- Akira Makino
was a former medic in the
Imperial Japanese Navy who, in 2006, became the first Japanese ex-soldier to admit to the experiments conducted on human beings in thePhilippines duringWorld War II .Early life
Makino was born in 1922, in a small town in
Osaka Prefecture . At the start of World War II, he was assigned to the navy's No. 33 patrol. In August 1944, at the age of 22, he was transferred to an air base inZamboanga onMindanao Island , in the Philippines.Human Experiments
According to Makino, experimentation on about 30 prisoners was carried out between December 1944 and February 1945. The prisoners included women and children, as well as two Filipino men suspected of spying for the
United States . [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6185442.stm "Japanese doctor admits POW abuse"] , BBC News, 26-11-2006. Retrieved on 07-02-2007.] On these prisoners, Makino performed operations includingamputation s, abdominaldissection s and other experiments. In his interview with theKyodo News Agency , he described, in particular, his experience with the two Filipino men suspected of spying. He said he had sedated the men by placingether -soaked cloth over their mouths, and then was instructed to study their livers after making an incision with asurgical knife . [http://www.guardian.co.uk/japan/story/0,,1958158,00.html "Japanese veteran admits vivisection tests on PoWs"] , Guardian Unlimited, 27-11-2006. Retrieved on 07-02-2007.] Makino stated that, at the time, he thought it was a "horrible" thing that he was doing, but that he was too scared to refuse orders because he would have been killed for disobeying.Revelation
After remaining silent for decades, Makino decided to reveal everything to the public in 2006. It is believed that Makino's account is the first of its kind from a Japanese veteran concerning human experimentation in
Southeast Asia during World War II. Initially he faced severe opposition from his wartime friends, but he decided to come forward with anyway. In his controversial revelation, Makino said, "We should not repeat such miseries again. I want to tell the truth about the war, even if it is to only one person or two."ee also
*
Japanese war crimes
*Unit 731
*South-East Asian theatre of World War II
*Military history of the Philippines during World War II References
External links
* [http://aanduosaka.wablog.com/285.html Act and Unite to Stop the War, Osaka (A&U大阪)] (in Japanese)
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