 |
 |
Surrender |
|
The decision to surrender the Garrison was made by General Percival and at his opponent's insistence (General Yamashita) it was unconditional. The two met in the Ford motor factory north of the village, Bukit Timah. Hostilities ceased at 8.30pm on 15 February 1942. The surrender or rather knowledge of the imminent fact of surrender was responsible for two of the major controversies involving Australians at Singapore. The first concerned the escape of the Australian commander Gordon Bennett. With two staff officers Bennett escaped Singapore on a sampan managing to sail successfully to Australia, an act in any other circumstances of pluck and derring do. However, Bennett was roundly condemned in the post war years for abandoning his men. His explanation was that he wanted to impart vital information to authorities on how to defeat the Japanese. In two military and civil judicial hearings after the war his actions were criticised as being unwise. The second controversy involved the alleged misbehaviour of Australian troops. Evidence about Australian indiscipline in the final days seems irrefutable. However, the perpetrators have largely been identified as the new and raw volunteers who were attached to the force. These men it has been argued, possessed neither the appropriate soldierly discipline, had not been in active service long enough to obtain adequate unit pride and were badly officered. Placed as they were into a hopeless situation and one well beyond their capacity, it is (perhaps) not surprising they acted as they did. They engendered no sympathy in their commander who when asked what should be done with them replied bluntly, 'Shoot them!' As well as the 130,000 troops surrendered to the Japanese, a million civilians also fell under Japanese control. Australian troops suffered 1739 killed and 1306 wounded in the month long defence of the Island. Fifteen thousand Australians were captured, a third of whom would die in captivity whilst enduring the most degrading and humiliating treatment at the hands of their captors. |
|
|