American soldiers have been captured in Asia,
and they are being marched towards the prison camps run by the Axis powers. They know
the routine - they’ve been briefed on what to do when they become prisoners of
war in basic training. They know to give the enemy as little information as
possible, and hold out for the end of the war. They also know that the Geneva
Convention offers them certain protections. But they’re about to find out in the harshest
way possible that those protections no longer apply. Because their Japanese captors
will become known as among the worst war criminals in human history - and
Allied prisoners are shown no mercy. These are some of the worst torture methods
used by the Japanese during World War II. The Japanese gained a reputation as the
worst country to be held captive by during the Second World War. Unlike in past wars,
where both sides generally respected their enemy’s captives out of self-interest -
so their own captives would get the same treatment - the Axis showed no such mercy. And
while German POW camps were notoriously brutal, the Nazis reserved their worst treatment
not for POWs, but for their own citizens and conquered subjects that they deemed
less than human. Imperial Japan, however, ran a massive network of camps that committed
many of the worst atrocities of the war theater. And it often began before the
prisoners even arrived at the camps. For prisoners of war of Japan, the capture was
part of the torture. During the early days of the war, the majority of prisoners were captured
in the southeast Asian theater, particularly in the incredibly brutal series of battles in the
Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. From there, they would be transported to the large prison
camps built on the islands. To get there, they would have to experience extended, large-scale
forced marches that would push captured soldiers to their breaking point, with many suffering
from starvation, dehydration, and exhaustion. And this was the first preview of how little the
Japanese valued the lives of their prisoners. In what would become known as the
Bataan Death March in April 1942, the surrendered American and Filipino troops
- numbering over 75,000 - were stripped of their possessions. Any who were found to
have contraband were immediately shot - a flagrant violation of the laws of war. From
there, the troops - many sick, weakened, or injured - were organized into a march to camps
as much as 65 miles away. Along the way, the Japanese troops would periodically show kindness,
but there would be outbursts of violence - such as officers being randomly executed. And as the
march went on, it was clear the prisoners were receiving little food or water. Exposure to the
brutal elements were quickly wearing them down. And the slightest mistake or defiance meant death. Asking for water could get a prisoner killed
on the spot. Prisoners were stripped or taunted with water. Anyone who hit the ground or slowed
down was shot or bayoneted. Beatings were common, and by the time the surviving prisoners
arrived at their destination, many were deathly ill. It’s believed that as many as
18,000 Filipinos died during this march, and as many as 650 American troops. The final
stage of the journey was transport in boiling metal boxcars to Camp O’Donnell, and those
who didn’t make it were buried in mass graves. Almost a third of the massive march’s captives
didn’t make it to their final destination. This was the most famous death march
- but it was far from the only one. These marches were a common feature of the
Japanese war machine, with the Sandakan Death Marches on Borneo taking place during 1942
and 1943. These would become known as the worst atrocities suffered by Australian servicemen
during the war, with only six surviving among a group of thousands - all of whom were transferred
repeatedly from camp to camp. Most died due to malnutrition and abuse from the prison guards,
those who didn’t met their end in eventual mass executions. But for those who survived the initial
transfers, even worse atrocities awaited them. Because the prisoners of war weren’t treated
as captives - they were treated as slaves. Japan was a relatively new empire, growing
exponentially during the years leading up to the war. That meant they continued to build up
their infrastructure during the war - and now they had a ready and unwilling supply of laborers
for the most dangerous jobs. The Geneva Convention strictly prohibits prisoners of war being used
