In Photos: Restored cross of Shuri Church in Okinawa conveys intensity of WWII battle
The cross of Shuri Church, which was restored in 2017, is pictured in this composite photo created with images taken over about an hour and a half from 1:32 a.m. on May 5, 2023, in Naha. The cross was restored to replicate its state at the time of the Battle of Okinawa, when it sustained heavy damage. (Mainichi/Shinnosuke Kyan)
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The Mainichi
23-06-2025
- The Mainichi
91-yr-old woman who lost family members in Battle of Okinawa shares painful story
ITOMAN, Okinawa -- Eighty years ago, the Battle of Okinawa claimed the lives of many residents during fierce ground combat between U.S. and Imperial Japanese Army forces. A then 10-year-old girl who lost family members one by one, wandered the battlefield alone. Now in her 90s, the Okinawa resident has shared her experiences, urging the world to learn from history rather than blame it amid ongoing conflicts. On June 22, the day before Okinawa Memorial Day, 91-year-old Rieko Tamaki visited the Mange-no-to Monument in Itoman, Okinawa Prefecture. Her paternal grandfather died in the area following an attack by U.S. forces, and the family had to flee, leaving his body behind. "There's no proof, but I believe he's enshrined here," she said, clasping her hands in prayer. Tamaki wonders if her late grandfather was able to meet other members of her family in the afterlife. "Have you met the family you longed to see?" she asked him. In October 1944, Tamaki's family of 10 began their escape. The "Oct. 10 air raid" destroyed her father's hospital in Naha, forcing them to relocate to Ginowan. Tamaki had lost her mother before the war, and when the new year came, her father and uncle were conscripted. She still remembers the rough texture of her father's military uniform as he lifted her up. On April 1, 1945, U.S. forces landed on Okinawa's main island. The remaining eight family members headed south to Shuri, where the headquarters of the Imperial Japanese Army's 32nd Army was located, hoping to find her father. However, not only was there no clue as to her father's whereabouts, but after sneaking into a cave in Shuri, they were told by a Japanese soldier, "This is for military use. Leave at sunset." That night, her maternal grandmother took her own life. The family moved toward the former village of Kochinda, finding a small shelter. However, a shell exploded nearby, instantly killing Tamaki's close friend of the same age. Her brother was severely injured and taken to a field hospital. He had his left arm severed and died, moaning, "I want water." They were forced to leave the Kochinda shelter when a nearby one was hit by a flamethrower. "We were searching for a way to escape when there was nowhere to run," Tamaki recalled. Her grandfather was also attacked. In a farmer's shed, he was hit by gunfire from his back to side. Despite his injuries, he urged the family to hide behind a stone wall. Shortly after, the young Tamaki heard a cry she had never heard before. Her grandfather had taken his own life to avoid being a burden. Her paternal grandmother died instantly in another attack, and Tamaki comforted herself by telling herself that she had died without suffering. "You were lucky," she reflected, addressing her late grandmother. Her aunt and a cousin were also injured, and her immobilized aunt urged her to flee. Alone, Tamaki feared she might be the only survivor in Okinawa. At dusk, she saw a living figure among the corpses and ran to them, staying close without exchanging names. One day, a man noticed the feared Grumman aircraft were no longer flying, and went to investigate. From the top of a hill, he shouted, "Hey, the war is over!" Climbing the hill to see for herself, Tamaki witnessed evacuated people emerging from all directions. "I couldn't believe so many had survived," she thought. This was near the former village of Mabuni, now part of Itoman. After the war, she reunited with her aunt, who had miraculously survived, but her father was confirmed dead, meaning only the two of them had survived. She regrets leaving her family behind and not being able to give her brother water in his final moments. These regrets persist, and she can't sleep without sleeping pills. Despite this, Tamaki continues to share her story, emphasizing the importance of remembering. In early June, she met with Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko during their visit to Okinawa, sharing her experiences. Looking at the world today, in addition to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Israel continues to fight against the Islamic organization Hamas and is intensifying its military attacks on Iran. Tamaki said, "Once war begins, the future becomes uncertain. War is the result of nations' insatiable desires." She emphasized, "We must take action before it starts. It is important to work through diplomacy, economic cooperation and cultural exchange."
