THE MEMOIRS OF MUSTAPHA HUSSAIN - Malaysia Today

180 Memoirs of Mustapha Hussain
10. The following excerpt from Riwayat Kinta (The Story of Kinta) by A. Talib bin Haji
Ahmad gives a picture of Ipoh after the Japanese invasion:
One day in December 1941 at about 9.00 am, a couple of aircraft were seen flying
in the sky. Ipoh residents looked up with pride, expecting the two to be those of the
RAF (Royal Air Force). But how disappointed they were when moments later, the
planes dropped bombs on the Gunung Rapat aerodrome. Black smoke billowed in
the sky. Then, the aircraft strafed Ipoh town with machine-gun fire. What pandemonium!
How people ran! Even civilians became targets. The cries of young children
and women could be heard everywhere. People were running, not towards shelters,
but just anywhere, confused and frightened.
Thousands ran along the banks of the Kinta River, which adorned Ipoh. Luckily,
there were British soldiers who shouted, “lie down Joe!” It was only then that the
innocent people who knew nothing about war learned how to ‘lie low’ to avoid
becoming sitting ducks.
Soon, they began to evacuate, some went to the mountains, others to the interior.
But wherever one ran, enemy aircraft were incessantly above one’s head. Some
soldiers climbed trees, while others hid in bamboo clumps.
It was pure hysteria – that first experience! Shops were damaged and many people
died, their heads separated from their bodies.
Ipoh residents began to flow into villages with bedrolls and whatever they could
carry. Village homes were filled to the brim. Tens of families shared houses. Some
slept on the ground.
Not long after, Australian troops began to enter and destroy shops and business
houses in Ipoh. Many people looted openly. The Punjabis benefited the most,
carrying their loot in bullock carts and cars. My friend K. Singgaran and I watched
dumbfounded. We could not bring ourselves to join in. There were looters killed
fighting each other and some died when heavy loads fell on them.
British soldiers implemented their ‘scorched earth’ policy by burning properties
and exploding bridges behind them. Streets in Ipoh were strewn with glass and
debris. The once lively town looked as if it had been hit by the legendary giant
bird, Garuda.
In the same month, Japanese troops arrived. Bicycles and watches were snatched
away. Then came another group of Japanese who kept shouting “kurrah” (come
quickly). Those who did not know what the word meant were repeatedly slapped,
rendering great fear among the people. Regardless of whether one was an officer, a
rich man, a Raja or a Datuk, everyone was forced to work. Many people suffered.
And unlucky were women whom they came across – they were raped.
11. Page 41, F Kikan by Lt Gen. Fujiwara Iwaichi: “Then in mid-November, I received
an intelligence report from the Japanese Consulate General in Singapore about an
anti-British movement organised by the Kesatuan Melayu Muda (KMM), or the
Young Malay Union... I learnt from Consul General Tsurumi, ...that this group had
made contact with the Japanese consular mission in Singapore.”
12. Translator’s Note: In a couple of my father’s letters written later in his life, he implied
that Gen Itagaki (in Ipoh) was Itagaki, Seishiro (1885-1948), the Japanese Military
Governor for Malaya (October 1944-August 1945) who signed the surrender papers
to the Supreme Allied Commander in Southeast Asia, Lord Louis Mountbatten.
Itagaki was convicted for several war crimes and was hanged in 1948.
13. In an interview with Robert Reece, Fujiwara said, “...Ken Tsurumi, who, in April
1941, after obtaining Tokyo’s approval, handed over a sum of $18,000 to Ibrahim