for slave labor, but that had been thrown out the window long ago. So the American and other Allied
troops were forced to participate in a twisted, ironic ritual - building the very infrastructure
that was used against their fellow soldiers. And these workplaces were
definitely not up to code. There were three primary areas where prisoners
of war were put to work. The first was wartime infrastructure - heavy-duty projects such as
building runways. This would be accomplished with the barest of possible equipment,
such as manual tools to clear rocks and till fields that could then be turned
into runways. This was backbreaking work, with multiple men needed to lift very heavy
loads. The primary risks were exhaustion, dehydration - and the constant threat of violence
from their captors if they fell behind on quotas. And it may have been the
least nightmarish position. Factory work was another common use for prisoners
of war under WW2 Japan - and anyone who has worked a factory job knows there are serious risks even
under the best of conditions. This type of work usually required precise and a steady hand -
as well as a good amount of training. Japanese forced labor practices meant that the soldiers,
who were often working on munitions and other military supplies, were working with heavy and
molten metal, along with explosive materials, all the while facing the omnipresent threat of
being executed if they failed to meet their quota. And the final labor position was one that
is terrifying even for those volunteering. Mining is a dangerous job, and everyone
has heard the horror stories of miners trapped deep underground. The job is risky
when done with safety equipment - and the unfortunate POWs tasked with keeping Japan
well-stocked with ore found themselves faced with a much worse scenario. Mining
operations were often little more than being lowered into the mine in an iron
bucket. The shafts were unventilated, and the ore was almost unbearably hot. It was
the one forced labor detail most likely to wear down a laborer - and that meant instant
death as soon as they were no longer useful. But it wasn’t the work detail the prisoners
had to fear most. Often, it was the guards. It’s a common thing in prisons -
not all guards are created equal. One might be just looking to punch in
their time on the clock and get home, and he won’t cause you trouble if you don’t cause
him trouble. Another might actually be a nice guy, and you can get a few extra privileges if you
play nice. And another might be looking to take out that frustration about never making the
police force on the skels. Prisoners quickly learn their way around the guards, but all of them are
required to abide by certain laws regarding the rights of prisoners - even if they don’t always
live up to that. But in Japanese POW camps, there were no such regulations. In fact,
brutality was often encouraged by the brass. And that encouraged monsters
like the one known as…The Bird? Okay, not exactly a terrifying
name, but anyone who snickered at the nickname of Mutsuhiro Watanabe
would soon live to regret it. Watanabe, who served at multiple military internment camps
in Japan, was notorious for his sadistic treatment of prisoners - including Olympic runner
Louis Zamperini, who was responsible for exposing much of Watanabe’s crimes after the war.
Watanabe was a student of nihilist philosophy, and believed that creating fear was the most
effective way to control a camp. He was known for his extreme punishments for minor offenses or no
offenses at all. At one point, an elderly prisoner was tied to a tree for days as a warning, and in
the dead of winter an American officer was kept outdoors wearing only a single undergarment,
as he came close to freezing to death. And at times, the punishments resembled
a twisted game more than anything else. Zamperini received a special kind of torment
from the Bird, who was delighted at the idea of being able to torture an American hero. At one
point, the star runner was forced to compete in a race against a Japanese officer. Coming off a
harrowing lost-at-sea ordeal, Zamperini couldn’t compete - and was promptly beaten. In a later
incident that became the most famous scene in the film adaptation of Zamperini’s ordeal, the
soldier was punished for a slight lapse during work duty by being forced to lift a heavy wooden
beam for an extended period. If he dropped it, he would be shot. The ordeal only ended
when Zamperini’s refusal to fail enraged Watanabe enough to begin beating him again.
