Name: Ah Chen, student studying in Singapore Chinese Free school

Age: 11

Gender: male

Family Background: Father, 42 (age), a prominent businessman

Mother,40

2 sisters, 15-16

5 brothers, 12-21

Myself, 11

Home: shop house in Chinatown

February 12, 1942

Our family couldn't get a good rest for the past few days since the Japanese reached Singapore and conducted a series of air raids on our land. I heard from my neighbors that the British were fighting a war against the Japanese, and that the Japanese had invaded mainland Singapore, now heading towards the heart of Singapore. As the Japanese had brought in much damage to our country, many of my neighbours have joined the anti-Japanese forces to fight against the Japanese. For our family, we could not do anything but live in fear.

February 16, 1942

Yesterday, the news came that the British surrendered to the Japanese. This news shocked my family, friends and me. The British who appeared as superior in front of many Asian countries has made us fallen into the hands of the Japanese.

February 16, 1943

One year has passed since Japanese occupied Singapore. As they rule Singapore Singapore has been renamed Shonan, meaning "Light of the South" in Japanese. One of my brothers and some of my neighbors were more than 19 years of age,told to report to screen centres and unfortunately, he was being accused of helping the anti-Japanese teams and was never seen again. My father, being a businessman with other businessmen, were forced to raised a S$10 million "gift" to the Japanese as a symbol of their cooperation and as reparation for their support for the government of China in its war against Japan. In the end we had to sell our house to get the amount of money to be sent to the Japanese. In the streets, I was told to bow in front of the Japanese police in a proper manner whenever we see one. At many times I failed to do so and was tortured. And so did it happened in my school. Everytihing was translated from either English or Chinese to Japanese, which was hard to learn.

The occupation of Singapore by the Japanese was like a never ending nightmare as the people suffered and lived in constant fear of the Japanese.It seems that everyone spent the darkest days of their lives under the rule of the Japanese as I hope that one day, all these torture would stop.

Sources:

http://library.thinkquest.org/10414/japan.html

http://countrystudies.us/singapore/8.htm