Chapter 15

Death of a Ship

1 June 1942:

HAKONE MARU departs Tokyo Bay in an unnumbered convoy also consisting of transport YAMADORI MARU escorted by destroyer SAWAKAZE.

2 June 1942:

Arrives at Osaka.

28 August 1942:

Requisitioned by the Imperial Navy (IJN) as a shared employment cargo-troop transport (B-APK)

7 September 1942:

At 0830, HAKONE MARU departs from Futtsu in a west bound convoy also consisting of ISSEI and TEIHOKU (ex-Vichy French PERSEE) MARUs escorted by destroyer OKIKAZE.

19 October 1942:

Released by the IJN back to her owners for charter.

E 1943:

Requisitioned by the Imperial Army (IJA) as a shared employment army/civilian cargo-troop transport (A/C-APK). Alloted IJA No. 5003.

29 April 1943:

At 1500, HAKONE MARU departs Moji in convoy No. 152 also consisting of ATAGO, BIYO, HAKUBASAN, KENSHIN, JUYO, SEIAN and SHOKO MARUs and KYOEI MARU No. 5 escorted by destroyer KARUKAYA

3 May 1943:

At 1910, arrives at Mako, Pescadores.

12 May 1943:

HAKONE MARU departs St Jacques in convoy No. 579 also consisting of ATAGO and OTOWASAN MARUs without escort.

15 May 1943:

Arrives at Singapore.

20 May 1943:

At 0900, HAKONE MARU departs Singapore escorted by destroyer KARUKAYA.

22 May 1943:

At 1455 arrives at Batavia (Jakarta), Java, NEI (Indonesia).

17 July 1943:

At 0800, HAKONE MARU departs Moji in convoy No. 177 also consisting of transports ARIMASAN and DURBAN MARUs, oilers HOYO, TACHIBANA and TAKETSU MARUs and three unidentified ships escorted by torpedo boat SAGI. Soon after departure, cargo ship TAKETSU MARU joins the convoy.

22 July 1943:

At 1320, arrives at Takao, Formosa. Later that day, arrives at Mako, Pescadores. Still later, departs for Singapore. 29 September 1943:

At 0900, HAKONE MARU departs Moji in convoy TE-01 consisting of ICHIYO, NAMPO, NIPPO MARUs and three unidentified merchant ships escorted by kaibokan SADO.

3 October 1943:

At 1136 arrives at Takao.

November 1943:

Requisitioned by the Imperial Army as a Haitosen shared employment troop transport (A/C). Alloted IJA No. 5003.

26 November 1943:

HAKONE MARU departs Takao for Moji in convoy No. 222 also consisting of HAWAII, HOTEN, ROKKO and SHUNKO (SUNKO), MARUs, tankers TACHIBANA, NITTATSU, SEINAN MARU and OGURA MARU No. 2 and landing craft depot ship AKITSU MARU escorted by torpedo boat TOMOZURU.

27 November 1943:

N Formosa Strait. SE of Foochow, China. At 0930, three China based 14th Air Force North American B-25 "Mitchell" medium bombers attack the convoy. They badly damage HAKONE MARU at 25-04N 119-40E. TOMOZURU is also strafed and damaged.

HAWAII and NITTATSU MARUs assist HAKONE MARU. NITTATSU MARU attempts to tow HAKONE MARU, but at 1715, she sinks. No casualties are sustained. Undamaged HAWAII MARU picks up about 900 survivors. The convoy continues north to Shanghai where the rescued IJA soldiers from HAKONE MARU are landed.

Google Translate from a Japanese web site where it says that the ship (and sister ships) were built after:

"1920 as a replenishment ship loss due to war in World War 1 (1920) ton gross of 10,000 was determined to build three ships in February, adopted the turbine deceleration two-stage main engine in a passenger-cargo ship of 16 knots ." Detail on dates and destruction: "221. Hakone Maru (1) Hakone MARU Jhgd 10,423 28453/Shvw → G / T 8,178 / 8,178 SHP 14/16.1Kt1920.7.12 Organization (9) 1921.7.25 Launch (10) completed 1921.10.31 (10) NYK Sno.346 (Tokyo)1st Round Hakone Hakone Maru passengers: 118, and 2:55, and 3: 134 → 1943.11.27 about (Chapter 18) while traveling toward the characters from the Kaohsiung bird hill 12 miles east-northeast of Taiwan Strait Xing (25.04N, 119.40 E) sunk by aerial bombardment in"

