OWI PACIFIC PSYOP 
SIX DECADES AGO 

SGM Herbert A. Friedman (Ret.) 

CONTINUED

Principals of Propaganda 

One of the better lectures during the training course was on the general principals of propaganda. There is some repetition from earlier lectures, but the speaker made some interesting point. He says that the best method of building an audience is performing a service for your listeners or readers. To have maximum effect you must have an established reputation for accuracy and truthfulness. Never say anything that will diminish or destroy your reputation for accuracy and credibility. The long-term consequences of deceit are disastrous. On the other hand, although we tell the truth, we do not necessarily tell the whole truth. We are deliberately selective. All wartime propaganda serves the military action. Any propaganda that is not coordinated with military action is wasted. All wartime propaganda aims ultimately at inducing action. In the case of Japan, we want to induce surrender in the field and confusion or revolt at home.

 

A propagandist faces physical, moral and intellectual hardships in the field. This is not a job for the faint hearted. Psychological warfare means struggling with men's minds. The way to a man's mind is via his emotions. You have four basic emotions to play upon; love, hate, hope, and fear. We stress four propaganda themes.  

1. Victory is certain. This theme plays on hope. It plays on hate of the Japanese by the occupied peoples. The Japanese are now discovering that you cannot maintain an aggressive line of propaganda in a war that you are losing.

 

2. The Unity and Strength of the United Nations. It is a means of reinforcing the certainty of victory.

 

Leaflet 2094

 

Leaflet 2094 conveys to the Japanese what Unconditional Surrender would mean to them. The leaders of Japan had used the term to motivate the people to fight on, telling them that they would be disgraced and the Emperor would be humiliated should Japan lose the war. It became a powerful psychological weapon for the militarists. The text on the OWI leaflet was from a speech by President Harry S. Truman.

 

To remind the Japanese people that they were partners with a losing ally who could no longer tie up vast number of American troops in Europe, the leaflet depicted the German surrender. The text to the right of the German surrender is: 

Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allied Forces on 7 May 1945. General Gustav Jodl, Wermacht Chief of Staff signed for the Germans.

 

Smiling German civilians wave white flags of surrender at soldiers of the 94th Infantry Division of the U. S. 3rd Army.

The other side of the leaflet depicts President Truman and various Japanese aircraft and vehicles. The text is: 

Unconditional Surrender means simply the laying down of arms.

 

Harry S. Truman, President of the United States said in a message to the Japanese people, "Unconditional surrender is a purely military term meaning only the yielding of arms. It does not entail enslavement. It does not entail the extermination of the Japanese people. These thoughts have been injected only by your former Premier, General Koiso, as an ignoble device to compel your people to continue a hopeless war." 

 

3. The Axis fates are interlinked. We stress that the German and the Japanese leaders think as one and both seek to enslave the world. The defeat of Germans can foretell the defeat of Japan.

 

Leaflet 512

 

Leaflet 512 is interesting because it seems to break one of the major prohibitions of propaganda. In general, the propagandist never belittles the enemy. It is counter-productive and causes hostility instead of persuasion among the target audience. This leaflet mentions American military might, but then goes on to point out that the United States has been fighting Japan with one hand tied behind its back, using only 10% of its strength. I would think that such an argument would infuriate the proud Japanese. The leaflet depicts an American eagle over a nest filled with armaments, military aircraft, artillery pieces and vehicles. The purpose of the leaflet is to remind the Japanese that they were already losing the war, and now with the collapse of Germany, their position is even more hopeless. The text above the Eagle is:

 

Full Strength Instead of Ten Percent!

 

The text on the back is: 

From December 1941, until Germany's defeat in 1944, we regarded the war in the pacific as chiefly a diversionary battle and concentrated our forces in the European theater. Even so, we were able to advance everywhere in the pacific at will and to drive exceedingly close to Japan itself.

 

The war in Europe is now over and for the first time we can concentrate our overwhelming strength on Japan.  We no longer need to divide our forces and supplies. All of our resources, not just ten percent, will be in the battle against you. You failed to stop us earlier. Do you think you can stop us now?

 

The day of Japan's defeat draws ever nearer.

 

4. The Japanese militarists are responsible for the war and Japan seeks to exploit its colonies and occupied nations. To Japan we say that the ambitions of the militarists caused the war. We adopt a divide and conquer tactic. To the occupied people we tear away Japan's mask of benevolence and expose their real intentions, to exploit the goods, the labor and the lives of the peoples of the occupied territories. 

U. S. Propaganda in the Pacific has gone through three phases.

1. The preparatory phase from Pearl Harbor to the end of 1943. This was the hardest and the least rewarding. But, propaganda is cumulative. We sought to hold the line and build an audience for the future.

 

2. The anti-climatic phase is associated with developing decisive action, but is preliminary to the final showdown. This phase was from 1944 to early 1945.

 

3. The climatic stage is just prior to the final victory. It is the phase where we realize the fruition of all our months and years of cumulative work and preparation. In this phase the propagandist throws caution to the wind and for the first time moves out ahead of the events. 

The basic objective of all OWI propaganda against Japan is to induce their unconditional surrender. The speaker discussed the use of propaganda leaflets. He said that the morale of the Japanese officer is high. There is no evidence that he is susceptible to leaflets. The Japanese soldier expects to be tortured if captured so we must stress good treatment. The Japanese soldier still believes in ultimate victory so we must convince him otherwise. He has no realization of the actual status of the war. We need to give him accurate news. All soldiers get homesick, but the Japanese soldier suffers more than most. This is a powerful theme than can be used against him. Most Japanese soldiers have no idea why they are at war. We must tell them. The Japanese realize the importance of Germany to their war effort and this harping on German defeats can lower the Japanese morale. Leaflets should be small, easily read, faultlessly idiomatic, up-to-date, without the word "surrender," illustrated, and not provocative or insulting.

 

There are four main uses for leaflets: They are to demoralize the enemy in and behind his lines, to induce surrender, to deprive the enemy of help and cooperation by native peoples, and to carry instructions to native people as to when and how to resist the enemy.

 

 

Mount Fuji as a Pictorial Theme of American PSYOP

When one wishes to pictorially represent the United States of America, the Statue of Liberty is often chosen. For France it is the Eiffel Tower. When American OWI propagandists wanted to represent Japan and all of its spiritual values, they used Mt. Fuji. A number of different leaflets depict the holy mountain as the central feature of the vignette. Byron Earhart, a retired professor of Comparative Religion at Western Michigan University, whose field is Japanese religion, and who is now completing a book on the history of Mount Fuji explains its significance:  

At 12,385 feet, Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan, and has always been revered by Japanese as its most beautiful peak, distinguished for its sacredness.  In the earliest collection of Japanese poetry, the eighth century Manyoshu, Fuji was praised as “our treasure, our tutelary god.”  From early medieval times, Fuji was one of the most popular subjects in painting.  In prehistoric times Fuji’s life-giving water provided the holy blessing of fertility.  Later the custom of traveling to and climbing Fuji was considered a religious pilgrimage, not only honoring the deities and Buddhas of the mountain, but also improving the character of the individual and strengthening the nation.  During the late medieval period, when the capital of Japan moved to Edo (present-day Tokyo), more people had an opportunity to view Fuji as they traveled along the Eastern Sea Highway.  As Edo grew into a major city with a population of more than a million, Fuji, visible from the city, became linked with the busy life of this metropolis.  The nineteenth century artists Hokusai and Hiroshige created many colorful woodblock prints of Fuji, and produced sets of thirty-six or one hundred views of Fuji. When these prints reached Europe and America in the late nineteenth century they established the international reputation of Fuji as the hallmark of Japan.  In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, as Japan moved from a country of many feudal territories to a modern nation-state, symbols of identity were needed to unify the people.  The emperor was the primary rallying point for focusing the people on loyalty to the newly developed state.   Fuji was the next most important symbol, with its long history of beauty combined with divinity, linking the people to the land.   Both in Japan and abroad, the triangular outline of Fuji is universally recognized as standing for Japan.  The form of Fuji has graced many Japanese postage stamps, and still appears on Japanese coin and currency.  If as Americans, we joke about the soldiers fighting for mom and apple pie, leaflet 114a seems to say that for the Japanese soldier it was mom and Mt. Fuji.  Except for the picture of the emperor, no other image has represented at the same time the land, people, and state of Japan more effectively than Fuji.

