I like to think that I am an expert on WWII psychological operations in the Pacific.
I wrote 30,000 words on the U.S. Army Psychological Warfare Branch operations in the
Philippines, and another 53,000 words on the U.S. Navy and Office of War Information
leaflets prepared on Saipan. Then I ran across the name of U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant
Bob Sheeks, a name I had never heard of. As I studied his actions during the initial
American assault on Japanese-occupied Saipan in WWII, I discovered that he had done things
that were not officially credited to U.S. forces until much later. He decided that trying
to talk the Japanese into surrendering was important and began writing leaflets and
loudspeaker messages. Up until that time it was believed that no Japanese would ever
surrender and for the Marines it was a lot easier to just shoot them, burn them or blow
them up. Sheeks also thought that the Japanese needed to be taught how to surrender
because the concept was unknown in Japan. He obtained a loudspeaker, and talked a Marine
motor sergeant into placing it on a jeep. He also bought portable loudspeakers and took it
upon himself to try and talk the Japanese military and civilians out of caves. It was an
amazing story and totally unknown to me. So, this short story will mention some of the
ground-breaking PSYOP actions that Bob Sheeks did.
U.S. Marine Lieutenant General Holland Smith
Marines Hit the Beach during the Invasion of Saipan
Let me start with a very brief introduction to the battle for Saipan. The Battle was
fought from 15 June to 9 July 1944. The Allied invasion fleet embarking the expeditionary
forces left Pearl Harbor on 5 June 1944. The U.S. 2nd Marine Division, 4th Marine
Division, and the Army's 27th Infantry Division, commanded by Lieutenant General Holland
Smith, fought the 43rd Infantry Division of the Imperial Japanese Army, commanded by
Lieutenant General Yoshitsugu Saito.
Amid the bodies of dead Japanese soldiers, a Marine of the U.S. 2nd Division raises
his M1 carbine to take aim at the retiring enemy on Saipan during the advance on Mount
Marpi. The bitter battle for Saipan resulted in heavy casualties for both sides.
2nd Marine Division Insignia
The invasion surprised the Japanese high command, which had been expecting an attack
in the Pacific further south. Admiral Soemu Toyoda, Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese
Navy, saw an opportunity to attack the U.S. Navy forces around Saipan. On 15 June, he gave
the order to attack. But the resulting battle of the Philippine Sea was a disaster for the
Imperial Japanese Navy, which lost three aircraft carriers and hundreds of planes. The
garrisons of the Marianas would have no hope of resupply or reinforcement. Without
resupply, the battle on Saipan was hopeless for the defenders, but the Japanese were
determined to fight to the last man. The Japanese used the many caves in the volcanic
landscape to delay the attackers, by hiding during the day and making sorties at night.
The Americans gradually developed tactics for clearing the caves by using flamethrower
teams supported by artillery and machine guns.
The Banzai Charge
The Banzai Charge is a human wave attack mounted by infantry units. This term came
from the Japanese cry Tennoheika Banzai i.e. “Long live the Emperor.” It
was a suicidal attack, where Japanese troops gave up their lives willingly to kill as many
enemies as possible before their own death. Those that were unable to make the charge
would kill themselves by holding a grenade against their chest. Surrender was unthinkable
and the worst form of cowardice to the Japanese soldier.
By 7 July on Saipan, the Japanese had nowhere to retreat. Saito made plans for a
final suicidal banzai charge. On the fate of the remaining civilians on the island, Saito
said, “There is no longer any distinction between civilians and troops. It would be
better for them to join in the attack with bamboo spears than be captured.” At dawn,
the remaining able-bodied troops, about 3,000 men, charged forward in the final attack.
Amazingly, behind them came the wounded, with bandaged heads, crutches, and barely armed.
The Japanese surged over the American front lines, engaging both army and Marine units. Of
course, sharp sticks cannot defeat weapons so the Japanese were beaten back with terrible
losses.
Believing the horrific tales of American atrocities fabricated by Japanese military
propagandists, Japanese civilians commit suicide by flinging themselves and their children
from the cliffs at Marpi Point on the island of Saipan. Unable to intervene, U.S. Marines
watch helplessly as the civilians end their lives by drowning or falling on the rocks
below.
Author Mark Riggs says in Flamethrower:
Saipan was the first Pacific battlefield where the Americans also
encountered a large enemy civilian population, possibly as high as 27,000.
This was problematic because the Japanese population was mixed in with
Japanese troops and about 3,350 Chamorros and Carolinians making the
bombardment of targets somewhat restricted. A pamphlet given to the 2nd
Marne Division cautioned:
“We must...be…sure that a civilian is fighting us or harming our
installations before we shoot him. International law…demands that civilians
who do not fight back ...must, whenever possible be taken alive and must not
be injured or have their possessions taken from them except after a due
trial by competent authority.”
By the end of the first week of July, the Marines had defeated
most of the Japanese forces on Saipan and had pushed the remaining units and
most of the Japanese civilians to the north of the island around Mount
Marpi. The enemy was now crowded around hundred-foot precipices that
plummeted from a plateau surrounding Mount Marpi overlooking the ocean. This
mountain was bolstered on almost all sides by imposing cliffs dotted with
caves and the damage caused by shell blasts from U.S. warships. Civilians
moved north with retreating troops stopping at the shore with no place to
escape, and, just like their soldiers, the civilians started killing
themselves instead of allowing themselves to be taken prisoner by the
Americans. Many Marines did all they could to help civilians. As soon as the
Marines ascertained those suicides were occurring at Marpi Point, they had
interpreters on megaphones and loudspeakers tell them they would not hurt
them. Scout planes dropped fliers notifying civilians of U.S. servicemen’s
good intentions.
Lieutenant General Yoshitsugu Saito, the Japanese garrison’s
commander, had ordered civilians to commit suicide in the event of defeat.
For years, Japan had fed its citizens the propaganda describing Americans
wanting to cut the “testicles” off of Japanese and as “sadistic, redheaded,
hairy monsters who committed unspeakable atrocities before putting all
Nipponese, including women and infants, to the sword.” One document claimed
Americans were “barbarous and execute all prisoners” and kill some “by
cutting them up and crushing them with steam rollers.” Believing the
propaganda, many civilians trapped at Marpi Point decided to kill
themselves. Mothers threw their infants off cliffs and then jumped. A group
of a hundred passed grenades out to everyone from young children to elderly
adults; then they held the grenades next to their stomachs, pushed the pins
and blew themselves up. Women, men, boys, and girls slit each other’s wrists
and bled out. Others took cyanide.
Japanese soldiers hid with women and children. When some infants
started crying and threatened to reveal their hideout, a sergeant said,
“Kill them yourself or I’ll order my men to do it.” With that order,
“several mothers killed their own children.”
