It was on April 9, 1942, on the Bataan Peninsula in the West Luzon Island of the Philippines where American and

Filipino troops accepted defeat against the Japanese forces. Basic commodities, ammunition, determination were low. Their men were dying of malnourishment rather than enemy fire. They surrendered to the Japanese that afternoon. Shortly after, the savagery of the so-called Bataan Death March, where thousands of American and Filipino prisoners of war died due to the inhumanity of the Japanese. No one had been sparedLiberators found both women and men who had been tortured.
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At the Tokyo War Crimes Trial, the two-page document known as the Kill-All Policy was used to guide Japanese officials handling prisoners of war. Even with the already brutal circumstances set by the policy, Japanese officials still managed to perform other atrocities like beheading prisoners, bayoneting Filipinos and their families, and torturing people (including women) [as] part of the occupiers wartime strategy of fear and intimidation. Rifle-butt beatings were common even for merely aiding a falling companion. Filipino civilians who offered food and water to the prisoners (much like this lady in the photograph) were also killed instantly.
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Beyond this photograph of a beheaded woman, we see the story behind the grave atrocities done by the Japanese. The fact that such cruelty was unnecessary only magnifies the pain of this tragedy. Yet, it leaves us today with the thought of Filipinos (both civilians and soldiers) who, despite the possibility and likelihood of being killed, would reach out to help a faltering comrade or offer food and water. The sympathy, bravery, and suffering of these brothers and sisters provided more fuel to the flames of vengeance and justice that won the country and its people the independence it rightfully deserves.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Bataan Death March: World War II, April 9, 1942. u-s-history.com, 2012 [article on-line]; available from http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1737.html; Internet; accessed May 3, 2012. Imperial Brutality: Bataan Death March. nationalmuseum.com, 2011 [article on-line]; available from http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3667; Internet; accessed May 3, 2012.

Bataan Death March: World War II, April 9, 1942, available from http://www.u-shistory.com/pages/h1737.html; Internet; accessed May 2012. 2 Imperial Brutality: Bataan Death March, available from http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=3667; Internet; accessed May 2012. 3 The Great Raid: Reasons to Fear, available from http://www.awesomestories.com/flicks/greatraid/reasons-to-fear; Internet; accessed May 2012. 4 Japan, WWII - Kill-All Policy, available from http://www.awesomestories.com/assets/killall-policy; Internet; accessed May 2012. 5 The Great Raid: Reasons to Fear, available from http://www.awesomestories.com/flicks/greatraid/reasons-to-fear; Internet; accessed May 2012. 6 Kallie Szczepanski, What Was the Bataan Death March? available from http://asianhistory.about.com/od/asianhistoryfaqs/f/BataanGlos.htm; Internet; accessed May 2012.

The Great Raid: Reasons to Fear. awesomestories.com, 2012 [database on-line]; available from http://www.awesomestories.com/flicks/great-raid/reasons-to-fear; Internet; accessed May 3, 2012. Japan, WWII - Kill-All Policy. awesomestories.com, 2012 [database on-line]; available from http://www.awesomestories.com/assets/killall-policy; Internet; accessed May 3, 2012. Szczepanski, Kallie. What Was the Bataan Death March? about.com, 2012 [article on-line]; available from http://asianhistory.about.com/od/asianhistoryfaqs/f/BataanGlos.htm; Internet; accessed May 3, 2012.