Leaflet 101

Leaflet 101 is a very picturesque photograph of Mount Fuji, with the image reflected in a lake so that the leaflet can be held upside down and the image is about the same. The leaflet is printed on a light green paper in various shades of blue. It is attractive enough to frame. Its purpose was to stir up pangs of homesickness ad resentment toward their leaders in Japanese troops who are about to be attacked by American forces. These enemy troops have not been attacked yet and therefore are presumably fresh and eager for battle. Therefore, the propaganda is in the form of a mild suggestion rather than a direct forceful statement. The text on the back is:

Now is the season of beauty in your homeland and the glorious snow-capped peak of Mount Fuji beckons to the traveler and the visitor. Your parents and wives await you and your dear children wonder whether they will ever see you again.

But you are here on a miserable island, awaiting our overwhelming force of men and machines. Your military leaders grow fat at home as they continue to mislead your people. They enjoy the beauties of the season and the thrilling sight of Mount Fuji. Their children eat with them and bask in their love.

Leaflet 114a 

Leaflet 114a depicts a Japanese mother and child in the forefront, dead Japanese soldiers behind her with what appears to be cherry blossoms, and the towering presence of Mt. Fuji in the background. Surprisingly, the leaflet is in black and white. One might expect such a picturesque scene to be in full color. The text is: 

YOUR REAL GOAL 

The question is whether or not the policy of aggression which the militarists took for the happiness and prosperity of the Japanese people has backfired. Although wars are supposed to bring happiness to the people, the more you fight the more unhappy you are. What is the meaning of this war, which continues to destroy your homeland? To die in battle for the cause of making your people unhappy is obstinate and foolish. 

Now is the time to bring strong reason into play. Deliver your homeland. Deliver your compatriots who unwittingly seek the path of annihilation. Moreover, think profoundly of saving the lives of your comrades who are uselessly committing suicide and wasting lives that they should revere. 

Leaflet 1049 has the exact same black and white illustration of the woman with baby in front of Mt. Fuji. The back has a long message meant to encourage the Japanese Wake Island garrison to surrender. It is in the form of a letter from a Japanese prisoner of war. Some of the text is: 

A Comrade's Cry

Like you, I have eaten seaweed. I know how weeds taste. I have been exposed to bombing and shelling. I escaped from an isolated island in the MARSHALLS where I suffered the worst tortures of starvation and despair. As a result of the kindness of the Americans, which was greater than you can imagine, I made a complete recovery although I had been just a step this side of death.

Now, even though I am a prisoner of war, I spend the nights and days without feeling any discomfort. However, even now, while I am receiving this fine treatment, I cannot help feeling uneasy when I picture to myself the sight of you recklessly throwing away your precious lives by starvation on an isolated island....

I should mention that the Wake Island campaign is a theme in itself. Just a small percentage of the leaflets aimed at demoralizing the Wake Island garrison are 1040, 1045, 1048, 1051, 1054, 1056, 1057, and 1058. Other islands are regularly mentioned too. For example, to mention a very small example, the Marshall Islands are cited in leaflets 1032 and 1035, Iwo Jima in leaflets 1037 and 1038, and Okinawa in leaflets 131, 416, 535, 536, 1027, 1050, 1055 and 2079.

On the subject of Okinawa I should mention that a television reporter from the Tokyo Broadcasting System interviewed me in June 2006 on the subject of American PSYOP used against Okinawa during WWII. I had to select a number of leaflets either aimed at or mentioning Okinawa to show her, and I include two of those leaflets here.

Leaflet 536

Leaflet 536 depicts a bomb falling toward a Japanese target. The picture was obviously taken from a bomb bay door since the bomb can almost be reached out and touched. Some of the text on the back is:

The war has reached a high pitch. It has reached a point where the U.S. forces move on relentlessly wherever they choose to go. The inner South Seas, Okinawa, and the Philippines are under the control of the American forces. The Americans attack with superior weapons and explosives.

Your motherland is facing imminent disaster due to the war brought on by your military leaders who think only of their own glory. The people live in fear of air-raids and are threatened by starvation.

How can you realize your dreams? It can be done by shaking hands with the U.S. forces.

Leaflet 2079

Leaflet 2079 depicts Naha City, Capitol of Okinawa, before and after an American bombing raid. The same photograph was used on leaflet 131. I am not sure that an unskilled Okinawan or Japanese soldier would be able to make out the destruction on the pictures shot from so high over head. The text to the right of the pictures is:

Naha City of Okinawa Prefecture before the bombing.

After bombing

The back of the leaflet depicts a B-17 bomber attacking railroad yards and surrounding buildings. Some of the text is:

The bombing so far has destroyed only a small part of the Japanese industry. However, as time goes on the degree of destruction will be multiplied and Japan will become a ruin. It is not loyal to your country to sit and watch its destruction without doing anything. That is an attitude taken by cowardly persons.

Okinawa was to be the first great Pacific propaganda campaign. For the first time, a Combat Propaganda Team of officers, linguists and artists went ashore with the invasion forces to conduct a campaign in coordination with the assault. The team was led by Lieutenant W. B. Stephenson, USNR.

The United States had lost a tremendous number of killed and wounded during the Iwo Jima campaign. It was the carnage from Iwo that indicated the need to obtain mass enemy surrenders. Prior to Iwo Jima it was believed that the Japanese must be killed to the last man.  Iwo proved that this concept was far too expensive in manpower. Combat propaganda would be the answer to this problem. It would convince the Japanese to surrender and save American lives. Okinawa would be the proving ground.

Months prior to the attack, General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Commander of the U.S. Tenth Army, requested that two series of leaflets be prepared for the “Operation Iceberg” Okinawa campaign. One should discourage civilians from obstructing the advance of U.S. troops; the second should weaken the resistance of the Japanese military.

This propaganda section contacted the commanders of all important organizations prior to the invasion to explain what they needed and what they could accomplish. They devoted over three months to this selling and planning phase. Leaflet drop demonstrations were held near Tenth Army Headquarters in Hawaii and they were publicized widely to get as many commanders and men enthused about the project. Knowing that soldiers craved souvenirs, the propaganda section distributed sample leaflets to all the watchers. They asked and received the operation order for the invasion and found that they would start dropping leaflets seven days before the invasion, and then switch to phase two on D-Day+10. They were issued 1,300 105mm propaganda shells and told that they would have one Navy PV-1 “Polly” plane equipped with loudspeakers. They were issued 100 empty propaganda bombs and 800,000 “safe conduct” leaflets to be used in the final phase of the propaganda campaign. By the start of the invasion this number was raised to 555 propaganda bombs loaded aboard 13 escort aircraft carriers (CVE). Seventy-five percent of the leaflet drops were planned for the towns of Shuri, Naha, Yonabaru, and points south. In central Okinawa the principal targets were Yontan, Kadena, and Machinato airfields.

Nine themes were designed for the Okinawa campaign:

1. Cite lies of Japanese leaders.
2. Create dissension and friction.
3. Play up American industrial might.
4. Create a feeling of panic and terror.
5. Appeal to physical needs.
6. Show the futility of self destruction.
7. Appeal indirectly for surrender.
8. Appeal to authority and respect for law.
9. Appeal to non-Japanese combatants.

Certain subjects were “taboo.” Just before embarkation a final meeting with the Combat Team was called to discuss policy. They would be no “horror” leaflets (scenes of horribly mangled or disfigured dead or wounded Japanese soldiers) and no leaflets would make grandiose promises that could not be fulfilled. They would not speak ill of the Emperor or attack Japanese legends like Admiral Togo or General Nogi. They would not attack the Japanese Constitution, customs, habits, religions, or the status of women.

95% of all the leaflets were printed aboard the ships of the invasion fleet; the other 5% were printed onshore by the topographic reproduction units of the 24th Corps and third Amphibious Corps. They were hand-written by a Nisei, then produced in lots of about 50,000, bundled and sent to be dropped by tactical aircraft flying from the newly captured Kadena AFB. The first hand-written tactical leaflet to Okinawan civilians said in part:

Those of you who wish to enter the American occupied area may do so during day in safety. Do not enter the American occupied area or loiter near it at night because we fear that you will be mistaken for a Japanese soldier.

