80th anniversary (1): Japanese invasion

Today marks the 80th anniversary of a very significant event in Malaysia's history. At 00:30 (that is, 30 minutes past midnight) on the eighth of December 1941, Japan launched their offensive on the Malayan peninsula. This was the beginning of almost four full years of hellish dark days of the Japanese Occupation from December 1941 till their surrender in September 1945.

Despite my misgivings about Wikipedia, I must say that when it comes to describing the events of the Second World War, there is a lot of detailed information. From Wikipedia, therefore, I shall quote extensively to describe the fateful day when the Japanese landed in Kelantan. Earlier, they had sailed from southern Indo-China and their fleet of warships dropped anchor 3km from the coast. 

The ships were carrying approximately 5,200 troops of the Takumi Detachment (Major-General Takumi Hiroshi, aboard Awazisan Maru). Most of these troops were veterans of the war in China. (Wikipedia)

The invasion began with a bombardment at around 00:30 local time in Malaya on 08 December. (The Japanese carrier planes flying toward Pearl Harbour were still about 50 minutes away; the attack on Pearl Harbour started at 07:48 local time in Hawai'i on 07 December.) The loading of landing craft began almost as soon as the transports dropped anchor. Rough seas and strong winds hampered the operation and a number of smaller craft capsized. Several Japanese soldiers drowned. Despite these difficulties, by 00:45 the first wave of landing craft was heading for the beach in four lines. (Wikipedia)

The Dogra Regiment immediately opened fire on the invasion force with artillery and machine guns. The first and second waves of Japanese soldiers were pinned down by the intense fire from the Dogra's pillboxes and trenches but after vicious hand-to-hand fighting a breach was made in the defences on the south bank of the Pengkalan Chepa river estuary. On the northern bank the Japanese were pinned down on an island where dawn found them trapped in the open. Allied aircraft began attacking the invasion fleet and the soldiers trapped on the island. Japanese casualties in the first and second waves were heavy. The Japanese managed to get off the beach only after the two pill box positions and supporting trenches were destroyed. Despite their heavy resistance, the Dogras were forced to retreat to their defences. Reinforcements were brought forward to support the Dogras. At 10:30, the British forces attempted to retake the lost beaches. The fighting was heavy with both sides suffering more casualties. Some progress was made but the British forces were unable to close the breach. In the afternoon, a second attack went in but failed again to close the breach. (Wikipedia)

The Japanese claimed that the landings at Kota Bharu were some of the most violent of the whole Malayan Campaign. It was estimated that they suffered an estimated 300 killed and 500 wounded. (Wikipedia)

By comparison, the Japanese met with little resistance when they landed at Patani and Singora (now Songkhla) during the early hours of 08 December. The Thai garrison immediately occupied positions alongside the roads leading down to Malaya, but were brushed aside into positions which the main Japanese advance could ignore. The Thais suffered only a total of 57 casualties in Patani and Singora. The fighting ceased at noon when orders for an armistice was received from Bangkok. (Wikipedia) This lent credence to the oft-repeated story that Japan had secret discussions with the Thai Prime Minister, Plaek Phibunsongkhram, to allow the Japanese military free passage through Thailand. 

Phibun also granted Japan permission to use Thailand as a base of operations to invade neighbouring Malaya. Within hours after the armistice came into effect, squadrons of Japanese aircraft had flown into Songkla airfield from Indochina, allowing them to carry out air raids on strategic bases in Malaya and Singapore from a shorter distance. (Wikipedia) The Japanese troops that landed in southern Thailand were the ones that bicycled down the west coast of Malaya towards Singapore and in the process, overran the air defences in Penang, but more of that in a later story.

Together with this amphibious assault on Kelantan and the bombing raids on Pearl Harbour in Hawai'i, 17 Japanese bomber aircraft also carried out dawn air raids on Singapore at 04:00 on the same day. I wrote in my book, Ten Thousand Prosperities: the Story of Ban Hin Lee Bank, that although the targets were military airfields, the naval base and Keppel Harbour, some wayward bombs landed on Raffles Place and elsewhere in the city. One bomb hit a street opposite the Ban Hin Lee Bank branch in Singapore and many surrounding buildings were reduced to rubble. The bank building was, however, completely untouched. That the Japanese aircraft had breached British defence lines shook public confidence. Rumours swirled and people started hoarding food and moving out to the countryside.

Apart from the landings on Malaya's east coast, 08 December 1941 was also noted as the day that Japanese enemy aircraft had flown over Penang island and mainland for the first time.  The Malayan Tribune reported that the island had its air raid warning at seven o'clock in the morning when eight planes flew over George Town in a southerly direction. Reuters reported that there were no casualties except on the mainland where bombs were dropped. The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser said that 14 Japanese planes dived on the aerodrome and clubhouse in Penang at about 5pm on 09 December and machine-gunned both severely. Again, there were no casualties on the island. Over at Butterworth, many Japanese planes had engaged RAF fighters.

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