INDIVIDUAL BRAVERY

Evening Star, Issue 25323, 3 November 1944, Page 3

INDIVIDUAL BRAVERY

FIVE V.G.S AWARDED' FIJI SOLDIER INCLUDED IN LIST (Rec. 11.5 a.m.) RUGBY, November 2. 'An award of the V.C. for gallantry m the Arnhem battle as among five such awards detailed in Thursday's * London Gazette.' The awards are to Captain (Temp.-major) R. _ H. Cain, Royal Northumberland Fusiliers, who fought with the First Air-borne Division ; Lieutenant Tasker Watkins, Welch Regiment; Corporal Sydney Bates, Royal Norfolk Regiment (posthumously) ; Naikhyeshwamt Ghadge, of the Fifth Mahrwtta Light Infantry (posthumously) ; Corporal Sefanaia Sukauaivalu, Fiji Native Regiment (posthumously), who is the first nonKuropean soldier from the colonies, to win the Victoria Cross in this war. Captain Cain on September 19 was commanding a rifle company of the South Staffordshire Regiment during the Battle of Arnhem when his company was cut off from the remainder of the' battalion. Cain personally was largely responsible for saving a vital section from falling into the hands of the enemy during six days' close engagement with, tanks, self-pro-pelled guns, and infantry. Time and again, although wounded, he individually engaged the tanks with anti-tank rocket weapons. Throughout the whole course of the Battle of Arnhem he showed superb gallantry, and stories of his valour were being constantly exchanged among the troops. Lieutenant Watkins was the only officer left of a coniipany attacking an objective in Normandy on August'l6, and placed himself at the head of-his men and under short-range 'fire charged two posts in succession, personally killing and wounding-the occupants with Sten gun fire. Reaching the objective, he found an anti-tank gun manned by a German. His Sten gun jammed, so he threw it in the German's face, and then shot h,im with his revolver. He also performed numerous other acts of great individual bravery. Corporal Bates, in a desperate situation near Sourdeval, Normandy, on August 6, seized a light machine gun, charged the enemy, and was ivounded. Hit a second time more seriously, he staggered once more to his feet and continued towards the enemy. Wounded a third time, he went on firing from the ground, but died shortly ■ afterwards.

Naikhyeshwamt Ghadge commanded a rifle section which came under heavy fire in Italy on July 10, when all his men were killed or wounded. Ghadge himself, though wounded, attacked, a machine gun post,- threw a grenade, and then shot one of the crew with a tommy gun. Then, having no time to change the magazine, he grasped the gun by the barrel and beat to death the remaining two Germans. _ _ . Corporal Sukanaivalu on Bougainville on June 23 crawled forward under heavy fire to rescue some of his men who had been wounded. On the way back he himself fell wounded, and attemts to rescue him were unsuccessful. Sukanaivalu,. realising that further attempts to rescue him would cause his comrades more " casualties, raised himself in front of a Japanese machine gun and was riddled with bullets. " This brave Fiji soldier deliberately sacrificed his own life because he knew it was the only way the remainder of his platoon_ could be induced to retire, from a situation in which they must have been annihilated had they not withdrawn,"'says the citation.