A week later a second tactical leaflet was written that said in part:

If you move along with the Japanese forces, or if you aid the Japanese forces, you will receive the same treatment as the Japanese forces.

Eight leaflets were prepared in all. The final one said in part:

Come out of your caves and other hiding places at once. All of you. Come in groups, bringing with you only those possessions which you can readily carry.

We could write an article just on the Okinawa campaign. Suffice it to say that this was the first time In the pacific that PSYOP was integrated into every phase of the invasion and it appears to have been a great success.

Barak Kushner refutes the relative value of some of the OWI leaflets to Okinawa in The Thought War – Japanese Imperial Propaganda, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 2006:

As the battle for Okinawa surged in April 1945, the OWI and the American armed forces began to assess their most comprehensive campaign launched to date. Out of a garrison of approximately 120,000 Japanese troops, 11,000 POWs were taken, but only 7,400 were Japanese soldiers. The others were Korean or Taiwanese laborers. While it was a partial success compared with efforts elsewhere, the approximately 50,000 German POWs a month who flooded into U.S. camps from August 1944 until the spring of 1945 dwarfed Japanese surrender statistics.

But then he adds:

One reason behind the small numbers of Japanese soldiers captured by U.S. forces may have been the fact that U.S. soldiers slaughtered wounded or surrendering Japanese soldiers

Leaflet 107

Leaflet 107 was one of a series of leaflets aimed at Taiwan. It was not to be used anywhere else. It depicts Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek at the left, President Franklin Roosevelt at the right, and the island of Taiwan in the grips of a Japanese octopus in the center. Text on the front is:

China and America Together Doom Violent Japan!

Text on the back is in both Chinese and Japanese and says:

The two great nations fronting on the Pacific Ocean are united with a single purpose. They are determined to sweep away the Japanese pirates and to restore human liberty.

Leaflet 519

Leaflet 519 depicts Japan (as indicated by Mt. Fuji) being attacked by multiple American aircraft and ships. The purpose of the leaflet is “to show that American forces are closing in on Japan.” The leaflet is printed on a faded pink paper. There is no text on the front. The text on the back is: 

Do you know that:

American bases in strength are less than 1500 miles from Tokyo. 

The American Navy is free to operate practically off the shores of Japan.

The Japanese mainland is in danger of being completely isolated from the rest of the world.

American submarines are sinking Japanese ships faster than Japan can build them.

The terrible destruction to Germany need not happen to Japan.

Free your country from the Gumbatsu tyrants who control it.

Free your country before it is too late.

The Gumbatsu mentioned in the text is a combination of the militarists (sometimes called "the military clique"), industrialists (Later called the Zaibatsu), large landowners and political office holders. They had the real power and control over the Japanese people. The Allies used this term in a number of propaganda leaflets. 

Leaflet 520 

Leaflet 520 is a rather calm and sentimental picture of a Japanese landscape, with rocks and trees in the foreground and Mt. Fuji in the background. The leaflet is designed to induce Japanese troops to surrender. It is printed on a crème-colored paper. There is no text on the front. Text on the back is: 

In olden days, before Japan became a powerful nation, citizens were forbidden to visit other countries. If they returned to Japan after such a visit, they were put to death. 

With the enlightened rule of the Emperor Meiji, such practices were abolished. After the Russo-Japanese War, more than 2,000 Japanese soldiers taken prisoner by the Russians were returned to Japan. Some of those men hold important positions today. 

Who is trying to make Japan go back to its former customs, against the wise policy of Emperor Meiji? Who is trying to prevent the return of soldiers who devoted themselves to the nation's welfare?  

Are the Gumbatsu ashamed of their conduct of the war? Do they fear to have their mismanagement of the war known at home? Do they fear to have you loyal soldiers see what they have done to the country? 

Will you allow them to succeed in their policy of deceiving you?

Leaflet 2064

Leaflet 2064 is a very stark dark blue and white leaflet that depicts a Japanese pilgrim standing at the foot of Mt. Fuji at the intersection of two paths marked by road-stones reading “Duty” and “Humanity.” The leaflet is designed to lower Japanese morale and create a desire for peace. Text at the upper right of the leaflet is, “There are two roads but only one goal.” The back is all text:  

Japanese people have been praised and respected for their sense of duty. A true Japanese knows his obligations to his country as well as his family. 

In a predicament such as Taira no Shigemori and Amanoya Rihei were put in, one has to, in order to serve his lord and country, sacrifice his responsibilities to his family. In such a situation, a true Japanese will conquer ninjo [human feeling] and give his all to his country. 

Now, from the humanitarian standpoint, you would like to end this war so that you might save your parents and your children from meaningless death. However, you have been taught that you must undergo suffering to carry out your duty to your country. Hence, while you are thinking of your family, you are awaiting death. 

If you are truly patriotic, you would not hesitate to put an end to this war. You could not stand to see your country heading straight to disaster. Homes lost, factories destroyed, the people sunk into the depths of poverty. You need not wait until this happens. 

Your duty is to bring peace and to save your country from ruin. The Emperor has stated his desire for peace on several occasions. Japan is based on a family system. When the family is destroyed by death or other forms of disaster, the entire nation suffers. 

When you sacrifice yourselves and your families, the nation itself suffers. You lower the prestige of Japan among the nations of the world. 

The Emperor, father of the Japanese people, must be deeply concerned to see his subjects die and the national fiber weakened. Duty to your nation is identical with the duty to your family. 

To serve your Emperor is to serve your family. Therefore, if the Gumbatsu prevents you from doing your duty to your duty, rebel and save your family and your nation. Let the Gumbatsu take the blame for starting this war and its consequences.

This is a particularly interesting leaflet as was explained to me by military analyst Jeffrey Clinton Hill who lived in Japan for most of his life. He said in part:

The leaflet shows a Japanese pilgrim standing at the foot of Mr. Fuji at the intersection of two paths marked by road-stones reading “Duty” and “Humanity.”  Those are the English words that translate the Japanese kanji of Geri and Ninjo.  The Japanese consider the yin-yang concepts of Giri and Ninjo to be at the heart of what it means to be Japanese along with other Japanese yin-yang concepts that the Japanese consider to be unique to their culture and therefore impossible to translate into English and impossible for foreigners to fathom. 

Ninjo refers to human inclinations such as the desire for individual recognition, friendships, love, family life, and all of the simple pleasures and hedonistic desires. 

Giri refers to duty.   The Japanese concept is that quite often in life there is a conflict between the two and the honorable person will sacrifice his “ninjo” for his recognized “giri.” The assumption is that when the conflict arises, choosing “giri” is tough. Japanese literature abounds with this theme:

Giri:   Leave the one you really love, marry for duty, and secretly think of the one you really love with romantic idealism for the rest of your life. 

Ninjo:   run away from your duty-marriage, indulge in passionate, romantic, beautiful love with your lover for two weeks and then you both jump off a cliff hand-in-hand before society can find you and drag you apart from each other.

I think the PSYOP text of Leaflet 2064 shows remarkable skill.  The leaflet honors the Japanese concepts and challenges the Japanese to realize that, given the adversity they are facing, choosing to simply follow their corrupt leaders and die would actually be the easier “ninjo” choice, while choosing to challenge the Gumbatsu, survive, and rebuild Japan, would be the tougher and more honorable, “giri.” 

I particularly like the last line: “Let the Gumbatsu take the blame for starting this war and its consequences.” Various Japanese disciplines ranging from zazen indoctrination in a Buddhist temple to everyday at-home child rearing by the mother are “Accept life.  Don't blame someone.” The reason these disciplines exist, in my opinion, is that the Japanese are naturally given to blaming others more than most peoples of the world are given to blaming others.  All sorts of ways are built into the Japanese system so that no one individual gets blamed for something.  These ways are needed precisely because the Japanese have such a natural tendency to look for someone to blame. 