Government-controlled news reports in Japan glorified this
suicidal fanaticism. One newspaper extolled the mothers who killed their
children and themselves as the flowers of womanhood. This was obviously
crude propaganda, but to its purpose was chilling to convince civilians that
they too were expected to fight to the bitter end to protect the homeland.
The army had imposed its standard of no surrender onto the civilian
population to legitimize the notion of death before dishonor and collective
suicide for all Japanese.
We also find this Japanese “Hate Propaganda” mentioned in The
Conquering Tide:
The root was in hate propaganda. It described Americans as non-humans, “they were something like
demons or beasts.”
They were the
“hairy ones” or the Anglo-American demons.
They would have raped women and girls. They would have crushed civilians captured under tracks of the tanks.
The Marines were especially dreaded.
According to a story that circulated widely among the Japanese in
Saipan, all Marine recruits were forced to kill their parents before being
inducted into service. It was
said that captured Japanese soldiers would be tortured excruciatingly,
noses, limbs and ears would be cut off, blinded and castrated, cooked and
fed to dogs. Japanese newspapers
reproduced photos of Japanese skulls mounted on American tanks.
A cartoon in a magazine by
an American soldier, which was later reproduced and translated in the
Japanese press, had suggested that the Marines had received a “Japanese
hunting license” with the promise of “open season” on the enemy, with free
ammunition and equipment and with pay. Other cartoons, reproduced in Japan,
characterized the Japanese as monkeys, rats, beetles or lice.
It seems clear that many of the comments and cartoons made by
patriotic Americans attacking the Japanese were used by the enemy to
convince their troops that the Americans were monsters.
A Leaflet to General Saito to save Civilian Lives
Although we do not know exactly who prepared and dropped this leaflet, it is
addressed to Lieutenant General Saito and was dropped on Saipan at 1630 on 7 July 1944.
The text is:
Lieutenant General Saito,
This is the last chance to save the lives of non-combatants on Saipan Island.
If the Japanese troops want to sacrifice their lives uselessly, that is their
affair; but the American forces do not want to kill non-combatants. If the Japanese
military authorities are human beings they will allow the innocent civilians to come over
to the American lines and save their lives. This is the last chance.
This is what to do: all non-combatants, whether Japanese, Koreans or Natives will
come down the Banadero Road on the northeast side of Saipan towards Tanapag at 0900,
Friday 7 July. They will come unarmed and carrying white flags held high. If they do this,
the American forces will receive them and save their lives. Americans do not want to kill
non-combatants. 7,000 civilians of Saipan are already safe in American hands. As human
beings, let us save the lives of the innocents.
Civilians can come to the American lines individually before the specified time
but Friday, 7 July at 0900 in the morning is the last chance.
Tell everyone the time and place, Banadero Road at 0900 Friday morning.
The Commander of All American Forces on Saipan Island.
Dan King, an
author and researcher who reads Japanese, pointed out to me that although
the Americans told the Japanese to meet at 0900 on 7 July, the document that
translated the leaflet said it was dropped at 1630 on 7 July. They got the
leaflet after the Banzai attack so it served no purpose. He asked how that
could happen. I pointed out that the American pilot might have not known of
the time requirement, he certainly did not read Japanese. Another problem
was that the pilots wanted to drop bombs on the enemy. Getting killed by
anti-aircraft while dropping paper on the enemy was often a sore point among
air force members. Leaflet missions did not receive a high priority.
At the end of June, Hirohito sent out an imperial order encouraging the civilians of
Saipan to commit suicide. The order authorized the commander of Saipan to promise
civilians who died there an equal spiritual status in the afterlife with those of soldiers
perishing in combat. More than 1,000 Japanese civilians committed suicide in the last
days of the battle to take the offered privileged place in the afterlife, some jumping
from places later named "Suicide Cliff" and "Banzai Cliff". Today the
sites are a memorial and Japanese people visit to console the victims' souls.
In Japan the suicides were considered to be the highest form of patriotism. Jeff
Kingston wrote in the JAPAN TIMES:
The suicides in Saipan drew considerable attention and praise in Japan. A
correspondent from the Yomiuri praised the women who committed suicide with their children
by jumping from the cliff, writing that they were, “the pride of Japanese
women.” He even went so far as to call it, “The finest act of the Showa
period.” Similarly, Tokyo University professor Hiraizumi Kiyoshi gushed in the Asahi
Shimbun, “100 or 1,000 instants of bravery emit brilliant flashes of light, an act
without equal in history.”
The Japanese commander, Gen. Yoshitsugu Saito, reportedly said: “There is no
longer any distinction between civilians and troops. It would be better for them to join
in the attack with bamboo spears than be captured.”
A Japanese POW volunteers to broadcast surrender appeals to his Comrades in the Jungle
Saipan - 1945
On the Island of Saipan an American Army Technical Sergeant holds a
microphone as a Japanese
prisoner-of-war tells his hidden comrades of the good treatment he has received at the
hands of the Americans
A loudspeaker jeep broadcasts surrender messages to Japanese
holdouts in caves.
Saipan -1945
Japanese troops surrendering in response to leaflets and
loudspeaker broadcasts.
Saipan – 1945
Japanese weapons surrendered by holdouts in the caves.
Saipan - 1945
The loss of Saipan, with the death of at least 29,000 troops and heavy civilian
casualties, precipitated the resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo and left
the Japanese mainland within the range of Allied B-29 bombers.
Lieutenant Robert B. Sheeks on Saipan 1945
There is a website dedicated to Major Robert B.
Sheeks; and a book The Conquering Tide: War in the Pacific Islands, 1942-1944 that
mentions Lieutenant Sheeks early PSYOP activities; and a book titled One Marine’s
War by Gerald A. Meehl, published by the Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland,
in 2012. These were a great help in learning of Sheeks background. Bob Sheeks and his son
Robert were also very helpful, opening up their files to me and allowing me to use
whatever I desired in this article. They were extremely generous.
In most cases, young men are born liberal and as they grow older become more
conservative and learn to hate their enemies. In the case of Bob Sheeks it was just the
opposite. Brought up in Shanghai before America entered the war and seeing the brutal way
that Japanese troops treated the Chinese, Bob had an early hate for the Sons of Nippon. As
he grew older and was taught Japanese by American Nisei instructors, and later interviewed
and saw wounded and dying Japanese troops and civilians on Saipan he increaingly wanted to
try to save their lives.
Old Shanghai
Born 8 April 1922 in China to American parents, Bob grew up spending his early
boyhood in Shanghai.He attended the Shanghai American School until thirteen years of age.
While in China, as a child, Bob met and admired members of the Fourth Marine Regiment that
had been stationed in Shanghai since 1937. He decided at an early age that he would be a
Marine someday.
