740.00115 Pacific War/1328
The Swedish Minister (Boström) to the Secretary of State
89
The Minister of Sweden in charge of the Japanese interests in the
Territory of Hawaii presents his compliments to the Honorable, the
Secretary of State, and has the honor to enclose, in copy, a
cablegram dated December 24, 1942, containing complaints from the
Japanese Government concerning the treatment of Japanese civilians
interned in the Territory of Hawaii.
The Swedish Minister asks the Secretary of State to be good enough to
give this matter due consideration and to enable him to transmit the
reply of the American Government.
Washington,
December 31,
1942.
No. B–114.
[Enclosure]
Cablegram Dated December 23, 1942, Addressed to the Swedish Legation by the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs B, Stockholm
B 114 Japanese Government ask you transmit following to American
Government:
“Some time ago the Imperial Japanese Government lodged a
protest with the United States Government against unjust
treatment accorded to [by] the
United States authorities to Japanese civilians in the
continental United States but since then the Japanese
Government have learned anew from their subjects
repatriated from Hawaii that Japanese subjects arrested
and interned in the territory of Hawaii
[Page 1066]
were treated in similar
manner. The Japanese Government therefore invite serious
attention of the United States Government to the matter
and demand full explanation thereof.
- Alinea (1)—The majority of the Japanese who were
arrested in Oahu Island were sent to local
immigration station in handcuffs as was the case
with the Japanese arrested on the Pacific Coast of
the continent and in some case about 200 of them
were confined in a room with capacity for only about
80 persons. They were not permitted to go out of the
room except for meals which were served regardless
of weather on lawn in the compound under strict
watch of soldiers with fixed bayonets posted about
two feet apart.
- Alinea (2)—The camp authorities at the Sand Island
camp declared that they were treating Japanese
civilians as prisoners of war and compelled them to
perform gratuitous labor in such works as erection
of tents intended for interned Germans or Italians,
construction of fences around camp, laundering and
repair work of various kinds related to nearby
military establishments, and growing of vegetables
to be supplied to soldiers.
- Alinea (3)—Japanese interned at the
above-mentioned camp were subjected to rigorous
search of their persons and possessions on their
arrival, while all of their money and articles were
seized by the camp authority. When part of the
interned Japanese were transferred to the
continental United States they were obliged to get
from their families about 50 dollars per head for
miscellaneous expenses to cover the journey. They
were compelled to deposit money with the military
authorities on the explicit understanding that it
will be returned on their arrival in the continent,
but after their arrival at the destination the
authorities ignored the repeated requests from the
Japanese of the return of money in question as well
as money seized on their arrival at the camp. A few
of them who departed for Japan by the first exchange
vessel left the Japanese internees in the camps in
the continent in great hardship owing to total lack
of money. Search and examination by the United
States authorities of person and luggage of Japanese
nationals arrested and interned in Hawaii was most
rigorous and repeated with needless frequency. The
Japanese were forced to undergo search on their
arrival at and departure from camp and also on their
embarkation on and disembarkation from vessel for
transfer or for repatriation. Some of them were
searched as repeatedly as nine times in all after
their arrest until their departure from the United
States.
- Alinea (4)—The Japanese who were transferred from
the Sand Island Camp to the continent were jammed
into locked room near the ship’s bottom with wire
netting and were forbidden to go out of the room
except for meals or lavatory for which they were
required to get permission from guards. Every time
however guards who grudged the trouble treated the
Japanese in the most inconsiderate manner which made
them suffer good deal of pain and
inconvenience.”
Cable text reply from American Government.
Ministry Foreign Affairs B.
