Korean Job Discussion Forums

Leslie Cheswyck · Joined: 31 May 2003 Location: University of Western Chile

Well, that's it.

Summer Wine · Joined: 20 Mar 2005 Location: Next to a River

Actually, no it wasn't. They are still finding the survivors, Embarassed

I mean the Japanese soldiers still fighting or maybe they are still missing them. I heard a story back in 1980 as a child about Japanese soldiers being found in PNG in the 1970's. Thats a long time to fight, even if all you are doing is hiding.

joe_doufu · Joined: 09 May 2005 Location: Elsewhere

Summer Wine · Joined: 20 Mar 2005 Location: Next to a River

Fighting is not solely related to the act of violence. Refusing to surrender can be viewed as a fighting on. Hiding and taking pot shots whether useful or not can be construed as continuing fighting. For those Japanese soldiers, who did not surrender and kept on fighting if only in thier minds, the war did not end in 1945. It ended when they were found and given an order to surrender or simply got too old to continue the fight.

The signing of a peace treaty only affected those who knew about it. As one ex british soldier said, they spent a few months after the war officially ended, still policing up Japanese soldiers, who thought the war was still on.