Escape to Pagan (24 page)

CHAPTER 18

Pongyis

PYBAW BURMA

“We reached Pybaw mid-afternoon. After going through the usual performance with the barking village dogs, villagers appeared and engaged us with the usual questions. It was late afternoon when we found the headman; my mother asked if we could rent a hut in the village until the monsoon season was over; he agreed. I thanked God my prayers had been answered. My mother said the headman would be happy to be paid in money or opium; later my mother found out that the headman's wife was an advanced opium addict along with many other villagers. Obtaining opium was becoming difficult in Pybaw and elsewhere because of the war. According to my mother, the best opium in Burma came from Afghanistan, but it was much more expensive than that of opium produced in the Shan States. The routes from India and China were now closed, so most of the addicts depended on the Shans, Karens and Chins for their supplies. Although the hill tribes were considered enemies by the Japanese, a blind eye was often turned in return for bribes.

My mother took care never to enquire about the presence of Japanese soldiers in Pybaw in case people became suspicious that we were trying to avoid them. The villagers were certainly pro-Japanese, as there were many small Japanese sun flags being displayed.

“I was so grateful to have a roof over our heads; our wandering life had come to an end. We were given a well-built hut on short stilts not far from one of the water wells near the crossroads of the bullock tracks. This was the last water well in a conduit of three wells situated in other parts of the village. The hut we were given had a strong and sturdy door that could be closed from the inside with rope. But best of all, the hut contained a small mud oven on a slab of flat rock set in clay.

“A large Buddhist temple stood at the far end of the village. We could hear the subtle sound of wind blown temple bells in the cool of the evening and smell jasmine that grew wild by the Pagoda. There were many Pongyis and novices in their saffron robes walking about when we arrived. We always had to be careful of these Buddhist priests who were well educated and politically minded; they had a great influence with the villagers. Many Pongyis spoke English.

“We were all so tired after our wanderings; as soon as we entered the hut with the pram we fell asleep straightaway. It was so nice to have privacy and be able to close a door. As Pybaw was not far from the Karen Hills and on the edge of the dry belt, the rain and the accompanying wind was now much stronger.

“The following afternoon we walked around the small market looking for something to eat. The vendors were selling ordinary items and cooked food but out of sight there were goods for sale taken from the warehouses near Yu. We recognised the red Chinese characters, as Burmese script is totally different from that of the Chinese. All villages had been warned in advance by Japanese agents and leaflets dropped from their planes that looting or any damage to property was unlawful. All booty left behind was now Japanese property.

“Mother bought us another set of Burmese clothes and new slippers at this market, as our own had worn out. She also bought more aspirin; this was the only pharmaceutical drug we had to treat everything during the war. Aspirin had many uses but despite this it was not popular with the Burmese villagers or with the Japanese, as it gave them indigestion. I was hoping we would find some toothpowder, but my mother said using toothpowder would give us away as not being Burmese. They would use charcoal and a yellow twig of some tree to clean their teeth.

“Soon all the food stalls had their braziers heated and the smell of various Burmese dishes drifted on the air making us hungry. The stall holders were selling all kinds of Burmese dishes like moingha, garnished with chopped boiled eggs and raw onion. There was another food item on sale called ‘par-a-jo', which we all liked. I used to try making them, but they never tasted the same as those bought in the market or the ones your grandmother made. It was a mixture of large lentils, chillies and other ingredients and deep fried in peanut oil. We sat by the stalls and ate while your grandmother spoke with the villagers. They were eager to know all about us but directed their questions to my mother only. I did not like the idea of being thought of as backward but my mother had told me not to speak. My mother answered all their questions and asked questions of her own. You were soon happily playing with the little village children.

“One day soon after we had arrived, your grandmother came into the hut and said all the food looted from the warehouses near Yu had disappeared from the market. This probably meant that the Japanese were arriving soon. My mother began hiding our possessions and food in-between the thatch matting of the walls in our hut. A few days later a large Japanese patrol arrived and their officer was seen talking to the headmen. We knew this would happen sooner or later; the Japs were now tightening their grip on Burma. Even so, it was still a shock to us. We were very fortunate we had arrived and established ourselves in the village before the Japs appeared.

“The Burmese villagers were happy to see the Japanese troops, as they would provide protection against any of the retreating armed Chinese soldiers. At that time we did not realize that the Japanese were intending to stay permanently in the village, for Pybaw was situated at a strategic crossroads. The Japanese troops were greeted as liberators by the villagers. Several huts were made available to them near the crossroads and the well. The soldiers were led by a Sergeant Enoda. The first job the soldiers did after placing their packs in one of the huts, was to shoot and bayonet any dogs in the vicinity attracted by the smell of dried fish and eels that the Japanese had brought with them. The Burmese, despite not being dog lovers, were rather shocked at this action as the py-dogs had their uses.