Special Themes

 

Leaflet 1000

 

The OWI used certain images and themes on a number of different leaflets. Leaflet 1000 depicts the Imperial Chrysanthemum seal in black and white. Other than the seal, the entire leaflet is all text.  Some of the text is: 

 

You have been told that this war had the approval of the Emperor and that the Emperor desired the loss of many young citizens. It is a lie! This is an example of the military deceiving the people to accomplish their own desires. It is the Gumbatsu that has caused the ruin of peaceful and prosperous Japan. You are probably reminded of the edict of the Emperor Sujin:

“I wonder if when our Imperial ancestors ascended to the throne, if it was for the benefit of themselves? No, it was in order to lead the people and stabilize the empire. They were able to extend the merit and spread the perfect virtue. Having received at their hands the mighty inheritance, we lovingly nourish our good subjects. In so doing, let us follow the footsteps of our Imperial ancestors, and long preserve the unbound felicity. And you, our ministers and functionaries, should you not cooperate with all loyalty in giving peace to the empire?”

How far have the leaders of Japan today strayed from this edict? Those who desired war thwarted the Emperor in his desire to personally lead his people….

Leaflet 2082 has the exact same design, and mentions Emperor Sujin’s edict. Its conclusion is slightly different. Some of the text is: 

 

This decree gives the everlasting truth of the Empire. However, the ministers today have not fulfilled their great responsibilities in giving peace to the empire.  They have stood between the Emperor who loves peace and the people, and obstructed the wishes of the Emperor to reach the people and to become acquainted with the people. They have gambled the destiny of the nation and lost, but take no responsibility by committing suicide. Instead, they try to hide their crimes and demand the suicide of the nation.

 

When the military clique is destroyed, you will again see happy days as described by Yuryaku Tenno:

“At the present time, the world is like one family, the farmers are safe, and peace reigns throughout the realm. Such is the will of heaven.”

The idea of placing the Emperor's crest on an American propaganda leaflet seems to have been a poor one. According to a report prepared by the Chief Censorship Section of the Metropolitan Police: 

 

There was a leaflet that quoted the constitution using the Imperial crest of the chrysanthemum. This was against the Japanese belief in the use of the Imperial crest, and not only was it not effective, but is stimulated hate for the Americans among the people.

The reason that the Japanese were so incensed is explained by Professor Byron Earhart. He says: 

 

The chrysanthemum, brought to Japan from China as a medicinal and herbal plant, was associated with the imperial family in medieval times. In the Meiji era (1868-1912), when the emperor was made the head of state and promoted as the rallying symbol to transform feudal territories into one unified nation, a sixteen-petal chrysanthemum was officially adopted as the imperial crest.  From that time, by national law no one could use this crest without permission of the imperial family (which was granted in a few cases, such as to shrines closely associated with the imperial family).  From the Meiji era until the end of World War II, among the civilian population the chrysanthemum crest commanded the same respect and awe as the emperor it represented.  A wartime example of the power of this symbol is found in "No Surrender: My Thirty Year War," (Kodansha International, Tokyo, 1974): holdout Lieutenant Hiroo Onoda tells how he dragged his rusted, stockless rifle through the jungles of the Philippines for close to thirty years after the end of WWII, because it had the imperial crest on it.  The crest was a visual reminder of absolute loyalty to the emperor, linking every Japanese soldier and sailor to the chain of command that went up through the ranks and ended with the emperor.

The Japanese 1941-45 Great East Asia War medal depicts the chrysanthemum crest. Imperial Edict No. 417 of 21 June 1944 authorized this medal. Text on the bar above the medal is, “war medal.” The front depicts a chrysanthemum crest in the center of crossed swords on a eight-pointed star. The rim has engraved cherry blossoms. Text on the back of the medal is, “Great East Asia War.”

Leaflet 1027

Another theme used on a number of leaflets was the starving Japanese soldier. Black and white leaflet 1027 depicts a photograph of an emaciated Japanese soldier wearing only a loincloth in an American dispensary. This same soldier appears on a number of different leaflets. The text along the margins of the photograph on the front is:

This photograph shows a Japanese soldier who was forced to live for eighteen months on a little island in the pacific without food or medical care. Staving and consumptive, he was rescued by a group of Americans who picked him up in a small boat and took him to an American hospital where he was given the best medical treatment. But, it was too late, and today there is little hope that he will live. Will this be your fate?

The same soldier appears again on leaflet 2097. This time his image is at the left of the leaflet and the empty ocean takes up the rest of the photograph. The caption to his right is:

Just a year since regular supplies stopped going to the orphaned islands of the south. This wreckage drifting about on the high seas and this picture of a soldier tells the real truth about the war.

Some of the text on the back of the leaflet is:

MARITIME JAPAN - WITHOUT SHIPS!

Your loved ones have been abandoned on isolated Pacific islands where they do not receive one grain of rice or one round of ammunition. Their single hope is that ships will come to rescue them. Now that artery, too, has been severed.

 

Numberless mines have been laid in the harbors of Japan. In rapid succession, the precious lives of your countrymen and the raw materials that are the nation’s lifeblood are being blown up….

Leaflet 1054 also depicts the starving man in loincloth. The photo’s caption is:

Japanese Soldier Rescued Just Before Death from Starvation.

The back is all text. Some of the message is:

A HOSPITAL SHIP CAME BUT....!

You should know well how sad was the condition of your comrades who were recently returned to JAPAN on the TAKASAGO MARU.

 

On 5 July the American destroyer, USS MURRAY, inspected the TAKASAGO MARU while it was on its way back to Japan, and permitted it to continue its homeward voyage.

 

At that time, a Japanese doctor on board said, "Of the 974 sick and wounded officers and men who have been taken aboard, fifteen percent will, because of tuberculosis and extreme malnutrition, probably not survive until we reach Japan....

 

 

Leaflet 1006

 

One of the most attractive U.S. Navy leaflets is 1006. It was the first in a series of leaflets to be dropped over Japanese troops stranded on bypassed islands. The text is black brushwork on slick paper. The front depicts a beautiful plate of mixed sushi and other Japanese delicacies in full color. To see this leaflet is to salivate. The text is:

Your island has been isolated and cut off from all aid and supplies. You have almost no food and are slowly starving to death. You are as human as we are and the thought of your hunger is far from pleasant.

if you are hungry and wish to have good food, indicate that fact by displaying a large visible cross along the southeast intersection of the airfield runway. We will then be able to help you.

How hungry were the Japanese? MSG Blair quotes enemy soldiers in “A Japanese Guadalcanal Dairy.”

An entry of 31 December 1942 states:

Since the 28th, not a single grain of rice has been distributed, and during this time, 3 pieces of hardtack were issued. Today there were 3 cigarettes and only a bit of the nutrition ration.

On 1 January 1943 an unknown soldier stated:

During the 3 days as the New Year on Guadalcanal Island, we have lived on one piece of hardtack, and this morning finally got one “GO” of rice. In the evening, one compressed ration was divided between two soldiers. Now we are eating rice gruel twice a day, and sleeping in the trenches as we are unable to walk. New Year's to us was just in name, for the day was spent suffering from bombardment and hunger.

Another comment is:

The contents of ant nests are good to eat when one is starving.

On 10 January 1943 we read:

Enemy bombardment becomes increasingly intense. We can hold out for one more week. My body is in such condition that I can barely walk. Food is 5 shaku [one-half go] of rice and some compressed rations. This makes 1 month that we have been eating just rice gruel.

Former Marine Private First Class Fred Griffith recalls his unit, Marine Observation Squadron (VMO) 155 dropping this leaflet during WWII. He adds:

Our Marine fighter squadron was based on Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands during the last year of the war. The squadron was originally supposed to be an observation squadron but was changed to a fighter squadron a few months after it was formed. The men were really anxious to get into the battle, but instead, the squadron was used to train pilots before they were sent to the front to join a fighting unit. As part of their training the pilots flew missions against the many islands in the chain that were still occupied by the Japanese. Isolated Japanese forces held out on Wotje, Maloelap, Mili and Jaluit. These stragglers were supplied by an occasional enemy submarine. It was during these training missions right at the end of the war that the pilots strafed, bombed and dropped the leaflets. The leaflets were placed in wooden boxes and attached to the bomb hooks on the F4U Corsairs and dropped on these runs. The fighters received some anti-aircraft fire on these missions but none of the aircraft were ever hit. Some of our dive bombers were hit and had minor damage during their training missions over the isolated islands.

