The Sandakan Death March

 
Deep in the jungle of Borneo lies a hidden trail that was witness to one of the worst acts of barbarity of WWII. Soldiers from the Japanese Imperial army force marched sick and emaciated POW's some 250kms across the dense, primary jungle of British North Borneo (Sabah, Malaysia) using the prisoners as pack animals in a last ditch effort to flee approaching Allied troops. Orders from Tokyo had been explicit: "annihilate them all, leave no trace" Only 6 of 2434 Australian and British troops would survive the march. The Sandakan Death March went down in infamy as arguably the worst atrocity ever suffered by Australian soldiers, but it remains largely invisible on the historical map. The details of the event were so shocking that it was easier for the Australian government to withhold information than to go public. Early in 2006 Kevin travelled to these hidden jungle tracks to retrace this brutal, forgotten episode of the war's history. It would be the first time in 61 years that the trail would be retraced thanks to the efforts of locals who recut the trail through the jungle. Footage of the adventure was captured for Chum Television from which a 30 minute documentary was produced. The Sandakan Death March was aired nationally in Canada in the fall of 2006 on Book Television and Bravo Television as part of the Backspace series. Read Kevin’s articles: Outpost Magazine National Post http://www.kevinvallely.com/Images/Outpost%20Sandakan.pdfhttp://www.kevinvallely.com/Images/National%20Post%20Sandakan.pdfshapeimage_7_link_0shapeimage_7_link_1