Japanese soldiers celebrating after the city of Shanghai,
the largest city in China at the time, fell to the Japanese
Chinese civilian killed by Japanese Soldiers for Sport
Japan's attack on Shanghai took place in 1932. Bob witnessed some horrific scenes of
brutal Japanese attacks on Chinese civilians. He mentioned them in a War in the Pacific
Oral History Collection. Some of his comments were:
The Japanese did all kinds of things to terrify the Chinese and keep them from
resisting. They would tie up a whole bunch of people and douse them with fuel and ignite
them, or they would shoot a whole lot of people needlessly.
The Sheeks family returned to the U. S. in 1935, thus avoiding the large-scale Japanese
invasion and occupation of China which followed in 1937.
In 1938, Robert Sheeks enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve, at Spokane, Washington.
Robert had submitted his application to Harvard. He was accepted on a scholarship and
entered Harvard College in September 1940. After Pearl Harbor, Sheeks was recruited out of
college by the U.S. Navy intelligence in Washington D.C., to be crash-trained in Japanese
language and intelligence; then to be commissioned in the Marine Corps. It was thought he
would learn Japanese rapidly, as he could speak Chinese, and had studied some written
Chinese and Japanese.
One of the U.S. Navy Language School’s Japanese Text Books
The Navy's Japanese language training lasted a year, first at U.C. Berkeley, then at
The University of Colorado at Boulder. Curiously, the American government did not want the
Nisei who were helping in the war effort to be near the ocean where they might signal
Japanese submarines or spy for the enemy. The books that Bob used to study Japanese were
the six-volume Naganuma Readers. The students were issued books and bound notebooks. They
were told that for the period of instruction they would read and learn each book, memorize
everything they learned, speak only Japanese, and take a test each week. Those that could
not keep up would be returned to their units and end up fighting the war. The language
books were to be kept in good condition and returned at the end of the course. Bob was the
kind of officer that wanted to have his references nearby in case of emergency, so he
“confiscated” several of the books and took them with him when assigned to the
Pacific. One wonders what the library fees would be after seven decades. Curiously, when I
spoke to an individual that had knowledge of the Marine interpreters he told me:
Actually, most of the language officers kept their books and dictionaries for their
duties in the Pacific and in Washington, DC. Many of the interpreters still had those
school books marked “Property of the US Navy,” and carrying stamps stating that
they must be returned long after the war was over. I don’t believe the Navy or the
Marine Corps ever wanted those books back. If they did, the turn in of books would have
been part of their out-processing.
He was assigned to the Second Marine Division Intelligence Section in New Zealand;
landed at Tarawa on D-Day in November 1943; likewise on the D-Days at Saipan and Tinian in
June and July 1944. It was on Saipan that Sheeks innovative theory of how to conduct PSYOP
to save both American and Japanese lives came to fruition. What I really want to stress at
this time is that Sheeks did not go to any military Psychological Operations school and
apparently was not trained to talk enemy troops out of fortified caves. He was an
interpreter. His orders were to read captured paper looking for any strategic value and to
interview captured prisoners to see if they had any information of tactical or strategic
value. His PSYOP activities, which would have been called "propaganda" at the
time, were mainly his own ideas.
When I mentioned my amazement at his accomplishments, Sheeks was quick to share the
praise. He said:
Leaflets and the loudspeakers seemed essential to try to reduce enemy resistance.
What had made the initial and strongest impact on me was my great frustration at being
unable to communicate to resisting Japanese on Betio Island (Tarawa). At times they were
in a bunker only several feet or yards away. Our action was bullets, explosives,
flamethrowers, or live burial by bulldozer. I wanted us to be able to do better in
subsequent land actions. The next one was the
Marianas, Saipan/Tinian.
These leaflets and translation documents were produced at the Pearl Harbor Joint
Intelligence Center Pacific Ocean Area (JICPOA) just prior to the Saipan invasion in early
1944. My immediate boss, Captain John C. Pelzel, USMCR, Assistant. D-2 (Intelligence),
wrote the supporting translation documents to accompany the leaflets to Marine Corps
headquarters (Saipan) as part of the file.
It was my job to bundle the leaflets into stacks bound by easily breakable string,
attached to a strong cord, with its end fastened inside the cockpit of the aircraft. We
used a single-engine Marine Corps artillery spotter plane for dissemination.
In fact, there was no person or source available to use as a guide. I received no
relevant training.In fact, the term "psychological operations" was unfamiliar to
me, and was not in use in the Marine Corps. Although a deadly serious effort, the Second
Marine Division leaflet drop project that I headed came with no instructions or orders
from top level command. I worked on the leaflets alone, but with approval and in
consultation of my superiors, Captain Pelzer, and Colonel Thomas Colley.
After the leaflets were dropped, some Japanese military and civilians and some
Koreans who surrendered carrying our leaflets.
Today, seven decades after WWII, the United States Marines have started their own PSYOP
School and military occupational specialty 0521. We could say that Bob Sheeks is a
foundation of that school.
PSYOP Activities
Sheeks had been in the Tarawa invasion and seen the death and destruction there. He
thought there must be a better way to get prisoners and information. At that time they
only got a prisoner when the man was badly wounded or knocked unconscious by artillery or
aerial bombing. When the Marines returned to Hawaii he put his mind to figuring out how he
could do his job better by involving other interpreters. This is mentioned by Meehl who
wrote:
Near the top of the list was how to communicate surrender instructions to Japanese
holed up in fortified positions. It was very difficult for anyone to hear anything over
the noise of combat, least of all potential POWs in concrete bunkers. Amplified megaphones
loudspeakers could be the answer…Bob proposed dropping leaflets printed with basic
surrender information, and then using amplified sound systems to broadcast surrender
appeals to civilians and to Japanese military in fortified positions.
These tagged weapons were taken from Japanese troops
Hiding in the caves of Saipan
Some of the loudspeaker and megaphone messages appeared in Field Directives 1 through
4. I will quote a few of them:
You are completely surrounded and the rest of the Island has been taken.
We do not wish to harm you. It is safe to come out now.
It is all right to carry children and help the wounded.
Foolish resistance will bring only useless death.
Be wise, come out immediately
Lieutenant Sheeks' Custom Designed Loudspeaker Jeep on Saipan
His microphone had to face away from the amplifier to prevent electronic interference.
Notice that this is one man without PSYOP training coming up with ideas like aerial
propaganda leaflets, jeep-mounted loudspeakers and other advanced concepts. Since the
Marines were busy training and had no time to play, he talked his commander into giving
him some troop recreation funds to buy extra speakers and megaphones. Bob emphasized on
his leaflets that surrender was an honorable act and explaining actually how to go about
surrendering. He composed four different leaflets; three to be Japanese and one to be
Korean.
The Patrol Card
Sheeks also prepared what he called a patrol card. In later wars like Vietnam,
Afghanistan and Iraq this would be called a "pointee-talkie card," where an
American could point to a phrase in a foreign language and make himself understood. Bob
put a sentence on the card to remind the Marines how important it was to take prisoners:
Every prisoner turned in means the saving of American lives, time,
and material.