The exact same image of a plate of sushi was used on OWI leaflet 522. The text avoids any resistance to surrender by taking it for granted and by suggesting face-saving devices which permit the soldier to surrender with honor. It provides excuses that can be stored in the soldier’s subconscious mind and allow him to “fall into enemy hands” at some later date. Some of the text is:

Soldiers may, during wartime, fall into enemy hands. Through no fault of their own; but due to wounds, sickness, and lack of food he may fall into a semi-conscious state. He may be cut off from his comrades, or perhaps the enemy has won the battle…

If you come to the American camp, you will be treated well. You will certainly receive food and tobacco. If you work you will be paid for it. Then after the war, you will be able to help rebuild your country.

Dish of Salad?

I want to stop for just a moment and show a Japanese version of the same leaflet. This leaflet depicts trapped American soldiers seeing their fleet destroyed in the distance by Japanese aircraft. They are starving and think of a luscious plate of…salad? Just as the American attempted to induce the Japanese to surrender with promises of fresh, inviting food, the Japanese retaliated with a very similar leaflet. What is interesting is that while the American leaflet shows a Japanese delicacy, the Japanese leaflet does not depict an American delicacy. If they had a better understanding of the American diet they would have depicted a big steak, ham or turkey. Instead they depict a salad, not exactly something a starving GI would relish. I believe that because of the choice of food this must be considered a failed leaflet. Notice also that the Japanese do not use the word “surrender.” They ask for a “Change of mind.” The text is:

Iron-rationed stranded.
Nothing but dog-biscuits.
Day after day, positively.
How about a dish of salad like this?
For a change of diet...Just a change of mind.

 

Leaflet 525

Another popular theme was a series of leaflets containing two long propaganda messages; one addressed “To Military Men,” the other “To Civilians.” For instance, such leaflets are numbered 523, 524, 525, 527, 528, 529 and 530. Leaflet 525 depicts a Japanese soldier drinking from a canteen. The purpose of the leaflet is to lower the soldier's faith in victory and to cause civilians to be a burden to the Japanese Army. I will not translate the entire text because of its length. Some of the more interesting comments are: 

To Military Men:

 

Why did Japan start this war? Why is it necessary to sacrifice thousands of Japan's brave and outstanding young men and bring about the destruction of homes, factories, merchant ships, and to cause the civilians to live in great poverty?

 

It is just like the Nomonhan Incident in which 18,000 outstanding Japanese soldiers were needlessly sent to their deaths without the permission of the Emperor by military leaders selfishly seeking personal military glory...

 

To Civilians:

 

The Army is well supplied with food and water. Demand that they provide you with the necessities of life.

 

They are responsible for the fact that you cannot provide for yourself. By staying in the cities and towns they have exposed your homes and lives to destruction and made you dependent upon them. Apply to the Japanese Army for food and water. Do not accept a refusal.

The “Nomonhan Incident” reference is in regard to Hirohito’s fear of a full-scale war between Japan and the Soviet Union. The Emperor ordered his Kwantung Army in 1939 to limit its Mongolian operations. Despite the direct order, from May to September 1939, Japan and the Soviet Union fought an undeclared war on the Mongolian plains near the city of Nomonhan. Soviet General Zhukov massed his troops and 1000 tanks for a decisive attack to surround and eliminate the invading forces. Japanese causalities numbered 17,405. This defeat caused the “Southern Axis of Advance” faction to argue in 1941 against joining with Germany for a war with the Soviet Union, and for a war against the United States and Britain in an attempt to secure Southeast Asian resources.

Leaflet 2018

I selected leaflet 2018 because it is a different than the usual American propaganda product. It is in the form of a Japanese flag. The bright red ball on a white background was sure to attract attention and would certainly be picked up by the average finder. It is smaller than most WWII leaflets at 6 x 4 inches. The back is all text:

Save the Nation!

Japan is faced with a national danger.

Now is not the time for you to think of your own fame or follow your own desires.

What is the proper act for a Japanese under such circumstances?

Obviously, one who dies foolishly at such a time accomplishes nothing. Japan is losing the war. Japan cannot afford to lose its citizens as well.

Preserve your race and help build a better Japan after the war.

Leaflet 2088

I added leaflet 2088 because it is one of just a few leaflets to depict President Harry Truman:

A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES TO THE PEOPLE OF JAPAN

Nazi German has gone down in defeat. You, the people of Japan know the mighty power of the United States Army, Navy and Air Force. As long as your false leaders and militarists continue the struggle, we will attack with increasing power over larger areas. We will continue until we have completely destroyed the industries and transportation facilities which sustains Japan’s fighting power.

Continuing the war only increases the hardships of the people needlessly. The people have nothing to gain. We will not cease to attack till the Japanese militarists surrender unconditionally and throw down their arms.

What will be the effect of unconditional surrender on the Japanese people? In a word, it means the end of the war. It means the destruction of the power of the militarists who have led the nation to the brink of ruin; it will enable the speedy return of the men of the army and navy who are struggling at the front to their beloved homes, their farms, and their jobs. It also means the end of the hardships and suffering brought on by those who dream of victory. However, I wish to state positively that unconditional surrender does not mean the extermination of the Japanese people or their enslavement.

Leaflet 2089

I was asked by the Discovery Channel if there were any Allied WWII propaganda leaflets against Japan that depicted mythical creatures. I explained that the United States had produced propaganda using an old vampire legend as the theme. We illustrate the leaflet above. It depicts a vampire cat drinking the blood of a Japanese maiden, drawn in the style of an old Japanese line woodcut. The text is:

A long time ago there was a beautiful girl named Otoyo who served the Lord Hizen. Of all the ladies of the palace, she was his favorite. One day, the lord and Otoyo went into the gardens and enjoyed the flowers until sunset. They were not aware of a huge cat following them. Otoyo returned to her room and went to sleep. At midnight, she was aroused by the huge cat. Terrified, she screamed. The cat jumped on her, bit her soft neck and killed her. The cat buried the dead body of Otoyo and took her form to bewitch the lord. The lord weakened daily; his complexion became pale; and all the medicine he took did not help.

Finally, Ito Soda, a loyal and brave retainer was able to reveal the true form of the cat. The cat ran away into the mountains. The people hunted it down and killed the cat.

What is the meaning of this story? The cat compares with the Gumbatsu, who are sucking the life-blood of the nation. The Gumbatsu is needlessly sacrificing the lives of thousands of young men who are isolated far from home. Also, are they not neglecting to provide the clothing, food, and medicine needed by the people? Are they not causing the ruin of the nation? Beautiful Otoyo who was killed by the cat represents the constitutional system destroyed by the Gumbatsu. Disobeying the orders of Emperor Meiji, the military interfered with politics. Rather than protecting the Empire, they have led the Empire to the brink of disaster. Finally, the cat was forced to reveal her true form by loyal retainers. It was chased into the mountains and killed. Does this mean that loyal Japanese will destroy the Gumbatsu who have fooled the people and the Emperor and thus bring back peace and prosperity to the nation?

The Gumbatsu is the military-industrial complex, made up of high-ranking officers, some politicians, and the wealthy factory owners.

The text goes on to explain that the military-industrial complex in Japan is sucking the life-blood of the nation. The cat, representing the Gumbatsu, has destroyed all that is good. Just as the cat was revealed and killed, loyal Japanese will reveal the villains who fooled the Emperor and started the war. If they kill the “cat” they will bring back peace and prosperity to Japan.

Wikepedia described it thusly:

An illustration of a bakeneko (monster cat.) In Japanese folklore, a cat with supernatural abilities. A cat may become a bakeneko in a number of ways: it may reach a certain age, be kept for a certain number of years, grow to a certain size, or be allowed to keep a long tail. In the last case, the tail forks in two and the bakeneko is then called a nekomata (forked cat). A bakeneko will haunt any household it is kept in, creating ghostly fireballs, menacing sleepers, walking on its hind legs, changing its shape into that of a human, and even devouring its own mistress in order to shape-shift and take her place. When it is finally killed, its body may be as much as five feet in length. It also poses a danger if allowed into a room with a fresh corpse; a cat is believed to be capable of reanimating a body by jumping over it.

