Dramatic Escape of Journalists From Thailand

Manawatu Times, Volume 67, Issue 29, 4 February 1942, Page 2

Dramatic Escape of Journalists From Thailand

SYDNEY Dec. 20. While the Tokio radio was boasting on Wednesday night that the Sydney Morning Herald correspondent in Thailand and the British United Press correspondent had been arrested on a charge of having spread malicious propaganda, these men were, in fact, uotii safe in Rangoon. They had eluded the Japanese troops and escaped to Burma. Following are extracts from a dispatch by Mr. H. A. Standish, of the Sydney Morning Herald:— 1 have just travelled to Rangoon from Bangkok over Burma's new “ refugee road,” a 1200-mile journey from north Thailand across tho wild, mountainous Shau States. With Darrel Berrigan, of the British United Press, I crossed the border of Thailand into Burma at dusk on December 11, walked for several hours by the jungle road, 'and waded chest-deep across a river * 100 ft in width to a British military post.

We learned officially on the following day that the border had been sealed by the Thais immediately after we had passed through, cutting off many British and American refugees from north Thailand, as well as more than 250 British and about 60 Americans who were planning to escape from Bangkok, i So far as we can find out, Berrigan and I are the only two people from Bangkok itself to have escaped over the j northern iro.ntier. About 30 British 'and American refugees from other parts of Thailand are known to have j left Thailand by the northern gateway of Mehsai, including live women and four children, but only two were permitted to cross after tho sealing of the !frontier —Mr. H. R. Bird, the British j Consul from Chiengmai, and his wife. We left Bangkok early on the mornling of December 9, eight hours after ;Japanese troops had entered the city j during a blackout. At 8.12 p.m. on the ; previous day the Thai Government had I announced that it had accepted Japan's j terms and would permit the passage of 'Japanese troops across Thailand. Japanese residents of Bangkok waving small rising-sun flags, had lined the streets by which. the troops were expected to arrive from Bangpu, to welcome their countrymen. But the Japanese troops did not arrivo until late at night, during a blackout. Their number was reported authoritatively to be 2000. I I know that 300 were billeted at the j Royal Bangkok Sports Club, where they I enjoyed many luxuries, including a lino * swimming pool and a golf course. The | troops travelled from Bangpu in Thai motor-trucks. j Berrigan and I decided to head north as early as wo could on December 9, in- * dependency of official arrangements. . jWe were unable to t>uy railway tickets, I so we walked ou to a train and cheerI fully paid a fine of 50 setangs (about 1 Is). Thar night we reached Pitsanuilok6 and spent hours in a blackout investigating the possibilities of obtaining transport west to Moulmein, without success. Finally we got a train to Lampang, where we slept in a rest house. In the next room was the Japanese Consul from Chiengmai, who was awaiting tho arrival of the Japanjeso troops there. On the following day a Thai friend managed to procure us a hired car, and he went with us to Chiengmai, where ho introduced us to the Governor. The Governor was most friendly. __ He issued orders to the police and frontier guards to afford us all facilities, which they did. There was no sign or word of Japanese troops in north Thailand at that stage. We were stopped at police posts and our papers and luggage were examined six times, but we were treated courteously everywhere. We travelled the last 14 miles of our 600 miles' dash to the northern border in a bus which we hired, and completed the border formalities just as the border force hauled down the Thai flag at dusk.