NAURU ISLAND

Grey River Argus, 21 September 1945, Page 6

NAURU ISLAND

1943 EXECUTIONS BY JAPS. CANBERRA, September 20. Hon. ivir Ward, Minister of External Territories, to-day announced that the Australian Administrator of’ Nauru Island and four other officials were executed by the Japanese at Nauru on March 26, 1943. He said that the executions were carried out’ at night after the first bombing raid on the island by Americans. Earlier there were conflicting reports on how the officials met their deaths. These are now being checked by the Government. One report is ■ that they were beheaded in Samurai fashion. Those executed were the Administrator, Lieut.-Colonel F. R. Chalmers, of Tasmania, the Government medical officer, B. H. Quin, of Melbourne;, the medical assistant of Nauru administration, W. H. Shugg; engineer of the British Phosphate Commissioner’s staff, F. Hamer; and the overseer of British Phosphate Commissioner’s staff, W. H. Doyle. The Acting-Admiinstrator of Nauru, who accompanied the re-occupation forces to Nauru, - reports that two Roman Catholic missionaries had also remained on the island. J hey were subsequently transferred by the Japanese in 1943 to Caroline Islands, together with 1200 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, and few were actually sick.