These actions were clearly all far outside the bounds of acceptable wartime behavior -
but the authorities in charge didn’t care. This was all standard-issue behavior for Imperial Japan - but they had far worse in
store for those who challenged them. Interrogations were a common part
of any prisoner of war situation, as the captors hoped to get whatever information
they could out of the enemy soldiers. This is usually a pretty routine affair - the interrogator
demands information, the soldier repeatedly says only the limited information they have been told
to give out, and the captors hope that fear and exhaustion will win out and cause the captor
to slip up. Most interrogators are hesitant to resort to any extreme measures because
that would violate the Geneva Convention. But that wasn’t an issue here. Japanese interrogators were infamous for
brutalizing the soldiers they interrogating, hoping to break them more through pain and
fear than through frustration and confusion. This included pulling out fingernails, or using
a twisted form of waterboarding that posed a much larger risk to the victim. The soldiers would
place a tube down the prisoner’s throat and turn on the water until the water flowed back out
through the victim’s nostrils. Not only did this simulate drowning, but it put the prisoner
at a risk of death from water intoxication. The goal of those interrogations
was to leave the soldier tormented but alive - and ready to divulge important
information. That wasn’t always the case. The Japanese army was infamous for mass
executions, with huge percentages of their prisoners of war not surviving to the
end of the conflict. The quickest way to die was simply to not be useful to the
captors anymore. Slowing down on a march, or collapsing during work duty, usually meant
a quick bullet to the head or a bayonet to the stomach. But that wasn’t the case for those
who defied the Japanese soldiers or were caught planning an escape. They wanted them
to die - but they also wanted them to suffer. And they wanted everyone to watch. The executions of POWs and other prisoners were
notoriously horrific under the Japanese rule, with many reports saying that they
even engaged in crucifixion - one of the latest uses of this infamous
execution method. Reportedly, the victims were simply nailed to anything
that was convenient - including trees, wooden boards, or electrical posts - and left
to die either from blood loss, infection, or exposure. This wasn’t the only case where the
Japanese soldiers left their victims on display. But other cases displayed an
innovative level of sadism. Hanging is one of the most common execution
methods, but it's usually used to provide a quick death via the neck-snapping. That wasn’t
how the Japanese used this execution method, instead preferring to let people
hang slowly and asphyxiate. Often, the target would be hung by something
unconventional - the thumbs, or even the tongue - and would be left to hang until the
body part simply detached in horrifying fashion. A similar tactic took advantage of nature. One of the most disturbing Japanese torture
methods was the bamboo cage, often used in rural prison camps and during marches. Bamboo
is one of the fastest-growing plants in nature, sprouting several inches per day and can be
filed into a sharp tip. The Japanese would place the captives over a bed of sharpened bamboo
sticks, and watch as they grow day by day - at first causing painful wounds as they grow, and
eventually impaling the captive and slowly killing them. It was one of a number of brutal but slow
murder methods used by the Japanese soldiers. However, it wasn’t the soldiers who delivered the
worst types of torture- it was the scientists. One of the most infamous names of the war was
the Nazi mad scientist Dr. Josef Mengele - the sadistic torturer who took Jewish captives
and other prisoners of the Nazis and conducted twisted experiments on them. He killed
many people and left countless others scarred and forever changed. He became
a household name - especially after he disappeared without ever facing justice.
But he may not have been the worst mad scientist of the war. A collective of twisted
Japanese experimenters may have eclipsed him. This is the terrifying story of Unit 731. Officially named Manshu Detachment 731 and
known as the Kamo Detachment, Unit 731 was officially a research division specializing
in biological and chemical warfare - both of which were outlawed under the Geneva Convention.
But this wasn’t a deterrent to Imperial Japan, and they were no doubt hoping to unleash new and
contagious weapons on the Americans if they were forced to invade the Japanese mainland. But when
dealing with volatile and contagious compounds, research is key to ensure the unit didn’t
create a chain reaction they couldn’t control. And they had plenty of unwilling subjects. The unit actually preceded the war, with Japan
seeing the ban on chemical and biological weapons - and deciding this obviously meant that
they were so effective that they needed to double their research into it. So in the early 1930s,
Imperial Japan - which was already gearing up for war - authorized the military unit and set
it up in Zhongma Fortress, a prison camp used during the Second Sino-Japanese War. This camp was
always filled with common criminals and political prisoners, and they were subjected to starvation
and experimentation that often proved fatal. It was just a small preview
of the sadistic treatment that awaited the prisoners of war who found
themselves in the hands of Unit 731. The Unit continued its experiments,
repeatedly shocking even Hideki Tojo, who found looking at details of it “unpleasant”.