Thus, the first irony is that the ship that does start my father out of Europe is later destroyed by the country that sheltered him and drafted him and sent him back to Europe in early 1944. This is confirmed with some bare facts of the ship's final trip:

26 November 1943: OGURA MARU No. 2 departs Takao in convoy No. 222 consisting of HAKONE, AKITSU, HAWAII, NITTATSU, SHUNKO, HOTEN and ROKKO MARUs and tanker SEINAN MARU escorted by torpedo boat TOMOZURU.

27 November 1943: SE of Foochow, China. Three 14th Air Force B-25 "Mitchell" medium bombers attack the convoy and sink HAKONE MARU.

Survivor Stories

4. Othman Mohd Noor or M.N. Othman – Founding Member and Secretary II

Born in Tapah Road, Perak, he was educated in both Malay and English schools. He worked as a typist at the Malayan Railways Workshop in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur. We first met when he was a bachelor renting a room in Kampung Baru, Kuala Lumpur. Our acquaintance was strengthened when as FMS Volunteer Force members we both camped in Port Dickson.

Othman married Chik Dah, an English-educated girl and daughter of ‘Rich Man Pak Kassim’, a Javanese community leader in Tapah Road. (Zainal Abidin Kassim, whom Ishak Haji Muhammad wrote “appeared in front of me with a tommy-gun” while Ishak and friends were taking shelter in the Warta Malaya Press after release from prison in Singapore, was Chik Dah’s brother. Ishak commended this young man’s courage, determination and strong discipline in an article in Utusan Melayu. Well done, Zainal! I don’t regret taking you to the war front.) A quiet person, M.N. Othman was incredibly efficient and extremely dedicated to KMM’s cause. He was the KMM member who helped me with KMM’s registration.

In December 1941, M.N. Othman escaped the British dragnet because he was then serving as a volunteer. In January 1942, after Kuala Lumpur fell to the Japanese, he sought me out at KMM House on Jalan Maxwell, and took on the job of Secretary. In the midst of shooting, bombing, clamour, din, threats and shouts of World War II, the calm and collected Othman steered away from aggression and plodded on at his typewriter. At night, a small rug was his mattress.

In our efforts to give each other family names (Malays do not have family names), like members of the Young Turks, I named him ‘O. Setia’ for ‘Othman Setia’. Setia, ‘loyal’ in Malay, is a most fitting name for his complete devotion to his friends and the KMM.

In January 1943, when I was suddenly ordered to move south with the Japanese, Othman was left in Kuala Lumpur to manage KMM administrative activities and also to look after several Malays detained by the Japanese, like Raja Ahmed Hisham and Jalaluddin bin Abu Bakar, both CID Officers. Jalaluddin described Othman as ‘kind and gentle’. In 1943, M.N. Othman was selected to learn the Japanese language and culture in Japan. When he heard I was writing a book on KMM, he sent me a letter giving details of his harrowing experience travelling to and from Japan:

