Do you know any survivor of the Bataan Death March?
Mario C. Leodones recently reported the death of his father, Mr. Ernesto Leodones. We send to the Leodones family our deepest condolences. But what caught my attention to the death notice was the fact that the late Mr. Leodones was a survivor of the Bataan Death March. It's a shame that we only have noted the heroic past of Mr. Leodones after his death. Shouldn't we honor our heroes of the past while they are still alive as well as honor those who have since passed? Thus Metro Infanta Foundation would like to search for those heroes alive or dead so we can honor them as we look to the 67th anniversary of the Bataan Death March on April 10 and the fall of Corregidor on May 6. Please send us the names of our local heroes and we will inscribe their names on the web pages of Metro Infanta Foundation.
To submit a name, please email us at editor@infanta.org.
Below is a recap of the Bataan Death March and a reminder of the atrocities that the Philippine and American soldiers received under the hands of enemies.
The Bataan Death March began at Mariveles on April 10, 1942. Any troops who fell behind were executed. Japanese troops beat soldiers randomly, and denied the POWs food and water for many days. One of their tortures was known as the sun treatment. The Philippines in April is very hot. Therefore, the POWs were forced to sit in the sun without any shade, helmets, or water. Anyone who dared ask for water was executed. On the rare occasion they were given any food, it was only a handful of contaminated rice. When the prisoners were allowed to sleep for a few hours at night, they were packed into enclosures so tight that they could barely move. Those who lived collapsed on the dead bodies of their comrades. For only a brief part of the march would POWs be packed into railroad cars and allowed to ride. Those who did not die in the suffocating boxcars were forced to march about seven more miles until they reached their camp. It took the POWs over a week to reach their destination. (49) Those on Corregidor would suffer the same fate as their fellow soldiers on Bataan did as they too were transferred to Bataan.