This was not sufficient to make him stop it, though, and a side division codenamed
Maruta specialized in human experiments was still created. And there seemed to be no
limit to the depravity of the scientists in the unit - performing experiments without
regard for the survival of the subject or even for any scientific benefit. While
many of the experiments were focused on developing new weapons, others just seemed
to exist to fulfill the sadists’ curiosity. And many of the experiments
were as simple as an injection. As anyone who has gotten their vaccines knows, a
shot is never pleasant. But it’s what’s in that syringe that makes the difference - and often
the injections from the Japanese brought only death. This was during the days when blood
transfusions were still relatively new, and Japanese scientists were running short on
blood for battlefield transfusions. They wanted to see if substitutes would suffice - so they gave
prisoners injections of horse blood. Naturally, the two didn’t mix, and the patients
died. Another experiment sought to replace plasma with sea water - and the
result was once again a quick death. But it was far from the worst
thing that a treatment could bring. The Japanese were interested in biological
warfare, and the best way they could think of to test how dangerous specific diseases were was
to inject people deliberately. Prisoners were repeatedly infected with syphilis and gonorrhea,
two infamous sexually transmitted diseases, through various disturbing means. While both
diseases can be treated or mitigated today, the Japanese weren’t interested -
instead watching them rip through the population and cause horrible
discomfort and sometimes death. But it was far from the worst use of
biological warfare by the Japanese army. Sexually transmitted diseases could be tested
in limited numbers within the camp, but when it came to fast-spreading diseases like cholera and
anthrax, they wanted a larger test group. So they bred fleas that were infected with these diseases,
and dropped them on civilian villages in occupied China. Sometimes, these plagues would decimate
the towns - which were already suffering from malnutrition due to the war and occupation
- resulting in as many as 30,000 deaths. But disease could only do so much. The Japanese
wanted to test the limits of human endurance too. Much of Unit 731 was seeing just how much the
human body could endure, with plenty of human test subjects, this was the perfect time to see
how far the human body could go. Some of these involved new technology. They were curious about
how much pressure the human body could handle - so they put prisoners in high-pressure chambers
and turned the pressure up until the prisoners suffered fatal injuries. A similar experiment
was done with centrifuges, spinning the prisoners until their bodies gave out in a twisted
experiment akin to a carnival ride from hell. And the same went for weapons
testing - brutality until death. The Japanese military was testing a large array
of weapons for the close-quarters combat they were preparing for, and the favored testing method
was to simply take an unfortunate prisoner and use the weapon on them. This included grenades,
flame-throwers, and bombs of all kinds - including chemical weapons, shrapnel bombs, and even
bayonets and knives. While this did give data on whether the weapon would be effective in
combat, the main conclusion seemed to be “Yes, they’re dead”, which makes it feel more
like an exercise in senseless sadism. But other experiments seemed to be
driven by a twisted form of curiosity. For those prisoners taken into a
private lab rather than a field test, their death was likely to be slower and
more painful. Among the experiments these prisoners experienced were repeated exposure
to high levels of radiation through x-rays, waiting to see how long it would take to
fatally poison them. Just about every type of poison imaginable was tested on the captives,
including pufferfish venom, mustard gas, ricin, and heroin. One particularly twisted experiment
involved draining mass amounts of blood from victims to see how it affected them and how long
it took for them to expire. The same was done with dehydration, where the subjects were deprived of
water and subjected to brutally hot conditions. Other experiments were designed to see how much
it took to break the human body - literally. During the brutally cold periods of the
war, Japanese scientists took part in a cruel frostbite test, where they would
take captives outside in the winter, dip their appendages into water and allow
it to freeze solid. They would then take a stick and attempt to break the limb
clean off, seeing whether it was frozen solid. This was overseen by Amy Engineer Hisato
Yoshimura, known for being one of the cruelest experimenters in the unit. After this part, the
limbs would often be thawed by exposure to fire. Most of the experiments were designed to end in death - but some dragged out
the deaths longer than others. One of the most feared fates in Unit
731 was vivisection - the process of dissecting a living subject. This is a highly
controversial practice when done with animals nevermind humans. While racist doctors
around the world often performed medical procedures on slaves without proper anesthetic,
a horrifying prospect, the Axis Powers were fond of seeing how long the human body could
hold out while being slowly taken apart. And these experiments pushed
the bounds of human survival. While some of the most famous victims
of Unit 731 were captured soldiers, the vast majority of prisoners at the facility
were Chinese prisoners of war - which included large numbers of women and children. None of
them were safe from this horrific treatment, which included whole organs or limbs being removed
while the subjects were still alive and conscious. This included having samples of the liver or even
the brain removed, or to remove the stomach and link the esophagus with the small intestine.
