Its completion by december of 1943. But allied bombings on ports in burma had exposed japanese ships and cargo to attack. There was one solution. The railway would have to be finished sooner. The japanese ushered in a time period called speedo in october 1943. And thats when the death toll on the railway accelerated. Speedo which meant out came the whip in a big way. Everything had to be done double speed. Move three meters of rock in one day. From now on its six meters. The pace became horrific. Guards using whips and bamboo rods on the men, beating them sometimes so they dropped on the tracks and couldnt go on. To keep up the pace, more slave labor would be needed. 900 dutch were added to speed up things. The son of a schoolteacher, 19yearold dick van zone was born in holland but raised in indonesia. Taken prisoner in march of 42, he arrived in february of 43. During the speedo period, the men slaved sometimes up to 20 hours a day in sweltering heat with very little food. The food wa
One of the most daring rescue missions ever accomplished by U.S. Special Forces took place on Jan. 30, 1945, as the 6th Ranger Battalion freed hundreds of POWs held by the Japanese.