“Another shock awaited them when the Japanese thought nothing of bathing naked by the well. They would vigorously rub their bodies with clean white towels till they took on a pinkish hue. Although the Burmese were Buddhists like the Japanese, this kind of nakedness in public did not go down well. The villagers complained to the headman who in turn complained to Sergeant Enoda. Naked bathing was stopped. Village dogs suffered in many ways during the occupation in places where Japanese troops were billeted. The Japanese pride themselves on cleanliness and considered the presence of dogs unhygienic. By contrast, for the many Koreans who served in the Japanese Army, dog meat was a national dish.

“Jack says that he and other British POWs also took every opportunity to capture and kill any stray dogs or cats within sight; such was the craving for protein and the strength and wellbeing it brings to a starving body. In fact, most prisoners considered cat a tastier meat than dog.”

The arrival of Japanese troops in Burma generally went smoothly with the locals as the Burmese were considered allies, but in other countries this was not often the case. The inhabitants of a village in Malaya, after watching the British Army retreating in panic, waited expectantly for the Warrior Gods of Dai Nippon to appear. While waiting they proceeded to cook up the waste food for their pigs. Suddenly two scruffy and blinking Japanese scouts appeared out of the jungle gloom and stared at the Malayan villagers with open mouths.

Soon the main body of Japs appeared, led by an officer who promptly slapped the headman's face while soldiers beat up the young men for not bowing to their liberators. Seeing the pig food cooking they mistook it for the villagers' midday meal and quickly polished it off, and then for good measure (public relations) raped two of the village girls before leaving. No doubt the villagers soon wished the return of their former less rapacious old masters, the British.

“Not far from the water well at Pybaw near the crossroads of two bullock tracks, the Japanese set up a roadblock, a check point with a big bamboo pole lowered across the track. All passing traffic was checked including Japanese military vehicles. There were about two dozen Japanese soldiers under the command of Sergeant Enoda (Gunso). Sergeant Enoda was big for a Japanese soldier. He had a bull neck and small piggy eyes. All the Japanese soldiers were terrified of this non-commissioned officer who would often beat them with a bamboo stick when they were on parade outside the guardhouse. We often heard him bellowing at his men from our hut. We also heard from the Burmese trackers that accompanied his patrols that he tortured suspected dacoits and insurgents for information.

“Sergeant Enoda had a pet, a kind of drill monkey. It was chained to a big pole near the guard house and was a vicious brute. It only feared Sergeant Enoda, even the py-dogs were afraid of it. This monkey was a great amusement to the young Japanese soldiers and they would tease it when Sergeant Enoda was out on patrol. They would throw a gunny-sack to the monkey containing a live chicken; the monkey would take the chicken out and would immediately begin turning the squawking bird around inspecting it. Then holding it down with his hind legs would begin to pluck the poor live squawking bird till not a single feather remained. I always felt sorry for the poor bird having all its feathers removed while still alive. Once they gave the monkey a sack with an angry cat in it just to see what would happen. The monkey's surprised reaction and the resulting fight between the two sent the Japs and the watching Burmese into fits of laughter.

“One morning the big monkey was missing, it had been killed by a leopard. When Sergeant Enoda returned two of the soldiers were beaten by him for allowing this to happen. Everybody was pleased to be rid of this vicious drill monkey.

“Most of the Burmese villagers including us kept away from the guardhouse, but you and all the naked village children were always hanging around staring at the Japanese soldiers. Sergeant Enoda and his soldiers seemed to like little children and used to line you all up as if on parade and
make you stand to attention. He taught you all to bow to him correctly. He would walk around with a stern face as if inspecting his troops, giving light whacks with his stick to any child that got it wrong. All this would be watched with amusement by his men. Sergeant Enoda sometimes did monkey impressions to make the village children laugh. But he would also bellow at the children if they disturbed him when he was busy, this sent them all running and screaming in every direction, you included.

“Sergeant Enoda would soon become friendly with my mother, often sitting with her outside our hut; all Japanese welcomed those who spoke Nippon Go correctly. My mother and Sergeant Enoda also had a common interest: knitting. My mother was a fast and skilful knitter and often knitted with many needles. Japan is, after all, a cold country in the winter, and perhaps the knitted items were to send back to their families. Most of the Jap soldiers here and at Tada u were keen knitters and were delighted when they found large amounts of knitting wool in Burma. Many of them had served in Manchuko
[Manchuria].
All Japanese soldiers had a great fear of catching a chill in their stomachs; for this reason most of them wore a cloth belt of a thousand stitches around their waists. They also believed that this belt had the power to deflect bullets.”