Reassessing the Japanese Prisoner of War Experience: The Changi POW Camp, Singapore, 1942-5

Reassessing the Japanese Prisoner of War Experience: The Changi POW Camp, Singapore, 1942-5
R P W Havers,R. P. W. Havers | 2003-05-23 00:00:00 | Routledge | 240 | Japan
This book explores the history of the Changi Prisoner of War camp at Singapore between the surrender in 1942 and the eventual liberation by British forces in September 1945. It discusses the forms of POW resistance to the Japanese.
Reviews
It's high time somebody re-assessed the prisoner of war experience. The traditional view of life as a POW being unpleasant is all wrong. It was a good time. A great way to lose weight and make new pals. Just look at those smiling fellahs on the cover cheesing it up for the camera. Good times. Good times.
Reviews
This book reassesses public perception of life at the Changi POW camp in Singapore. That's a polite way of saying that he is correcting misinformation about Changi.

It should be noted though that in so doing he has created more confusion. His book specifically addresses life at the camp for Prisoners Of War, situated in the British Army Barracks beside Changi Gaol and not the hundreds of civillian internees inside the actual Changi Gaol for whom conditions were quite different. Civillian prisoners were arguably treated with less respect by the Japanese Imperial Army than Prisoners of War were, if that's possible. Apart from the two separate but adjacent camps at Changi, there were also other large camps in Singapore, such as the Sime Road camp. History has often confused the two Changi camps and it is no wonder then that the writer has been confused by reports of ultra harsh conditions at Changi that didn't exist so much in the Changi POW camp.

So as not to offend anyone, life was no picnic at either camp, and many Changi POW were later sent to the Burma Railroad and other dire places.

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