Japan Fears Allied Offensives

Manawatu Times, Volume 68, Issue 263, 5 November 1943, Page 5

Japan Fears Allied Offensives

PLANS TO MOBILISE LONDON, Nov. 3. Japanese militarists are making strenuous efforts to achieve the totat mobilisation of all Asia to meet the anticipated Allied attacks, which they warn the people will be crucial, said Mr. R. Brines, an Associated Press cor respondent who has reached Port Elizabeth (South Africa) from Japan aboard the repatriation ship Gripsholm.

Mr. Brines has been interned in Japan since the outbreak of the Pacific war. He added: “Japanese militarists are feverishly attempting to utilise to the full the resources and manpower ot their newly conquered territories in the construction of a series of defence lines for a vaunted last man battle for the Japanese Empire. “Despite the censorship, these trends are discernible:—

“(1) The Japanese are anticipating a big Allied land smash against Burma

“(2) The militarists are still holding sizeable and presumably crack forces in Manchuria to protect their rear against Russia, and are also possibly maintaining other key units in the Netherlands East Indies and Malaya.

“(3) They are exploiting to the full raw materials, all of which have been diverted to war production, in which they are utilising a considerable amount of forced labour.

“(4) The controlled Press is slowly preparing the people of Asia for the long defensive battles ahead. “Morale appears to be unshaken in Japan, although some unrest is reported in other parts of the empire. “The general indications are that the militarists plan to use Indian and Burmese troops as much as possible for the defence of Burma and the ‘Chinese Peace Preservation Corps’ is being trained to take over patrol duty in thinly garrisoned areas in China. My impression is that the Japanese land forces will light desperately for Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies, whose raw materials are vital, also for strategic areas in Central and Northern China, and Manchuria, from which Allied planes could threaten Japan’s industrial centres. Relations with Russia “Informed observers believe that there are 650,000 Japanese troops in Manchuria as a bulwark against Russia and to prevent any American use of Siberia. “There is no evidence at present that either Russia or Japan intends to start trouble in that vital urea, because neutrality best serves the purpqses ot both. All the evidence points to the Japanese lines in China being thinly held and tho warfare there is virtually a stalemate. Homo sources report that the Japanese have only 94,000 troops in the Philippines, which are apparently considered another flank to the main strategic areas.

“Even assuming that there are size able contingents in the Solomons, Japan proper, and Burma, this menus there are still extensive units elsewhere. The most likely guess is that the strongest and some of the best equipped troops are in the Netherlands East Indies and Malaya in ‘last ditch’ positions pro teeting their resources,’’ the corres pondent added. informed economists say Japan has acquired almost all the raw materials needed for her war effort but her big

weakness is a shortage of high octane petrol and high quality lubricating oil. They believe a breakdown of virtually irreplaceable machinery in vital lac tories may be under way or will come soon. One of the major prewar bottlenecks in Japan was machine tools.

Mr. Brines said, reliable repatriate aboard the Gripsholm said that wifi shipping badly disrupted and valuabl supplies disappearing rapidly over million Chinese and foreigners in Hong kong Island including 3000 Britisl civilian internees were near starvatior

They expected a uear famine in llong kong City this winter and unless Red Cross supplies arrive promptly there will be a heavy death roll amotig internees at Camp Stanley. The repatriates said the Camp Stanley internees survived last winter

only through the arrival of Red Cross foodstuffs sent during the first repatriation voyage of the Gripsholm. After the exhaustion of the Red Cross supplies last April most of the Camp Stanley internees had been living on two bowls of rice covered with thin soup daily. The average loss of weight of the internees was between 25 and 40 pounds.