Blind and 104 but still honouring his fallen comrades at Cenotaph

WHEN the oldest veteran takes part in today’s remembrance service at the Cenotaph he will be contemplating a particular point.

Former Army sergeant Ron Freer is 104. He lost his sight in the Second World War and nearly lost his life at least three times.

When asked what he will think about at the memorial service in Whitehall, Ron carefully considers his response.

An hour later the twice widowed, wheelchair-bound veterans answers in a steady whisper.

He says: “What makes people kill others. And so it goes on and on.”

The ex prisoner of war in the Far East will represent the charity Blind Veterans UK at the Cenotaph. The 100-strong group have all lost their sight because of war.

Chilling

Ron is now cared for by daughter Patricia, 69, and her husband Keith, 72, at their bungalow outside Margate in Kent.

And if the years have diminished him in any way the same is not true of his memories of his chilling experiences as a Japanese POW.

Ron was just 15 when he joined the Army in 1931. He was posted to Hong Kong when the war broke out to protect what was then a British colony.

In late 1941, the Japanese attacked, raining down artillery fire on Stanley, where Ron was based. He only survived the terrible onslaught thanks to a twist of fate.

He was ordered away from an artillery placement which was hit by a shell that killed all his comrades. After 18 days of fighting, Ron’s garrison had to surrender to the Japanese.

Aged 100, Ron learnt to use the computer to document his chilling experiences and gave the Sunday

People permission to quote from them.

Ron describes how he surrendered on Christmas Eve 1941. He came face-to-face with a

Japanese interpreter who said: “I do not want to fight you.” Ron wrote: “I replied, in that case, what are you doing here?”

A total of 10,947 soldiers were taken prisoner: 5,072 British, 3,829 Indian, 1,689 Canadian, and 357 others.

Ron was held at Sham Shui Po Barracks, a former British Army facility dating from the 1920s in the Kowloon area of Hong Kong.

He knew of Japan’s ruthless reputation after it invaded China in 1937, massacring tens of thousands.

Ron wrote: “I had read about t the atrocities and cruelty inflicted on the Chinese. I considered our future being very bleak and so it proved.”

He added: “Our commander told us that the Japanese could kill every one of us.

“We had to live with that threat reat during the whole of our captivity.” ty.”

Ron continued: “The camp was situated on the edge of the harbour with high fences all around. The Japanese brought in a bag of rice for each unit but only enough for one meal a day per man.

“We cut an oil drum in half and used the bottom as a boiling pot for the rice.

“Each man was given a scoop of rice but many were unable to eat it and looking at the portion of rice, one could see mice droppings and insects.

“Disease soon broke out, resulting in many deaths.”

In 1942, Ron was ordered with 1,800 Pows on to a transport ship called the Lisbon Maru.

But just before it sailed, the infectious disease se diphtheria broke out at the camp and Ron was held back.

The Lisbon Maru was torpedoed and at least 828 British Pows died.

Ron endured malnutrition and diphtheria a over four years, losing his sight and hearing, before returning to the UK in

1946 and m marrying sweetheart Joan.

He b became a postmaster and the couple had two children, Pa Patricia and David. Joan died d in 1983 and Ron’s second wife, Betty, died after fter 15 years of marriage.

Nightmares

The dad-of-two confided d his m most horrific experiences to o his wi wife, including the horror of f watch watching six Pows being decapitated d i dh when a shovel went missing.

Patricia said: “The camp commandant went along the line tapping the shoulder of six men.

“One was stood right next to my dad. He was decapitated in front of him.”

Patricia added: “Dad never had nightmares – but mum did.”

Ron learnt braille after the war and was playing bridge until last year.

He has beaten the odds, but there is one thing he won’t do as it reminds the years of hell he was put through.

Patricia said: “He’s not eaten rice since e leaving the camps.

“It reminds his of his captivity.”