The card was folded with four sides. On the front there is an English-language message
and a series of phrases in Japanese and English that can be used as a pointee-talkee card.
The back has one long message in Japanese and another in Korean. The Japanese language
message is:
You and your comrades have fought well; no one can be expected to do more. Those who
remain can die or kill themselves if they wish. However, before the lives of brave
Japanese men are exchanged for a little cheap ammunition, let them think for a moment.
If you have been badly led or overwhelmed by sheer numbers, it is not your fault.
You and your comrades have done your duty; you will be treated honorably as fellow
military men. We do not wish to kill needlessly. Help us prevent further useless loss of
Japanese lives. If there are people in the vicinity, of whom you know, accompany us to
their place of hiding and tell them to come out in safely.
We will show you how we wish you to approach the position on a map, or by some other
way. Watch us so we can make our actions clear to each other. When you are close enough to
call to them, tell them the truth, that they will be given food, water, tobacco, and
medical care. Tell them to come forth unarmed with hands up. When we motion you to return,
come back in single file.
We will keep you “covered” by guns. Make no quick motions which may be
suspicious. Stay in our line of vision.
The Korean-language text is:
This war is between Japan and the United States
Korea has been under Japanese occupation for 26 years. We realize that Koreans have
not had their freedom and have been forced to work for the Japanese. You are not
our enemies. Koreans who were at Tarawa in the Gilberts and at Kwajalein in the Marshalls
are now happy and well in American camps. You too, will be given food, tobacco and medical
care. If you wish to work you will be given a fair wage.
We want you to help us prevent useless loss of Korean and all civilian lives. We
also want you to help us take Japanese prisoners. If you know of Koreans, civilians, or
Japanese troops in this immediate vicinity, point out their position to us.
If you think you can induce them to surrender, we will show you how we wish you to
approach them, by pointing on a map, or by some other way. Watch us so we can make our
actions clear to each other. When you are close enough to call to them, tell them the
truth, that they will be given food, drink, tobacco, and medical care. Tell them to come
forth unarmed with hands up. When we motion you to return, lead them back in single file.
We will keep you “covered.” Make no quick motions which may be suspicious.
Stay in our line of vision.
Although not on the card above, language officers were often given a list
of words and phrases that would be valuable in the field. One of the lists is shown below:
| Hurry! |
Isoge (or) Hayaku |
| Slowly |
Yukkuri |
| Dangerous |
Abunai |
| Stop (halt) |
Tomare |
| Don’t worry |
Shimpai shinade |
| Don’t shoot |
Utsu na |
| Be careful |
Chui nasai |
| Stand |
Tate |
| Good |
Yoshi |
| Raise your hands |
Te o agero |
| Come out raising your hands |
Te o agete detekoi |
| Come out (polite form used towards civilains) |
Detekinasai |
| Come follow me |
Tsuitekoi |
| Immediately |
Sugu ni |
| If you don’t obey we will fire |
Kikanaito utsuzo |
| Wait here |
Kokode matte |
| There is drinking water |
Nomimizu ga aru |
One of the rules of psychological warfare is that you constantly test
your propaganda on the enemy to find out if it was effective. Bob Sheeks seemed to figure
this out on his own and prepared a Psychological Warfare Interrogation Guide for
the interpreters with the concept that the answers would provide a basis for an estimate
of the effectiveness of the PSYWAR program and provide data for preparation of further
leaflets and broadcasts in the future. There are about 40 questions but I will just
mention a few of the more interesting ones:
What lies were told by your superiors to encourage fighting morale or to discourage
dissension?
Did you see any leaflets? Where? How many? Were you afraid to pick them up? Were
there any official measures against the leaflets? What was your impression of the
leaflets?
Did you hear any public address broadcasts? When? Where? What were your listening
habits impressions? What measures were taken by your officers or NCOs to prevent
surrender?
Did you see any patrol cards? Were you taken prisoner by our troops? Did one of
their members load them to the side as directed by the patrol card?
What are your personal and general outlooks on postwar conditions?
What do you think about the Emperor, Tojo, the Army, the Navy, and your leadership?
The Marine Intelligence Section actually prepared a paper in the field on 5 February
1945 to be read to the Marines to explain the importance of taking prisoners. Titled
“Know Your Enemy,” it said:
Prisoners, either civilian or military, are able to provide descriptions of anything
they have seen or heard, and that can cover a very wide range of factual material.
Information gained from prisoners has been and will continue to be vitally important in
saving lives, saving time and wining a campaign…It is an interesting fact that
despite the fanaticism which the Japanese soldier often displays, he is very often willing
upon capture to tell the truth about a great many important things.
To illustrate the value of prisoner of war information, at Saipan, a military
prisoner was able to indicate a tank park, a munitions and food dump, a watering place,
several unit’s headquarters, and a sizable concentration of troops…vital Jap
tanks, supplies and troops were knocked out of the picture. And commands were further
scattered. All this without a single casualty to us….
Bob had spent all his funds but still needed the leaflets printed. He visited the Honolulu
Advertiser, explained his problem and asked for help. The newspaper agreed to print
the leaflets in color free of charge. Thousands of the leaflets were printed about 5 x
10-inches in size. Today there are PSYOP battalions with printing plants that could
design, print and cut millions of leaflets in a day. Bob did the same thing on his own
with a friendly newspaperman. What do we know about the Sheeks leaflets?
One had the characters for “Common Sense” overprinted in red. The
theme was “use common sense, don’t die uselessly." The leaflet described
the defeat the Japanese were facing and asked why they must die for the mistakes of
others. The leaflet ended with:
Let us use common sense and examine our respective realities. On land, you know that
all roads are blocked. In the air, our planes are without opposition. Try as your Navy
would like to, it cannot hope to bring help. Every avenue of escape is denied you.
You have fought well; no one could do more, or be expected to do more. Our
artillery, mortars, bombers, ships all await only the signal to completely annihilate you.
But, before your brave lives are exchanged for cheap shells, let us use common sense.
Are all those who have fought as well as possible to die like animals? Are all
Japanese to die for the mistakes of others? What can dead men do? Does the dead blossom
bear fruit?
Let the men of intelligence come forth! Come during daylight, singly, with hands up.
Food, water, tobacco, and medical care await you. Act now! There is no time for waiting.
Although not involved with the American invasion of Saipan, the
Australian Military Forces Weekly Intelligence Review from the year
1943-44 does mention the use of
surrender leaflets there:
At the time of the attack when the Americans started to land on
SAIPAN, one POW was told by a Hawaiian-born Japanese soldier that the
Americans would treat him well if he were captured because they are a humane
people. This contradicted what the POW had previously heard that Americans
had tortured Japanese prisoners captured on GUADALCANAL and NEW GUINEA but
accorded with the POWs conception of what Americans were like. At the time,
however, the thought of becoming a prisoner did not enter his head.