Leaflet 2092

A second mythological creature is depicted on leaflet 2092. These two leaflets being coded so close together implies that there might have been some additional creatures shown in a “mini-campaign” between 2089 and 2092. This leaflet depicts an angry Buddhist devil with the text:

Your Military Leaders are Responsible for the provoking of This War.

Seek the peace

The back of the leaflet is a list of alleged crimes committed by Japanese military leaders:

The crimes committed by your military leaders are:

1. They have dragged the nation into a war they cannot win.

2. They have conducted this war poorly, sacrificing millions of Japanese lives.

3. They have contrived the sinking of practically every ship built with the sweat and blood of the Japanese people.

4. They are responsible for the starving of hundreds of thousands of garrison unit personnel left behind on the islands of the Pacific.

5. They have provoked war and ruined the life of the people.

 

Men of Japan!

1. Your military leaders are turning your native land into ruins.
2. Is the continued sacrifice of countless lives all right with you?
3. Clean up your government!
4. Rebuild your nation!
5. Save what is left of Japan!
6. Seek peace!

Leaflet 534

I added this leaflet because just as the American propagandists depicted fearsome creatures, they sometimes pictured fearsome weapons on leaflets. Leaflet 534 depicts one of the most terrible weapons, the flame thrower. Three American troops are depicted, one using the flame thrower, and over half the leaflet shows the flames burning high over their heads. The leaflet is aimed at civilians and they are warned to keep out of the way. Some of the leaflet text is:

American forces have already landed elsewhere on your island and have made excellent progress. Most of the civilians who stayed in the path of the on-rushing army were killed because of their own foolishness. Unless you are prepared to suffer a similar fate, stay away from the beaches…To remain in the path of the Americans will be fatal…The American forces have absolutely no intention of shooting at you!

Notable Operations

 

12-City Bomb Warning Leaflet 2106 

The Original 12-City Bomb Leaflet 2106 with Tokyo at the far left

Although the OWI on Saipan took part in many operations and produced propaganda on many themes, there were some operations that were particularly notable. This is proven by the fact that they are mentioned in great depth in the OWI official history. One such case is the warning leaflet to Japan that mentioned cities to be bombed. General Curtis LeMay actually requested this leaflet. It depicted a flight of five B-29s dropping bombs with Japanese cities printed in small circles below. OWI Chief Richard Hubert’s final report said:

On July 25 came a development involving the closest collaboration yet achieved in the theater between military and propaganda operations. At the request of General LeMay, a leaflet text had been prepared warning Japanese cities that they would be bombed within the next few days. The first leaflet notified eleven cities. The original leaflet contained the names of twelve cities and included Tokyo, but a last minute deletion of the name of this city necessitated the reprinting of the whole issue totaling 886,000 leaflets.

Kanji is the most complicated script in Japanese, first brought to Japan by Buddhist monks more than 1200 years ago. The Kanji Script character for Tokyo (“East, Capital”) is depicted at the upper left-most position. Kanji is most commonly used to express the names of places, people and nouns. It was thought that this leaflet was destroyed.

The original 12-city leaflet named from left to right: Tokyo, Ujiyamada, Tsu, Kooriyama, Hakodate, Nagaoka, Uwajima, Kurume, Ichinomiya, Oogaki, Nishinomiya, and Aomori.  

Why was Tokyo removed from the leaflet dropped the night of 27 July 1945? General LeMay had spearheaded the effort to develop more effective bombing - even to building a fake target town on Tinian and demanding the production of a new incendiary bomb to spread destruction. The new firebomb was dropped on Tokyo the night of 9/10 March 1945. The results were 100,000 dead and over 1,000,000 homeless. The Emperor's palace grounds were not targeted but a small area suffered collateral damage. It is said that LeMay was pleased with the effectiveness but appalled at the civilian losses, and ordered that warning leaflets be prepared in the future. Perhaps after such destruction LeMay removed Tokyo as a target to use it as a bargaining chip in some future negotiation or because it was already so badly damaged that there was nothing left to destroy. We will never know.

11-City Bomb Warning Leaflet 2106 with Tokyo removed from the List

The very first leaflet had twelve cities listed, but a last minute deletion of Tokyo left just eleven cities. Whereas there had been three cities listed vertically at both left and right, the new leaflet had three cities to the right but just two cities to the left. From left to right the cities named on this 11-city leaflet are: Ujiyamada, Tsu, Kooriyama, Hakodate, Nagaoka, Uwajima, Kurume, Ichinomiya, Oogaki, Nishinomiya, and Aomori.  Included among the cities were eight on the main island of Honshu, and one each on the islands of Shikoku, Hokkaido and Kyushu. The night after the leaflet was dropped, Tsu, Ichinomiya, Aomori, Oogaki, and Uwajima were bombed and left in ashes.

  Japanese Archived Leaflet 2106 Showing “Deleted” City

After the initial correction when Tokyo was deleted, (As stated by General Curtis LeMay), 886,000 leaflets with the appended Japanese characters were printed. It is interesting to note that although the 11-city leaflet above shows no sign of a 12th city having been printed, this same leaflet appears in a Japanese archive where there is a white circle indicating that a 12th city had been printed and somehow erased from the leaflet.

The Army Air Force dropped this leaflet on at least three occasions. This leaflet worked on many levels. It showed the people that the Americans could bomb at will and their government and military were powerless to stop them. It also had the result of panicking citizens to leave the targeted city, flooding the roads, blocking transport, and slowing the factories that were producing war weapons and materials. It is curious that the OWI did not place a code number of leaflet 2106. Codes are normally left off "black" leaflets but this product is clearly "white" from the Americans. There is a code number on leaflet 2106A depicted at the end of this section.

A second version of the 12-City Bomb Warning Leaflet 2106

From left to right the cities named on this version of the 12-city leaflet 2106 are: Nagano, Takaoka, Kurume, Fukuyama, Toyama, Mizuru, Ootsu, Nishinomiya, Maehashi, Kooriyama, Hachioji, and Mito.

A Third Version of the 12-City Bomb Warning Leaflet 2106

The cities named on a second disseminated version of the 12-city leaflet are from left to right:  Otaru, Akita, Hachinoe, Fukushima, Urawa, Takayama, Iwakuni, Tottori, Imabari, Miyakonojyo, Yahata and Saga. 

There is some duplication on three known versions of this bomb warning leaflet though Hiroshima, Kokura and Nagasaki are not among the major cities mentioned. Richard Hubert, Chief of OWI Saipan outpost said in a handwritten note that warning leaflets were delivered specifically to Hiroshima and Nagasaki but we have found no record of such a leaflet unless it was placed on leaflet 2106A. In all, I count 33 different cities named on the leaflets out of a possible 36 cities with just 3 duplications.

Official U.S. Air Force Photo of Nagasaki Bomb

It is reported that a bomb warning leaflet was dropped on Nagasaki on 10 August, but that is one day after the plutonium bomb was dropped on that city on 9 August. I find no record of any warning dropped before the uranium bomb was dropped on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945. There were no more atomic bombs in the American stockpile, but that was a closely guarded secret and the United States implied in messages to the Emperor that there were many more in its arsenal ready to be dropped on Japan. 

A Japanese translator that has studied the target names on the leaflets is surprised to note that most of the cities are rather small and unimportant. Perhaps they were chosen because of their manufacturing base or some other unknown factor. They were placed on the leaflets in no particular order. We should also point out that U.S. bombing was not all that accurate. General Paul Tibbets, the pilot of the Enola Gay that dropped the atom bomb on Hiroshima once commented that only about 2% of the bombs were on target early in the war. This was because they had few air maps, the bombardiers were new and young, they mostly bombed at night, they were slow in taking the 300mph jet stream wind into account and, the B29 was a new bomber and difficult to fly. 

