Memories of WWII

Phillip Adams, on Late Night Live, had a great piece about the struggle to preserve WWII sites, especially those in the Pacific Theatre.

The island of Ballalae was used as an airstrip by the Japanese forces from 1942 to 1945. Since no allied landing ever took place there the machinery and buildings left behind are still there, including fighter planes ready for takeoff, trucks and more. However, this site is under pressure from those looking to plunder it for private collections and the like.

Even more pressing is the existence of a grave where some 500 bodies were found. The Japanese at first disavowed any knowledge of it, but research later showed the bodies were most likely Commonwealth prisoners taken from Singapore to build the airstrip and then killed once the job was done.

Given the harsh conditions of the tropics, sites like this need to be preserved and protected. Memories like this fade all too fast.