Lieutenant Sheeks uses a portable amplifier powered by a truck battery
to broadcast surrender appeals to holdouts in caves on Saipan (July 1944)
Later in the war when Saipan became a giant forward propaganda base for the U.S. Navy
and the Office of War information the same sort of leaflets were prepared, but reminded
the Japanese that it was only their leaders that were to blame and they needed to live to
rebuild Japan.
Another leaflet was in the form of a personal letter from a Japanese soldier who had
surrendered. It was addressed to “You troops who have fought bravely” and told
of good life in an American POW camp. This leaflet ended with the comment:
To you troops who have fought bravely, it is my hope that you are well. I am a
soldier just as you are, and am writing from an American camp among a great many others
whose message is the same as mine.
Some of us came from the Marshall Islands, others from the Gilbert Islands. Many are
from the Aleutians or New Guinea. We are what is left of units that were all over the
Pacific.
Our life is good. Those who wish to work are paid a fair wage. Everyone receives
excellent and healthy foods and medical care. There is recreation and study.
Just as crumbling Germany or Italy we can see that Japan is being encircled and is
fighting a losing battle. Are those who have fought as well as humanly possible to die?
Are all Japanese to die because the fleet and our forces can no longer fight back?
What part in culture or progress can dead men play? Food, drink, and good living
conditions await you. We are all hoping that you will save your life. From a comrade in
America
The idea of having prisoners write letters was used more in Vietnam than in WWII by
American forces. However, there are dozens of wartime leaflets that show happy Japanese
enjoying sports and music, playing board games and eating. The POW camp was made to look
like a vacation resort.
Lying heaped in a shell hole, a large number of dead
Japanese soldiers have yet to be buried. The Japanese mostly fought to the death on
Saipan, perishing in pitched banzai charges or at the hands of American troops determined
to capture the island despite the heavy resistance.
A third leaflet had color as well as black. The characters for “Military
Secret” were stamped at the top in bright red. It was written like a military field
order. It pointed out that Japan was losing the war and this was a military secret that
the Japanese troops were not to know. The secrets:
Your territorial and troop loses all over the Pacific have, until now, been kept a
secret from you.
That you have fought well in spite of bad leadership, and that you are now being
overwhelmed has been kept from you.
That we give you food, water, medical care, and tobacco has also been kept secret
from you by lies and threats from your officers.
Come forth in daylight, singly, with hands up. You will be treated honorably and
fairly.
Do not waste your life for lies.
The United States did not prepare leaflets like this later in the war, but it did print
numerous newspapers that were designed to keep the Japanese up-to-date on how the war was
going. It mentioned every Japanese defeat and every time the homeland was bombed by B-29s.
Other later leaflets showed newspaper people or radio broadcasters gagged or with hands
tied, unable to tell the truth because the Japanese military wanted to keep secrets from
the public.
The last leaflet in the Korean language script stressed the theme of independence from
the Japanese. It mentioned the brutal occupation of Korea and exploitation of its people
and resources. The Cairo Conference had already laid plans for Korean Independence after
the Japanese defeat. There was also a red banner line of the name of a famous Korean
battle for independence, “Kap O Nyen Nal Li.” Some of the text is:
Koreans! Why die for the Japanese?
You know well the story of Japan’s treacherous attack on Korea and of
“March, the First.” Ever since then they have used all of you and your country
as a great beast of burden.
Strike a blow now for Korean freedom! You have a chance now to free yourselves!
Come to our lines in daylight with hands up. Come singly, not in groups, and
unarmed.
Koreans are not our enemies! Food, water, tobacco and medical we have here to share
with you
For Korean independence the time is now!
[Note]: The March 1st Movement was one of the earliest public displays of Korean
resistance during the rule of Korea by Japan from 1910 to 1945. The name refers to an
event that occurred on March 1, 1919, hence the movement's name, literally meaning
"Three-One Movement" or "March First Movement" in Korean.
[Note]: I asked some Korean friends about the Kap O Nyen Nal Li reference on
the leaflet. Even they were confused. The best they could come up is Kap O Nyen is
a year based on an ancient calendar system that means 1894. Nal Li means coup
d'etat. Apparently there was a failed coup d'etat in Korea in 1894 led by
Japanese opposition party against the Chinese rulers. The Koreans resented Kap O Nyen
Nal Li because it was staged by a pro Japanese group and Japanese Ronins were hired to
kill the Queen of Korea in that melee. This attempted coup led to a war Japan and China.
An interesting cartoon from that time. Japan and China fight over the body
of a beaten Korea while Russia watches and waits in the background. The cartoon and many
more were drawn by a French war correspondence named G. Bigot who was embedded with the
Japanese Imperial Forces.
Later in the war, leaflets were prepared also for the foreign workers used by the
Japanese and also told the Filipinos and Formosans that their freedom was assured. Toward
the end of this article we will show some of the later leaflets that mention Saipan and
the themes described above.
Once Lieutenant Sheeks had leaflets and loudspeakers in Hawaii, what to do next? He
looked into using artillery shells or U.S carrier planes to drop the leaflet over the
enemy. John Pelzel, Assistant Commander of the Intelligence section recommended using
artillery spotter planes. Sheeks designed a system of placing about 100 leaflets in a
brown paper wrapper, tied with a 15-foot string and throwing them from the aircraft. The
string would be secured inside the aircraft so when the package got 15 feet away it would
burst open. Since the spotter plane was looking for Japanese troops concentrations to call
in fire, the leaflets would be sure to fall on the Japanese.
Sheeks also needed a jeep to carry the heavy loudspeaker, amplifier and generator. The
Marine Corps provided the jeep and the system was fitted onto the vehicle.
The next project was messages to be broadcast. Later in the war, the U.S. would spend
much thought trying to find a suitable term to use instead of "surrender." They
came up with “I Cease Resistance” and this was used in all their broadcasts and
leaflets. Sheeks came up with his own term, a simple “Come out.” The final
effort was to convince Marine combat leaders that the Japanese would surrender. None of
the sergeants and combat teams believed that the Japanese would surrender, but Sheeks at
least put the idea in their mind that it could be worthwhile to try.
Bob Sheeks landed on Saipan with the first wave of Marines. Although he was an
interpreter, every Marine is also a rifleman and so he landed on the beach.
A photograph of Marine Lieutenant Robert B. Sheeks on Saipan. Here he discovers a
terrified Okinawan woman and her family, convinced they would be massacred by the
Americans. Attempting to talk her into leaving her cave refuge he finds a mother, four
children and a dog. Thousands were extricated from miserable hiding places and brought
back to aid stations where food and medical treatment was promised. Photo by USMC
Combat Photographer, Corporal Angus Robertson
At a refugee camp set up by US Marine Corps Civil Affairs troops on the
island of Saipan for civilians, American Marines attempt to soothe an upset child while
other children watch curiously.
Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands. July 1944. Photo: Ted Needham (US Coast Guard)
His actual assignment was to read Japanese documents. On the side he arranged for
his leaflet drops. It was unknown if the leaflets would work but it was worth the try. The
answer appeared a few days later. Sheeks took his jeep to an area where the Japanese were
hiding in caves and started to broadcast a “come out” message. A group of men,
women and children emerged from a cave. Sheeks approached them and one of the men took out
a piece of paper from a shirt pocket. He had hidden it for days since the Japanese would
kill him if they saw it. When the chance arose, the group used the directions on the
leaflet to surrender. The leaflets worked on civilians. A week later, using the same
technique, a group of about 10 armed Japanese soldiers surrendered. The loudspeakers
worked on the Japanese military. Some Japanese will surrender!
Lieutenant Sheeks is awarded the Bronze Star by General Watson,
Commandant of the 2nd Marine Division, for his actions on Saipan, August 1944
First Lieutenant Robert B. Sheeks was awarded the Bronze Star with
“V” device in 1944. The citation said in part:
For
heroic achievement as an interpreter of the Intelligence Section of the Second Marine
Division, during operations against enemy Japanese forces on Saipan and Tinian, Marianas
Islands, from 15 June to 1 August 1944.
Pioneering in devising methods of directing
combat propaganda at the Japanese prior to the Marianas Campaign, First Lieutenant Sheeks
prepared several means of propaganda used during this campaign. When large numbers of
civilians were driven into hiding by our advance during the latter stages of the
operations, he moved with front line units despite considerable personal danger and
utilized public address systems to call civilians and soldiers out of hiding, thereby
effecting the surrender of large numbers of the enemy. By his ability, perseverance and
devotion to duty, he materially reduced hostile resistance and upheld the highest
traditions of the United States Naval Service.
I should note that as handsome as that Bronze Star medal is, it is the tiny
“V” on the ribbon that makes it special. The medal can be awarded for
administrative excellence and many other accomplishments, but that “V” for
“Valor” indicates that the individual put his life at risk and earned the medal
under combat conditions. A combat veteran will recognize that immediately.
The Original pair of Dog Tags worn in battle by Marine
Lieutenant Robert B. Sheeks on Saipan.
The number of civilians that eventually came out of the mountains and
caves is quite astounding. During the first weeks there were already several thousand
civilians in in Camp Susupe. By the time things had settled down, 15,000 Japanese
civilians, local Chamorro natives and Carolinian islanders came out of hiding.
One Japanese prisoner of war told the Australians what he thought
about the propaganda leaflets on Saipan.
The POW believes that propaganda leaflets could have a good deal of
effect if properly used and in sufficient quantity. He said that there were
far too few leaflets on SAIPAN, that most of the troops had never seen any
of them. The POW stated that it was extremely unlikely that any troops would
surrender in the company of fellow soldiers but that it was probable that
only men cut off from their units could be induced to give up, even by the
most skillful leaflets. He thought that any believable propaganda would work
but that it must be couched in immediate terms and not in the terms of
general statements about wicked warlords. Leaflets which stated that the
Japanese position was helpless, that the Japanese Navy would not help the
troops, and material of a similar nature would be believed and would be
effective under the conditions stated above. Leaflets attacking overall
Japanese strategy, the military clique or the like would not be understood
by most of the troops and would probably produce no results. The POW was
most emphatic in stating that pictures of PW held by Americans would have a
bad, even contrary effect, causing those who saw them to determine never to
become prisoners themselves.
At age 72, June 1994. Robert B. Sheeks standing next
to the WWII 2nd Marine Division Memorial at Saipan.
Sheeks went on to take part in further battles and in 1945 the Office of
Strategic Services offered him a position in China, but his duties with the 2nd Marine
Division did not allow him to accept the position. He later became the State Department's
Information Officer on Taiwan and was recommended for the Commendable Service Award.
The battle for Saipan was bloody. The official statistics for American forces
were 13,790 casualties: 3,426 killed and missing and 10,364 wounded. The Japanese military
suffered 29,000 dead: 24,000 killed in action and 5,000 suicides. The Japanese civilian
population on Saipan suffered 7,000 dead (many of which were suicides) and 22,000 other
civilians killed.
One of the young Marines wounded during the fight for Saipan would later become
a Hollywood legend, actor Lee Marvin. Marvin came ashore with Company I, 3rd Battalion,
23rd Marines on Yellow Beach 2. He said later:
During a firefight there are two parts of the body the enemy can pretty much
see while hugging the deck, the head and the butt. If you present one, you get killed. If
you raise the other, you get shot in the butt. I got shot through the wallet. I received
my Purple Heart in a hospital on Guadalcanal. I got a permanent scar on my keister and a
check once a month for life.
The OWI Saipan Print Shop Operating
Around the Clock, Saipan, August 1945.
We said above that we would show some of the later leaflets designed by the U.S.
Navy and the Office of War Information at Admiral Nimitz’s forward base of Saipan
which opened February 1945, months before the end of WWII.
Leaflet 114a
We mention the Sheeks leaflet above where he talks about common sense and not
dying uselessly. The same theme was used many times later in the war. Leaflet 114a depicts
a Japanese mother and child in the forefront, dead Japanese soldiers behind her with what
appears to be cherry blossoms, and the towering presence of Mt. Fuji in the background.
Surprisingly, the leaflet is in black and white. One might expect such a picturesque scene
to be in full color. The text is:
YOUR REAL GOAL
The question is whether or not the policy of aggression which the
militarists took for the happiness and prosperity of the Japanese people has backfired.
Although wars are supposed to bring happiness to the people, the more you fight the more
unhappy you are. What is the meaning of this war, which continues to destroy your
homeland? To die in battle for the cause of making your people unhappy is obstinate and
foolish.
Now is the time to bring strong reason into play. Deliver your homeland.
Deliver your compatriots who unwittingly seek the path of annihilation. Moreover, think
profoundly of saving the lives of your comrades who are uselessly committing suicide and
wasting lives that they should revere.
I should point out one curious fact. There are dozens of leaflets that implore
Japanese troops not to commit suicide. But, I have never seen one in which a Japanese
officer was asked not to commit suicide. It is just the opposite. There are some leaflets
that point out the weaknesses of the officer corps and suggest that suicide would be their
only honorable option.
OWI Propaganda Leaflets that mention Saipan
There are numerous propaganda leaflets that mention Saipan to show
the Japanese that Americans are a kind people that follow the rule of law.
Since the Japanese were told by their leaders that the Americans were
mad-dog killers, psychological warfare was needed to convince the Japanese
that they could safely surrender to the Americans. Here are some examples.