After an interview by the Japanese Education Department, I was selected to go to Japan to learn first-hand the Japanese culture and language. Together with me were other selected candidates from Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Burma. I left Malaya at the end of November 1943 with my wife and three children (7, 6 and 5) on the Hakone Maru. Most passengers were Japanese troops, with a handful of civilians. Travelling cautiously, the ship managed to avoid enemy attacks from the air and sea. We reached Taiwan safely for a day’s stop-over.
Unfortunately, five hours after leaving Taiwan, an air attack hit the ship, causing extensive damage. Soon after passenger evacuation, the Hakone Maru sank. It was a most frightening experience as we had to climb down into tiny lifeboats and then climb up the small ships that had been travelling alongside the ship. The sea was very choppy and the winter cold almost consumed us.
We raised our hands in gratitude to Allah for saving us from drowning. Apart from the three children, whom we held on to with our dear lives, we left the ship with just the clothes on our backs.
After a week in the over-crowded boat, we arrived at Shimonoseki in the freezing winter, in just our tropical clothes. We landed in Moji on 4 December 1943 where representatives from Japan’s Welfare Department welcomed us. We were next taken to a small inn, where we had our first shower after 10 days of sailing in an over-crowded boat which lacked adequate water supply.
The next day, we left for Tokyo by train, and were well treated except that we were still in tropical clothes. Arriving in Tokyo on 7 December, those of us with families were housed at Teikoku Hotel (Imperial Hotel), while bachelors were put into a youth hostel. Here, we were given coupons to buy clothes. After five months in the hotel, we moved to a medium-sized house in Minami Tera Machi, Akabane Bashi, Shiba Ku, Tokyo.
In October 1945 (sic), the US dropped incendiary bombs nightly, making Tokyo a razed field barren of inhabitants. Allah was our protector. He kept us safe despite fires and bombs razing parts of Tokyo around us. Several days after these incendiary bombings, the US dropped the ghastly atom bombs on The First Malay Nationalists 153 Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Two Malay students were killed: Nik Yusoff from Kelantan and Syed Omar from Johore.
The atom bomb brought the end of the war, with Emperor Hirohito surrendering.
After the Americans landed and established an administration, we, Malayan citizens, reported to the Swiss Legation as ‘displaced persons’, requesting passages home. We were then directed to an American-supervised camp where we received very good treatment, clothes and food. After a week in the camp, we were taken to Haneda airport for a flight on a military plane to Okinawa. After a dinner-stop at Okinawa, we continued travelling to Manila.
In Manila, we were placed in a camp with American troops – here too, we received excellent treatment, with plenty of food and clothes.
A week later, we were put on a British ocean liner heading for Singapore. On arrival in Singapore in November 1945, we were taken to the Syme Road Camp, where we were badly treated. The barracks were dirty and the food unsatisfactory. After a few days in the camp, we were put on a train to return to our homes in Malaya.

Source: The Memoirs of Mustapha Hussain: Malay Nationalism Before UMNO

Madjid-Hiroko

:https://bagbudig.com/hiroko-osada-madjid-usman-dan-jepang/

Review of: Salmyah Madjid Usman dan Hasril Chaniago (Eds.), Memoar Siti Aminah Madjid Usman – Hiroko Osada: Kisah Hidup dan Perjuangan Seorang Putri Bangsawan Jepang untuk Kemerdekaan Indonesia. Jakarta: Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia, 2017, xxiv + 382 hlm, ISBN 978-979-461-904-9

from Google translate:

This memoir records in detail the life journey of Madjid-Hiroko. The reflection gained after reading this book is: it is true the saying goes that before death dies abstinence. Various sufferings experienced by this couple. Madjid and Hiroko were interned in Garut by the Dutch ahead of the Japanese occupation of Indonesia, when they returned to Japan in November 1943 to protest against the Japanese Government, the ship that they were riding with their children, Hakone Maru, sank submerged by Allied warplanes near waters Taiwan but they survived, sheltering in the Allied bombardment which devastated Tokyo and other major Japanese cities before the Japanese surrender and many other events in the wartime wars that almost claimed their lives. The couple itself moved lives between Japan and Indonesia and because of the war they were scattered with their children.

From another source:

The family returned to Padang, and Usman became the mayor of Padang and the chief editor of Padang Daily. Mr. Nagata was a Japanese teacher. The 25th Army of the Japanese Army stationed in Padang requested that the people be organized, but "I and my husband cooperated if they would cooperate independently. I was just an advisor." He refused any compensation from the Japanese army.

　In 1942, the four members of the family boarded the Hakone Maru from Singapore to protest the Japanese military commander, but were sunk by the Allied forces off the coast of Taiwan because the independence support promised to the military did not proceed at all. .. After a lifetime of nine deaths, he landed in Moji and arrived in Tokyo, but the family was considered a dangerous person in the Indonesian national independence movement and was placed under extraordinary surveillance.

　The war situation worsened and Usman also suffered from malnutrition and pneumonia. To avoid air raids, the family evacuated to Kofu, where Mr. Nagata's parents' home was. The end of the war in 1945. Indonesia won independence in 49 years after the war of independence with the Netherlands, but the family was not allowed to return to their hometown until 51 years after Japan signed the San Francisco Peace Treaty. "On the day of independence on August 17, I listened to'Indonesia Raya'from a shortwave broadcast in Kofu. I was happy."

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