Despite the accuracy problems, by 1945, of Japan's 206 target cities, 44 had been destroyed and 37 more including Tokyo had lost 30% of their infrastructure. Two million military and civilians had died in Japan, and many more in the occupied territories, 30,000 lost on Saipan alone. There were eight million wounded and/or homeless in Japan and workers were arbitrarily removed from their homes and entire families were housed by the factories or facilities in which they worked. American heavy bombing was close to eliminating the Japanese economy and its production capabilities. Perhaps there were simply not that many large cities left to bomb.

Printing the B-29 Bomb Warning Leaflet
The Curtis LeMay bomb warning leaflets “hot off the press.”

According to Hubert’s notes, the 73rd Bomb Wing dropped 700,000 of the 11-city leaflets on Japan on the night of 27 July 1945. 568,000 of the 12-city leaflets were dropped by B-29 bombers on the night of 30 July 1945. On 3 August, 600,000 of the second 12-city leaflet were dropped. Hubert’s production charts give slightly different numbers at the back of his report. On his charts he shows the three production runs of leaflet 2106 to be 900,000, 600,000, and 600,000 for a total of 2,100,000 leaflets. The text on the back of all the 11-city and 12-city leaflets is identical:

ATTENTION JAPANESE PEOPLE.

Read this carefully as it may save your life or the life of a relative or a friend. In the next few days, American bombs will destroy four or more of the cities named on the reverse side of this leaflet. These cities contain military installations and workshops or factories, which produce military goods. We are determined to destroy all of the tools of the military clique that they are using to prolong this useless war. Unfortunately, bombs have no eyes. So, in accordance with America's well-known humanitarian policies, the American Air Force, which does not wish to injure innocent people, now gives you warning to evacuate the cities named and save your lives.

America is not fighting the Japanese people but is fighting the military clique, which has enslaved the Japanese people. The peace, which America will bring, will free the people from the oppression of the Japanese military clique, mean the emergence of a new, and better Japan.

You can restore peace by demanding new and better leaders who will end the War.

We cannot promise that only these cities will be among those attacked, but some or all of them will be, so heed this warning and evacuate these cities immediately.

Bomb Warning Leaflet 2106A

In a second version of the leaflet, the cities were listed in a box at the lower right. The second (box type) leaflet is illustrated in United States Pacific Fleet and Pacific Areas Psychological Warfare, Part Two, Supplement No. 2, CINCPAC - CINCPOA Bulletin No. 164-45, 15 August 1945. It is coded 2106A. Text at the left of the vignette is, "NOTICE BOARD." The purpose of the leaflet is "To inspire fear in the Japanese people by informing them of the cities we intend to destroy, thereby making it clear by inference that the Japanese air force is impotent and that we are masters of the skies over Japan." The text on the back of the leaflet is identical in both versions.

Colonel Robert L. Gleason discusses this operation in “Psychological Operations and Air Power: Its Hits and Misses,” Air University Review, March-April 1971:

Most people are generally familiar with the extensive fire bombing of Japan during the spring of 1945. Many are less aware of the equally extensive psywar campaign carried on concurrently. In fact, the psywar mission was included in the Joint Chiefs of Staff directive to the Twentieth Air Force not only to inflict physical destruction on Japan but also to “undermine the morale of the Japanese people to where their capacity is decisively defeated.” This psychological warfare campaign, launched by General LeMay and later taken over and run by Headquarters Commander-in-Chief, Pacific, started with leaflets dropped by the bombers along with their bomb loads. Later the campaign became considerably more sophisticated, and leaflets were dropped on separate missions preceding the bombing raids by a day or two. These leaflets would name about ten towns in Japan and state that a number of them would be bombed and that the people should evacuate the area. We could afford to bomb only a few of the towns listed, but the uncertainty and fear of the unknown created a severe mental strain on all the cities involved. As reported by the U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) following the war, this psychological operation was most effective. At the height of the campaign, more than 8½ million Japanese were involved in evacuating their cities—many from cities never touched.

William E. Daugherty and Morris Janowitz mention the effect that the bomb warning leaflets had on the Japanese in A Psychological Warfare Casebook, Operations Research Office, Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, MD, 1958.

At the close of the war, after Americans had occupied the Japanese homeland, Japanese authorities admitted that bomb warnings sent thousands of people in panic-stricken flight from their homes, thus interrupting the daily routine of the people and thereby, seriously interfering with the Japanese war effort…There was nothing the civil or military authorities could do to counteract the effects of the leaflets; i.e., they were unable to reduce or to limit the impact of the fright the leaflet messages inspired.

There was little or nothing that could be done to counteract the growing belief of the people in the impotence of the Japanese military, or to reduce the trust that the people placed in the sincerity and truthfulness of American propaganda...It became increasingly obvious that the warnings hit the Japanese people more effectively than any other propaganda effort attempted by the Americans.

Daugherty concludes:

Bomb warnings, where feasible, are a powerfully effective means of adding to the desirable psychological effects of bombing. Warnings can be used to reinforce the fears of people and to induce in them panic flight. Warnings can be used to demonstrate materiel and military superiority. Warnings can be used to reduce a target group’s resentment against an attacking air force, and to increase the resentment which the people may hold toward their own political and military leaders. Air-warnings leaflets may also be used to discredit the enemy’s propaganda and to establish credibility for American propaganda.

 

Leaflet 2069

One of the most interesting Allied “bombing” leaflets depicts General “Hap” Arnold, Commander of the U.S. 20th Air Force and Allied landing barges on the front. The back depicts falling bombs and dead women and children. The leaflet is meant to weaken the morale of the Japanese militarists and civilians. Some of the text is:

CEASE RESISTANCE AND SAVE YOUR COUNTRY

General Arnold, Commander of the 20th Air Force and who is in charge of the B-29 Super Fortress bomber operations said: “There is no part of the Japanese Empire which is not within the bombing range of our Air Force and there is no munitions factory that will escape bombing no matter in how remote a place it may be located.”

The systematic bombing of Japan’s war industries started six months ago from bases in China will be carried on with greater power to soften up the heart of Japan in preparation of joint landing operations by the Allied land, sea and air forces…

General Henry Harley “Hap” Arnold was an aviation pioneer and Chief of the U.S. Army Air Corps. He was Commanding General of the U.S. Army Air Forces from 1941 until 1945 and the first and only General of the Air Force in 1949. He is also the only American to achieve five-star rank in two of its armed services. During WWII he was concerned about the B-29 bomber, which was plagued with mechanical problems. In order to assure that Japan was attacked the way he planned, Arnold named himself the commander of the new bomber force. With approval from the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the president, he created the Twentieth Air Force, consisting of the 20th and 21st Bomber Commands. He transferred General Curtis LeMay and the B-29s from the China-Burma-India theater to the Pacific, with bases in Guam and the Mariana Islands. LeMay commanded subsequent combat operations against Japan, including the massive incendiary attacks on sixty-four Japanese cities. Hap Arnold is credited with being the guiding force behind the aerial destruction of the Japanese Empire.

At the end of the war, W. D. Conde of the U. S. Civil Information and Education Section ordered a number of uncooperative Japanese "thought control" officials to the Radio Tokyo Building where they were questioned about the effectiveness of the American OWI leaflets. Many of the individuals had been dismissed from their government job in accordance with the American Supreme Commander's directive. At least fourteen Japanese agencies dealt with Allied psychological warfare material. None of the individuals had notes and all make their comments directly from memory. The individual comments were very similar which indicates either collusion, or that they were telling the truth and were of the same opinion.  

The LeMay bomb-warning leaflet was the most effective single piece of American propaganda dropped on Japan according to Mr. Kawagucki of the Home Ministry. 

Sukohido Kabayama of the Foreign Office also cited the air raid leaflet as the most threatening. He said that in Hachioji, the military had no time to prepare special defenses and all factory work came to an immediate halt as all the workers rushed out of town. 

Masjiro Kawaguchi, Chief of the Foreign Affairs Bureau of the Home Ministry said, “The warning leaflets dropped in advance of raids were very effective because we could not take counter measures against them.” He later forwarded a report that added, “The people were seized with fear by the leaflets announcing the air attacks beforehand. The city that was warned was surely attacked and destroyed within a few days after the announcement.”  

A report of the Foreign Section of the Home Ministry agrees, “In view of the fact that the cities that received the notice were reduced to ashes within ten days, the citizens of the cities were considerably frightened.” 