OWI Leaflet 409
Did American troops take skulls? Some did, but only a tiny number
of the troops. I have mentioned in the past that I saw some skulls in tents,
usually decorated with a cap or a pipe or cigar. Americans are great
souvenir collectors and will also look for weapons, swords, flags, medals,
or other items that show they were in warfare in a distant place and
survived. Apparently, the Japanese told their men these stories to make them
hate the Americans and fight to the bitter end. The military knew this and
at least one leaflet was prepared on this very subject. The leaflet is very
plain with no images. It was prepared to dispel Japanese beliefs of American
cruelty. It is tiny by most standards, just 4 x 4-inches. The title on the
front is:
In Memory of General Saito
The back is all text:
Your leaders and newspapers have accused us of sending home the
skulls od dead Japanese soldiers and of making paper knives
[Letter openers?] from the bones of corpses. Such statements are
nothing but vicious lies. They have been told to you and your families at
home to make you hate us.When we found the dead body of General Saito on Saipan, we buried
it with full military honors and fired a salute of 101 guns over the grave.
Thus, we honored a fallen soldier. Is such treatment the conduct of
barbarians?
The world is well-aware of the long history of American generosity.
Don’t be deceived by lies!
Leaflet 412
This is a beautiful photograph filled with emotion. It is meant to
illustrate the kind treatment American forces accord civilians in occupied
territories. It depicts an American marine sharing his food rations and
water with a Japanese child found in a pillbox on Saipan. The text on the
back in a blue ink is:
On the reverse side is a photograph taken on Saipan shortly after
the battle there ended. The boy and the American Marine are apparently good
friends, and everybody is happy.
OWI Leaflet 500
This bright yellow leaflet depicts captured Japanese prisoners
being treated well. They eat from heaping bowls of rice. Their faces are
disguised to protect them. Later, after the Japanese claimed that these
partially masked faces showed that they were not truly Japanese soldiers,
the masks were removed so the prisoners could be clearly seen. The text
tells the Japanese that their navy can no longer supply them. The leaflet’s
purpose is to destroy the Japanese will to fight. The text on the back is:
Your navy abandoned your troops at Makin; it abandoned them at
Tarawa: it abandoned them at Kwajalein; it abandoned them at Saipan, Tinian,
and Guam.
It has now abandoned you! You are brave soldiers, but you can
obtain no weapons or supplies and reinforcements. Join us and we will feed
you and treat your wounds. We respect international law.
OWI Leaflet 509
This all-text leaflet assures Japanese civilians that they will be
treated well if they surrender to American troops. It mentions the civilian
suicides on Saipan. The text on the front is:
Japanese Civilians!
The text on the back is:
Despite what you have been told, Americans have no quarrel with
civilians. On Saipan alone, 18,125 civilian men, children, and women came
over to us and are now safe and happy under the kind care of Americans. Only
a few who believed false stories of cruelty perished foolishly.
Do not believe falsehoods about American cruelty. See for
yourselves. Select representative to come forward and observe the treatment
they will receive. Then these
representatives can return and guide you to safety. You will receive, food,
water, clothing, and medical treatment.
Come during the daylight and wear white or colored clothes. We do
not wish to mistake you for troops. Come quickly! You will be treated well!
OWI leaflet 514
OWI leaflet 514 stresses the American military and industrial might. The leaflet is
larger than usual at about 7 x 9.5 inches and printed in a bright red ink. The leaflet
depicts a sky full of American aircraft and a sea full of American naval vessels all aimed
at Japan. The purpose of the leaflet is to weaken Japanese morale by stressing American
industrial and military might. References are made to America’s vast forces of men
and equipment, and comments of prisoners of war are quoted generally to support the
theme’s contentions. Text on the back is:
Powerful American forces, supported by innumerable planes, tanks, and ships, have
already landed on your shores. Resistance against such overwhelming masses of men and
equipment can only be futile. We know your valor, but you can't do the impossible.
As some of your soldiers who, at Tarawa and Saipan, expressed their thanks to us
for fine medical treatment, admitted: "You Americans keep pouring in men and
Materials. What can we do?" Yes, and this time we have even more than at Tarawa and
Saipan.
OWI Leaflet 515
Leaflet 515 shows the civilians of Saipan and a number of children who have
surrendered and adds in part:
Japanese Civilians!
On Saipan, in addition to officers and men, 18,125 civilians accepted the
generosity of the American forces. These civilians were given food, water, clothing, and
medical treatment. You will be treated similarly if you come over to us. Do not believe
the false stories that you will be mistreated and killed. If you destroy yourselves, you
die in vain!
I mentioned above that Bob Sheeks used his own phrase substituted for
"Surrender" to get the Japanese to leave their caves. It was simply “COME
OUT.” By 1945 the USA was using “I Cease Resistance” on their surrender
leaflets.
NEWSPAPERS
Mariana News 2523
The OWI published many newspapers in Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. One of
the papers that was read on Saipan was the Mariana News.
This Japanese-language newspaper
was first printed to give the Japanese homeland true news of Allied progress
on all fronts. It was printed as a single sheet, 8 x 11-inches in size. This
may be the most impressive single copy of the newspaper because it depicts
Japanese ship under attack by carrier aircraft on the front, and the atomic
bombing of Hiroshima on the back. Some of the other stories are Japan’s
militarists resist peace terms, President Truman announces the dropping of
the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, British fleet attacks Malaya, Kweilin
recaptured, and the Japanese routed at Borneo. OWI files indicate
that 50,000 newspapers were printed for each edition all coded in the 2500s.
After the Americans took the island, this newspaper leaflet was produced on
Saipan. The Japanese prisoners-or-war and civilians read this paper and it
had a section just on Saipan. It was almost like a local newspaper for a
small American town with tips and recommendations on things to do and what
was happening. Some of the comments in the Saipan Military Government Camp
News are:
2516 – Demonstrations and
assemblies must have official permission. Worm eradication starts. Planting
banana trees starts,
2518 – News reels to be shown at
Japanese camp. Buddhist masses held. Military government relief work.
2520 – 127 children in new
orphanage. Cautions about bathing in the sea. Take more care of ID cards.
2521 – Regulations for ration
books. Hints for the home.
2522 – No outdoors after 2000.
Red Cross presents for children. The library is crowded to capacity.
2523 – Best fishing spots.
Health notes on the hookworms. Number of nurses now 30.
OWI Leaflet 810
OWI Leaflet 810 is a safe conduct passes that instruct the Japanese how to come over
to the American side. 810 is designed to affect a rapid surrender of Japanese troops and
is entitled “Lifesaving guarantee.” The leaflet does not mention the word
"surrender." It is printed with colorful red, white and blue stripes that make
it visible for some distance. It was important that the passes be clearly marked because
suspicious American soldiers were known to shoot first and ask questions later. The
leaflet has the instructions in English on one side and in Japanese on the other.
I said above that the American POW camps were described as "resorts." Here
is an example from the Army, dropped on the Philippines.
Leaflet 18-J-1
Several American leaflets show the Japanese playing games such as Chess, Chinese
checkers or Go. This leaflet shows some happy prisoners playing pool in an American
prisoner-of-war camp in the Philippines. Some of the text is:
Yesterday [we were] Enemies, Today [we are] Friends.
