NAURU ATROCITIES

Evening Star, Issue 25593, 20 September 1945, Page 6

NAURU ATROCITIES

ADMINISTRATOR AND OFFICIALS EXECUTED DEED FOLLOWED AMERICAN RAID (Rec. 12.10 p.m.) CANBERRA. September 20. The Australian administrator of Nauru Island and four other officials were executed by the Japanese at Nauru on March 26, 1943. Those executed were the administrator, Lieuten-ant-colonel' F. 11. Chalmers, of Tasmania; the Government medical officer, Dr B. H. Quinn, of Melbourne; the medical assistant of the Nauru administration, Dr W. H. Shugg; the engineer of the British Phosphate Commissioner's staff, Mr F. Harmer; andl the overseer of the British Phosphate Commissioner's staft'3. Mr W. H. Doyle. (Revealing this atrocity, the Minister of External Territories, Mr Ward, said the executions were carried out the night after the first bombing raid on the island by the Americans. It is understood that conflicting reports on how the officials met their deaths are now heing checked hy the Government. One report is that they were heheaded in samurai fashion.

The Acting Administrator of Nauru, who accompanied the reoccupation forces to Nauru, reports that the two Roman Catholic missionaries who had also remained on the island were subsequently transferred by the Japanese in 1943 to the Caroline Islands, together with 1,200 Nauruans, including the head chief, and the majority of Nauruan women. The general health of the natives and Chinese was found to> be better than expected, aud few were actually sick.