Japan Today
23-06-2025
- Japan Today
Bone collectors search for WWII remains in Okinawa
According to official estimates, only 2,600 bodies from the Battle of Okinawa are yet to be recovered, but residents and long-time volunteers say many more are buried under buildings or farm fields, or hidden in jungles and caves By Hiroshi HIYAMA Trekking through mud and rocks in the humid Okinawan jungle, Takamatsu Gushiken reached a slope of ground where human remains have lain forgotten since World War II. The 72-year-old said a brief prayer and lifted a makeshift protective covering, exposing half-buried bones believed to be those of a young Japanese soldier. "These remains have the right to be returned to their families," said Gushiken, a businessman who has voluntarily searched for the war dead for more than four decades. The sun-kissed island in southern Japan on Monday marked the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Okinawa. The three-month carnage, often dubbed the "Typhoon of Steel", killed about 200,000 people, almost half of them local civilians. Since then, Japan and the United States have become allies, and, according to official estimates, only 2,600 bodies are yet to be recovered. But residents and long-time volunteers like Gushiken say many more are buried under buildings or farm fields, or hidden in jungles and caves. Now rocks and soil from southern parts of Okinawa Island, where the bloodiest fighting took place, are being quarried in order to build the foundations for a new U.S. air base. The plan has sparked anger among Gushiken and others, who say it will disturb the remains of World War II casualties, likely killed by Americans. And while Okinawa is a popular beach getaway these days, its lush jungles have preserved the scars of combat from March to June 1945, when the U.S. military stormed ashore to advance its final assaults on Imperial Japan. Walking through meandering forest trails in Itoman district, on the southern end of Okinawa, Gushiken imagined where he would have hidden as a local or a soldier under attack, or where he may have searched if he were an American soldier. After climbing over moss-covered rocks on a narrow, leafy trail, Gushiken reached a low-lying crevice between bus-size boulders, only big enough to shelter two or three people. He carefully shifted through the soil strewn with fragmented bones, shirt buttons used by Japanese soldiers, a rusty lid for canned food, and a metal fitting for a gas mask. At another spot nearby, he and an associate in April found a full skeleton of a possible soldier who appeared to have suffered a blast wound to his face. And only a few steps from there, green-colored thigh and shin bones of another person laid among the dried leaves, fallen branches and vines. "All these people here... their final words were 'mom, mom'," Gushiken said, arguing that society has a responsibility to bring the remains to family tombs. Gushiken was a 28-year-old scout leader when he was first asked to help search for the war dead, and was shocked to realize there were so many people's remains, in such a vast area. He didn't think he could bring himself to do it again, but over time he decided he should do his part to reunite family members in death. 'Every last one' After the war ended, survivors in Okinawa who had been held captive by U.S. forces returned to their wrecked hometowns. As they desperately tried to restart their lives, the survivors collected dead bodies in mass graves, or buried them individually with no record of their identity. "They saw their communities completely burned. People couldn't tell where their houses were. Bodies dangled from tree branches," said Mitsuru Matsukawa, 72, from a foundation that helps manage Okinawa Peace Memorial Park. The site includes a national collective cemetery for war dead. Some young people have joined the efforts to recover remains, like Wataru Ishiyama, a university student in Kyoto who travels often to Okinawa. The 22-year-old history major is a member of Japan Youth Memorial Association, a group focused on recovering Japanese war remains at home and abroad. "These people have been waiting in such dark and remote areas for so many decades, so I want to return them to their families -- every last one," he said. Ishiyama's volunteering has inspired an interest in modern Japan's "national defense and security issues", he said, adding that he was considering a military-related career. The new US air base is being built on partly reclaimed land in Okinawa's north, while its construction material is being excavated in the south. "It is a sacrilege to the war dead to dump the land that has absorbed their blood into the sea to build a new military base," Gushiken said. Jungle areas that may contain World War II remains should be preserved for their historic significance and serve as peace memorials to remind the world of the atrocity of war, he told AFP. "We are now in a generation when fewer and fewer people can recall the Battle of Okinawa," Gushiken added. "Now, only bones, the fields and various discovered items will remain to carry on the memories." © 2025 AFP