Articles approved by the International Convention on treatment of prisoners of
war, which was signed by 29 nations at Geneva on June 27, 1929 contain the following:
Prisoners of war shall be treated humanely
The food ration of prisoners of war shall be equivalent to that of the depot
troops.
Each came shall possess an infirmary for the prisoners of war…
The faces of the prisoners were partially hidden to protect their families back in
Japan. The Japanese implied that these were not real prisoners but American actors, so
later photographs depicted the faces of the prisoners in entirety.
Leaflet 505
This leaflet was aimed specifically at Koreans forced to work as laborers for
the Japanese. The front page is in English and explains to the American soldier that the
back page is in Korean and asks the reader to point out other Koreans who may be in
hiding and bring them forward to the Americans. It was believed that the Koreans would be
happy to escape the Japanese to the safety of the American lines. Notice that the title
“Patrol Card” is identical to Sheeks card, and the last line, “Every
prisoner turned in means the saving of American lives, time, and material,” is also
identical.
By coincidence I found a mention of the Korean leaflets in some
wartime files. Don Shively mentions propaganda leaflets in the US Navy
Japanese/Oriental Language School Archival Project, THE INTERPRETER:
A few months later, I was back in Honolulu again, this time to
assist in preparations for the Marianas Islands campaign, which work
included composing propaganda leaflets in Japanese and Korean to be
air-dropped on Saipan and Tinian. Otis and Frank Huggins assisted me by
enlisting services of Japanese military POWs in the stockade at Pearl Harbor
to help proofread and improve the texts.
Japanese Super-Submarine I-15
Although this story was about Lieutenant Sheek’s psychological operations
to save American and Japanese lives, he later told me of a time when he was called to
interview some Japanese sailors and that led to the discovery of super-class Japanese
submarines that were attacking shipping and land targets along the U.S. West Coast. As
usual, Bob took no credit for this discovery, but I thought I would add it here.
Battery Russell at Fort Stevens State Park
Few Americans remember, and many find it hard to believe, that Japan’s
Navy dropped shells and bombs on the U.S. continent, and was sinking ships along
America’s West Coast months after her carrier air strike decimated the U.S. Pacific
Fleet at Pearl Harbor. The attackers were giant submarines, nine of which Japan deployed
within days after Pearl Harbor along the coasts of California, Oregon and Washington, from
San Diego to Seattle.They soon sank five U.S. ships and damaged five others. Submarine
I-17 fired artillery shells, igniting oilfield installations near Santa Barbara,
California in February 1942. Submarine I-25 shelled a coastal defense installation, Fort
Stevens, near Astoria, Oregon in June 1942, and flew its aircraft twice in September 1942,
dropping incendiary bombs to ignite fires in an Oregon forest.
How Japan had managed to launch the attacks remained unclear until halfway
through World War II. In August 1943, Japanese submariners, taken prisoner after their
vessel sank, divulged startling information during interrogation. Their giant I-15 Class
ocean-cruising attack submarines had a previously unheard of range of 16,000 miles. Crewed
by 100 men, these vessels carried one deck-mounted 5.5-inch cannon; machine guns; a
catapult-launched scouting seaplane housed in a watertight hangar, and 17 torpedoes. Large
as destroyers, they were 356 feet in length; displaced 2,584 tons submerged; and had a
surface speed of 23 knots.
On 20 August 1943, Lieutenant Sheeks was on Noumea as part of Admiral
Halsey’s headquarters translation staff with stacks of assorted Japanese papers
awaiting translation: maps, combat orders, weapons manuals, unit records, hand-written
diaries and letters. He was suddenly ordered to the prisoner stockade and found six
Japanese submariners from the sunken Japanese submarine I-17.
After medical attention, camp uniforms, and a good meal were provided to them,
each submariner was confined in solitary quarters to prevent collusion on replies to
interrogation questions. None of the six was of officer rank, but Sheeks knew they would
be well-informed. Even enlisted men in Japan’s submarine force were elite, selected
from the best-rated, and most dedicated young volunteers; trained as rigorously as
officers; and imbued with militaristic culture. None had ever been briefed about how to
conduct themselves as prisoners, in event of capture and interrogation. Japanese military
personnel were deeply indoctrinated with the creed that any Japanese who fails to commit
suicide, permitting an enemy to take him prisoner would disgrace his family, dishonor his
nation, automatically cease to be a Japanese citizen, and become an outcast never able to
return home. While their indoctrination did strengthen the suicide resolve of some, it
also backfired to the advantage of interrogators dealing with surviving Japanese military
personnel. Sheeks told me how he used a little PSYOP on the prisoners:
To expedite interrogation, I found it effective to simulate the strict
manner of a Japanese superior officer toward enlisted personnel. A single prisoner at a
time under escort was marched into the interrogation tent for questioning.
An American Nisei sergeant assigned from the U.S. Army pretended to be my
adjutant. He shouted commands in Japanese:
ENTER!
APPROACH THE DESK!
STAND AT ATTENTION!
The prisoner invariably bowed, and remained standing rigidly at attention
until dismissed. This established an atmosphere familiar to Japanese servicemen, most of
whom would at some time have faced questioning by officers. Our aim was to take advantage
of the almost ingrained Japanese servicemen’s reflex of replying to a senior officer
without hesitation.
Interrogation began with name, rank, age, birthplace, education and unit
designation. Less innocuous subjects followed, such as training for submarine service;
combat experience; specialist duties; his submarine I-17’s performance capabilities;
its guns, torpedoes, on-board seaplane; Pacific area navigation routes and refueling
locations; identity of other, especially I-Class, submarines in the area. Most of the men
initially tried to evade questions by claiming ignorance, or by falsifying information.
Through repeated solitary questioning and constant cross-checking of previous
interrogation notes, it was possible to establish facts, and then confront those who had
not told the truth. This usually induced the holdouts to provide fuller and more accurate
information.
We learned that eight other I-Class submarines were patrolling along
America’s Pacific coast, sinking and damaging ships. Interrogation results,
transmitted to Naval Headquarters at Pearl Harbor, resulted in a report that the U.S. Navy
had intercepted and sunk one or two large Japanese submarines in the area, aided by
information obtained from I-17’s crew prisoners.
Post-war reports confirmed that Japan built 26 submarines of this I-15 series,
completing 7 before Pearl Harbor, the remainder during early years of the war. With the
data gained by Lieutenant Sheeks and the use of the code-breakers reading Japan’s
maritime mail, the super submarines were hunted down and destroyed.
Robert Sheeks is awarded an Honorary Life Membership by POVA
After this article was printed the members of the Psychological Operations
Veterans Association (POVA) was so impressed with Bob Sheeks work in WWII that they voted
to make him an Honorary Life member of the group. Above is the certificate sent to him.