None of these procedures were likely to result in a surviving patient, naturally - but there
was always another prisoner to experiment on. And sometimes, an experiment
had more than one victim. Unit 731 had a particular interest in pregnant
women and understanding the process of fetal development - which included infecting
pregnant women with syphilis to determine if the disease could be passed from mother to
child. Much like Dr. Mengele’s twisted lab, children were not spared from sadistic treatment, and that included the unborn. Details of
these experiments only came out after the war, but the atrocities of Unit 731 were considered
among the absolute worst of World War II. And even as the war was coming to
a close, the atrocities continued. As the Japanese became more and more desperate,
they became more willing to resort to incredibly cruel behavior on the battlefield. One of the
best reports of this apparently happened in the Pacific theater, where supplies
were running low. As food dwindled, Japanese officers reportedly would select
prisoners of war - and designate them as food. The prisoner would typically be slaughtered
and their meat served to the soldiers, but in some cases meat was sliced off a living
prisoner. While this was initially an act of desperation, some officers began to like the
climate of fear it created among prisoners. And towards the end of the war, the Japanese seemed to be ready to just
cause as many casualties as possible. The Japanese would load as many POWs as
possible on ships, nicknamed “Hell Ships”, where as many as 1,600 men would be
shoved in a space meant for 500. These packed ships would then be sent to other
camps, but they would be frequently hit by friendly fire - sinking the entire ship
to a watery grave. Reports indicated that the men trapped in cages on board would be
screaming for air and water, and the Japanese would often respond by covering up the cage
- hastening the suffocation of the victims. And the true horrors of the war wouldn’t
come to light until well after the fact. When the Japanese were forced into unconditional
surrender and the camps were liberated, only then did it become clear the terrible shape most of
the captives were in. Years of malnutrition, hard labor, abuse, torture, and experimentation
left their marks on the victims - horrifying the liberators, in a similar way to the shock
that awaited the GIs when they liberated the Nazi camps in Europe. The total of the dead
at these camps will never be fully known, as documentation of the countless Chinese
POWs is spotty, but it’s believed that 27,465 US military personnel were captured by
Japan - and over 11,000 of them died. This is compared to 93,941 US military members captured
by Germany - with a death rate of just over 1,100. Needless to say, there would be payback. In the aftermath of the war, war
crimes trials started to be formed to make the architects of the Axis Powers
war crimes pay. While the Nuremberg Trials, which targeted the worst Nazi war criminals, got
the most publicity, the US also prosecuted many of the Japanese forces’ top criminals - and
the results were similar. The International Military Tribunal for the Far East had a
broader scope than the Nuremberg Trials, dating back to Japan’s 1931 invasion of Manchuria.
And while in Germany, Hitler and many of his top lieutenants were dead, here current and
former Prime Ministers were put on trial. And many of them met the ultimate fate. The trials lasted until 1948, far longer than
Nuremberg, and in the end over 900 accused war criminals were executed. Most famously, this
included Prime Minister and infamous General Hideki Tojo. However, it did not include
the masterminds behind Unit 731 - as the United States intervened and kept most of those
details from the tribunal, rendering it one of the darkest secrets of World War II. The true
horrors of the unit - and the many tortures of those who found themselves in the captivity of
Imperial Japan - would not come out for years. Want to know more about the darkest secrets of
World War II? Check out “What Actually Happened To Nazi War Criminals After World War II” for
all the dirty details. Or check out “The Sea Water Torture - Nazi Camp Experiments”
for one of the war’s darkest chapters.
