740.00114 Pacific War/32

The British Embassy to the Department of State

As the State Department are aware from information already communicated to them by the British Embassy, the treatment accorded to British prisoners of war in Japanese hands is highly unsatisfactory. In spite of repeated enquiries made both through the Protecting Power36 and the International Red Cross Committee the British Government have received no information from Japan regarding either the number of prisoners of war nor the places where they are interned. After receiving reliable reports of the brutal behaviour of the Japanese troops in Hong Kong, the British authorities pressed for immediate visits to be made to Hong Kong by representatives of the International Red Cross Committee and of the Protecting Power. A reply has now been received denying the truth of the reports, but so long as the Japanese refuse all access to Hong Kong and maintain the decision that no official of a third Power shall be allowed to function in territories recently occupied by Japanese troops, they must remain under the gravest suspicion. In view of the pronounced differences in the dietary of white and Indian as compared to Japanese troops, the British authorities also proposed to send a neutral ship with food and clothing to supplement Japanese rations and offered to extend reciprocal facilities to the Japanese in this connection. Furthermore in view of the outbreak of dysentery among prisoners of war in the Far East the British authorities proposed to send medicine. Although this proposal was made to Geneva nearly two months ago it has now been learnt in London that the question is still only being considered in Tokyo.

From information recently communicated in confidence by the State Department to the British Embassy it is understood that the United States Government are equally disturbed regarding the unsatisfactory [Page 801] situation of American prisoners of war in Japanese hands and that they have received reports showing that American prisoners of war in the Philippines37 are being very badly treated. The British Government would be interested to receive any detailed information regarding the treatment of American prisoners of war which the United States Government feel disposed to communicate to them. They would, too, be glad to know whether and, if so, with what result, the United States Government has made any proposals to the Japanese Government analogous to those made by the British authorities regarding the visit by representatives of the International Red Cross Committee or of the Protecting Power and the despatch of supplies of food and clothing.

In particular the British Government would be glad to learn whether the United States Government think that joint action on the part of the United States Government and the British Government on behalf of their prisoners of war would be desirable and, if so, whether such action should be extended to the organisation of measures of irelief. In the latter connection supplies could, if desired, be made available from allied territories near the South Western Pacific for American as well as British and Imperial prisoners of war by arrangement between several National Red Cross Societies.

The British Government are approaching the Netherlands Government in a similar sense.

  1. Argentina.
  2. For correspondence on this subject, see pp. 842 ff.