husain said the Japanese occupation was a harrowing time for the people.
“Many people were tortured and killed by the Japanese and forced to become unpaid labourers. Our ordeal ended when the British came back, and things got better when we gained our independence.”