Homfreyganj massacre
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The Homfreyganj massacre was a
massacre A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
of suspected spies during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
in the occupied
Andaman Islands The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...
. On January 30, 1944, 44 Indian civilians, suspected of spying, were put to death by the Japanese. They were all shot dead at point-blank range. The majority of the victims were members of the Indian Independence League. At the time of the massacre, the Andaman Islands were technically under Azad Hind control, although in fact, the Japanese were very much in charge. Despite the lack of practical authority, the Azad Hind government was often accused of "failing its people".Iqbal Singh ''The Andaman Story'' p249


Background

The
Andaman Islands The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...
, although part of British India, was occupied by the Japanese without resistance. The Japanese maintained a hefty garrison on the islands until the end of World War II. They wanted to use the Andaman Islands as a strategic outpost on the eastern edge of the Indian Ocean, and use it as a naval base. The Japanese wanted to prevent the British from using the islands as a naval and air base to attack the maritime supply line between
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
and
Rangoon Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
(now known as Yangon). They also intended to use the islands to establish a seaplane base to patrol the Bay of Bengal. The British also saw the islands to have military value, especially because they could launch both air raids and invasions against
Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...
and
Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...
(both occupied by Japan). This led to close interest and naval attacks.


Japanese Invasion

By early 1942, the islands had a population of about 40,000, some of which (3,000-5,000) were indigenous people, and the rest being several hundred Europeans, and Indians. Previously, the Japanese had overwhelming success in Malaya and Singapore. This led to a reappraisal of the defense of the Andaman Islands and the people. It was decided that the islands were indefensible. On 10 March 1942, Indian Hindu priests, British women, and British children were evacuated. Led by Captain Kawasaki Harumi, the Japanese dispatched a vigorous invasion force coming from
Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...
. They arrived at
Port Blair Port Blair () is the capital city of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India in the Bay of Bengal. It is also the local administrative sub-division (''tehsil'') of the islands, the headquarters for the district of South And ...
on 23 March 1942. The invaders landed at both
Ross Island Ross Island is an island formed by four volcanoes in the Ross Sea near the continent of Antarctica, off the coast of Victoria Land in McMurdo Sound. Ross Island lies within the boundaries of Ross Dependency, an area of Antarctica claimed by New ...
and Port Blair, and detachments were also sent to other populated areas of the islands, like
Port Cornwallis Port Cornwallis is a port situated on Ross Island, off the NE coast of North Andaman. This should not be confused with Ross Island, which is opposite Port Blair, South Andaman South Andaman Island is the southernmost island of the Great Andam ...
. Even though there was zero armed resistance to the invaders, the Japanese were savage. They arrested eight senior officials in Port Blair and forced them to dig pits up until only their heads would show. Once they were done, they were stabbed and shot. In another atrocity, an Englishman was publicly beheaded because he communicated with one of his clerks upon being arrested. Other British officials and officers were detained and shipped to Singapore, where they spent the rest of the war in Changi or Sime Road jails. The Japanese also used many local women as ‘
comfort girls Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ian ...
’. Until August 1945, as many as 30,000 out of 40,000 of the population were killed.


Japanese Occupation

The Japanese set up a seaplane base at Port Blair, and land forces grouped around Port Blair and Ross Island. They often went on patrols looking for enemies in small motorboats, but their noisy vehicles often made their presence clear. There were also many aircraft searches, but no enemy activity was ever spotted. They wanted to make political capital from their occupation by appearing to transfer the administration of the Andaman Islands to the
Indian Independence Movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...
( Azad Hind). However, the Japanese retained all their power. The Indian leader Subhas Chandra Bhose visited Port Blair in 1943, and the islands were given governors appointed by him, as well as new names. In reality, no authority was handed over to Azad Hind by the Japanese Navy. During his trip, the Japanese were still arresting and torturing members of Azad Hind. After Bhose had left, on 30 January 1944, 44 Indians, the majority of them being part of the Indian Independence League, were accused of spying and shot in what was known as the Homfreyganj Massacre. In reality, no authority was handed over to Azad Hind by the Japanese Navy.


Aftermath

The worst atrocities were saved for last. Food became increasingly scarce, so the Japanese decided to get rid of the old and unemployable. On 13 August 1945, 300 Indians were loaded onto 3 boats which were taken to an uninhabited island. When the boats were several hundred yards from the beach, they were forced to jump into the ocean. About ⅓ of them drowned, and the ones who made it ashore starved to death. Only 11 were alive when British rescuers arrived 6 weeks later. The following day 800 civilians were taken to another uninhabited island where they were left on the beach. 19 Japanese troops came ashore and shot or bayoneted every last one of them. Later, troops came to burn and bury all the dead bodies.


References

{{coord missing, Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1944 in India Conflicts in 1944 Massacres in 1944 Massacres committed by Japan World War II massacres Mass murder in 1944 History of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands January 1944 events Massacres in India