KOKODA SPIRIT-ANZAC SPIRIT
KOKODA SPIRIT- ANZAC SPIRIT
Japanese Kokoda Veterans Remains Return Home.
The Full Skeletal remains of Japanese Soldiers found on the Kokoda Track have begun their Journey home.
High in the mountains on the Kokoda Track 66 years ago, a small patrol of Australian Soldiers from the 2/16th Battalion carefully organised their defences and waited in the cold, dark, misty and moss covered jungle for the Japanese as they continued their relentless push across the Kokoda Track towards Port Moresby and Australia. This small band of brothers took the fight to the Japanese ambushing them on the 4th September 1942.
The Australian action killed and mortally wounded many Japanese Soldiers, slowing the Japanese progress and allowing the Australian’s time to set new defensive positions and formulate new strategies as their fighting withdrawal continued across the track. These young Australian men fought in one of the most ferocious campaigns on the Kokoda Track and defeated an enemy, an enemy who had never been conquered, an enemy that had never tasted defeat, they overcame overwhelming odds and atrocious conditions, outnumbered and out gunned their victory was possible due to their trust and respect for each other, their dependence on each other, their ability to never give up, to hang in there when all seemed lost, self belief and strong leadership. The story of our Australian Diggers on the Kokoda Track has become folklore, an Australian Legend. The courage, endurance, mateship and sacrifice shown by our boys have made them and the Kokoda Track and Australian Icon.
But what happened to their enemies….?
In February 2008 Wayne Wetherall from the trekking company Kokoda Spirit was exploring some of the less known battle sites along the track, when he made a startling discovery, the leg and foot bone of a Japanese Soldier protruding from the bank of a small river in the Mt Bellamy area. On closer investigation he discovered the full skeletal remains of 4 Japanese Soldiers, including an Officer complete with compass, watch, ID Tags and personal items. These soldiers were from the 2nd Battalion, 144th Regiment of the Japanese Imperial Army the original force, along with the 41st Regiment that led the Japanese advance over the Kokoda Track. The 144th Regiment was also the same Regiment that Kokichi Nishimura also known as the “Bone Man” was from. Kokichi Nishimura dedicated the later part of his life to fulfill a promise he made to his comrades that one day he would return and bring their remains home to Japan for a proper burial. Mr. Nishimura found hundreds of his fallen comrades buried in shallow graves along the track but always only the bottom legs of the skeletons remained. The recent discovery by Kokoda Spirit was reported to the Japanese Embassy in Port Moresby, who assured Mr. Wetherall that a recovery team would be dispatched to the area. The site was carefully documented with the remains reburied and secured. More then a year has passed since this historical discovery, and finally the remains of these Japanese Warriors have begun their Journey home, back to Japan. A formal request from the Japanese Government has been received by Mr. Wetherall and the Kokoda Spirit team to recover the remains of the Japanese Soldiers. The team has begun the recovery process and will officially handover the remains to Japan’s Ambassador Mr. Hajime Nishiyama in Port Moresby on April 24 2009.
Mr. Wetherall commented on the recovery process.” No matter what your thoughts or feelings are towards the Japanese Soldiers; they were sent to war by their Government and lay buried and forgotten in shallow graves far from home along the Kokoda Track. These Soldiers regardless of race are someone’s son, brother, husband or father. My hope is this will bring closer for some families and highlights the horror and futility of war”
Let us hope and pray that this never happens to any of our Soldiers. Lest We Forget.
While Gallipoli was the birth of the Anzac legend and is seen as the birth of our Nation, then Kokoda was our coming of age....
Visit http://www.kokodaspirit.com
Japanese Kokoda Veterans Remains Return Home.
The Full Skeletal remains of Japanese Soldiers found on the Kokoda Track have begun their Journey home.
High in the mountains on the Kokoda Track 66 years ago, a small patrol of Australian Soldiers from the 2/16th Battalion carefully organised their defences and waited in the cold, dark, misty and moss covered jungle for the Japanese as they continued their relentless push across the Kokoda Track towards Port Moresby and Australia. This small band of brothers took the fight to the Japanese ambushing them on the 4th September 1942.
The Australian action killed and mortally wounded many Japanese Soldiers, slowing the Japanese progress and allowing the Australian’s time to set new defensive positions and formulate new strategies as their fighting withdrawal continued across the track. These young Australian men fought in one of the most ferocious campaigns on the Kokoda Track and defeated an enemy, an enemy who had never been conquered, an enemy that had never tasted defeat, they overcame overwhelming odds and atrocious conditions, outnumbered and out gunned their victory was possible due to their trust and respect for each other, their dependence on each other, their ability to never give up, to hang in there when all seemed lost, self belief and strong leadership. The story of our Australian Diggers on the Kokoda Track has become folklore, an Australian Legend. The courage, endurance, mateship and sacrifice shown by our boys have made them and the Kokoda Track and Australian Icon.
But what happened to their enemies….?
In February 2008 Wayne Wetherall from the trekking company Kokoda Spirit was exploring some of the less known battle sites along the track, when he made a startling discovery, the leg and foot bone of a Japanese Soldier protruding from the bank of a small river in the Mt Bellamy area. On closer investigation he discovered the full skeletal remains of 4 Japanese Soldiers, including an Officer complete with compass, watch, ID Tags and personal items. These soldiers were from the 2nd Battalion, 144th Regiment of the Japanese Imperial Army the original force, along with the 41st Regiment that led the Japanese advance over the Kokoda Track. The 144th Regiment was also the same Regiment that Kokichi Nishimura also known as the “Bone Man” was from. Kokichi Nishimura dedicated the later part of his life to fulfill a promise he made to his comrades that one day he would return and bring their remains home to Japan for a proper burial. Mr. Nishimura found hundreds of his fallen comrades buried in shallow graves along the track but always only the bottom legs of the skeletons remained. The recent discovery by Kokoda Spirit was reported to the Japanese Embassy in Port Moresby, who assured Mr. Wetherall that a recovery team would be dispatched to the area. The site was carefully documented with the remains reburied and secured. More then a year has passed since this historical discovery, and finally the remains of these Japanese Warriors have begun their Journey home, back to Japan. A formal request from the Japanese Government has been received by Mr. Wetherall and the Kokoda Spirit team to recover the remains of the Japanese Soldiers. The team has begun the recovery process and will officially handover the remains to Japan’s Ambassador Mr. Hajime Nishiyama in Port Moresby on April 24 2009.
Mr. Wetherall commented on the recovery process.” No matter what your thoughts or feelings are towards the Japanese Soldiers; they were sent to war by their Government and lay buried and forgotten in shallow graves far from home along the Kokoda Track. These Soldiers regardless of race are someone’s son, brother, husband or father. My hope is this will bring closer for some families and highlights the horror and futility of war”
Let us hope and pray that this never happens to any of our Soldiers. Lest We Forget.
While Gallipoli was the birth of the Anzac legend and is seen as the birth of our Nation, then Kokoda was our coming of age....
Visit http://www.kokodaspirit.com
posted by Wayne's Kokoda Spirit Blog at
3:13 PM
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