A report of the Foreign Section of the Home Ministry adds, “Those leaflets saying that American planes aimed at military plants and advising people to evacuate soon from the vicinity of them were effective, and some workmen of those plants were terrified of the air raids…The leaflet shocked us and had a great psychological effect in general. The inhabitants of cities were driven by fear. In Akita Prefecture they removed their household furnishings to the outskirts of the cities." 

A departmental ordinance decreed that the Japanese people collect and turn in Allied leaflets. Those who disobeyed faced a sentence of up to three months in jail and a fine of up to 100 yen. The government did not fear the American propaganda and expected each citizen to do his duty to his Emperor and his nation. It seems therefore, that there was no great enforcement of the ordinance. There were less than a dozen people actually arrested for carrying and reading leaflets, and all apparently received reprimands with no incarceration.

The Original USAF Photograph used to make the Bomb Warning Leaflet
The photograph depicts B-29 Bombers from the 73rd Bomb Wing dropping
Incendiary Bombs over Japanese Installations in Yokohama, 29 May 1945

There is some documentation that shows that the pilots were very unhappy about dropping warning leaflets pointing out future bombing targets. They felt that the Japanese would be able to build up the air defenses around those named cities. However, General Curtis LeMay was able to convince them of the long-tern psychological advantages of the campaign.  At the same time, the OWI radio on Saipan increased its power to broadcast the same message to the Japanese people.

 

 

General Curtis LeMay

 

For those too young to remember WWII and the Cold War, a word about General Curtis “Iron Ass” LeMay. It is surprising that he supported psychological operations against Japan because he was an old-fashioned hard-line warrior who introduced the fire raids on Japan during WWII. LeMay had few qualms about the fire raids believing that they would shorten the war. In July 1944, Le May was given command of the 21st Bomber Command. He wanted to destroy Japan's manufacturing industry, and concluded that his mission was to obliterate Japan's manufacturing base, including the small industries that fed the large factories. His Tokyo raid on 9-10 March 1945 killed 100,000 people, injured another 100,000, and destroyed 16 square miles of the city. For the attack on Tokyo, over 300 B-29's were involved. They flew at a surprisingly low 7,000 feet and dropped M-69 incendiary bombs that weighed 6 lbs each. Each B-29 carried 37 containers with 38 bombs inside, or just over 1,400 bombs per plane. The bombs exploded on contact with the ground and spread a jelly-petrol compound that was highly inflammable. The fires consumed the oxygen in the air and people actually suffocated to death.  LeMay lost 14 B-29s. He once said, “Killing Japanese didn't bother me very much at the time....I suppose if I had lost the war, I would have been tried as a war criminal....every soldier thinks something of the moral aspects of what he is doing. But all war is immoral and if you let that bother you, you're not a good soldier.” At the end of the war, he became head of the Strategic Air command and later Chief of Staff of the Air Force. In 1964, the character of the insane Air Force “General Jack D. Ripper” in the movie Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb was allegedly based on General Curtis LeMay. Alabama Governor George Wallace selected him as his vice-presidential running mate for his unsuccessful run in 1968.

 

 

 

Japanese 10 yen banknote Parody 2009

Another very successful campaign was a series of four banknote leaflets in the form of a Japanese 10 yen Bank of Japan convertible note of 1930, with code and propaganda text on the back. There are four such notes, each with a different text. The code numbers are 2009, 2016, 2017, and 2034. The text on the back of leaflet 2009 is:  

FIVE THOUSAND YEN. With this money, pay your land taxes. The military clique is squandering your tax money. The military caste has been spending an awful lot of your money, 5000 yen per individual person for this war. The longer the war endures, the more of your money the militarists will waste.

The text on leaflet 2016 is:  

FACTORY WORKERS! [Shokko] Until now, you workers earned a great deal of money. But of what use is it to you? Your purchasing power is no different from that of this 10-yen bill. You who exert all your efforts in the production of war weapons should also be regarded as soldiers. You are the soldiers of armament production. But can you buy as much rice and beer as the soldiers? Can you purchase the commodities that soldiers and their families can buy with their special rations?

The text on leaflet 2017 is: 

TO THE JAPANESE PEOPLE! The money and bonds deposited in the bank, are they of any use? We recommend that you instead buy daily necessities and commodities you will need in the future. Goods are becoming scarce. Because of the air raids, most of the shops will soon be unable to open. To cope with these difficult times, we recommend you buy food, clothing and the daily necessities. Money alone cannot prevent hunger, and it can not be used in place of food and clothing. With savings bonds, you cannot stop a child from crying. If you are prudent, you will buy commodities instead of depositing your money. This is not a time for saving. Now is the time for buying goods. 

The text on leaflet 2034 is:  

Before the military clique started the war, the following commodities could be bought with 10 yen in Showa 5 [1930]. 

* Two to and 5 sho [about 20 Kg] high quality rice.
* Textiles for summer clothing for eight persons.
* Four hyo [50 Kg. packages] charcoal  

The following commodities could be bought with 10 yen just after the China incident in Showa 12 [1937]. 

* Two to and 5 sho low-quality rice.
* Textiles for summer clothing for five persons.
* Two and a half hyo [2 ½ packages] charcoal.

 Today (1945), three years after you have fought a hopeless war against the world's strongest country, the following commodities can be bought for 10 yen.

* One sho and two go [1 ½ kg] good quality rice on the black market.
* A small amount of charcoal (if obtainable)
* No cotton material for clothes.  

 These are the results of the mutual prosperity your leaders told you about!   

After the war,  Iwatai Sakamoto, Chief of the censorship Bureau of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department cited the 10-yen note leaflet as one of the most effective. 

Toshikazu Kase, Chief of the First Section of the Third Department of the Cabinet Board of Information added, “The 10 yen note leaflet was the most effective. It was a very powerful leaflet. It evoked great interest and curiosity among the Japanese people.” 

Masjiro Kawaguchi, Chief of the Foreign Affairs Bureau of the Home Ministry forwarded a report that said, “Leaflets of our 10 yen notes most excited the curiosity of our people. The best leaflet was the one that dealt with the cost of living [No. 2034]. In Fukushima, Fukuka, and Aichi Prefectures there were cases where the 10 yen leaflet was used as currency.” 

A report of the Foreign Section of the Home Ministry adds, “The 10 yen banknote leaflet aroused the nation's curiosity and gave the financial circles anxiety as they believed that the Americans might drop counterfeit currency at a later date. The banknotes addressed to workers [2016] were unpopular among the working class because they felt insulted by the leaflet. About the 20th of June, a certain Yamazaki in Hiroshima Prefecture used the forged 10 yen note leaflet and was arrested.”

We now come to the end of the war. It is interesting to note how the OWI took part in the final demoralization and defeat of Japan. The last dozen leaflets of the war told the Japanese that there fate was sealed. Day by day the news got worse and it was just a matter of time before the Emperor was convinced to sue for peace. As mentioned earlier, leaflet 2106 warned the Japanese that their cities would be bombed. Leaflet 2107 informed the Japanese of the full terms of the Potsdam Declaration to assure that the militarists could not distort the Allied message. Leaflet 2108 pointed out that surrender is not a disgraceful act. Leaflet 2109 told the Kamikaze to disobey their orders. Leaflet 2112 told the Japanese people about the new United Nations Charter signed in San Francisco. Leaflet 2113 told the Japanese of the 11,000 troops who surrendered and lived on Okinawa.

Leaflet 2114 

A very plain small 4 x 5-inch all-text leaflet may be one of the most important items dropped by Allied aircraft over Japan. The leaflet is coded 2114 and is in the form of a extra addition of the American propaganda newspaper Mariana Jiho. Its purpose was "To inform the Japanese people of the new atomic bomb and to make them aware of the great devastation that is in store for them. Some of the text is: 

ATOM BOMB COMPLETED 

Washington - August 6 - President Truman today issued the following statement:

Sixteen hours ago an American airplane dropped one bomb on Hiroshima, an important Japanese army base. That bomb had more power than 20,000 tons of TNT. It had more than 2000 times the blast power of the 11-ton British "Grand Slam," which is the largest bomb ever yet used in the history of warfare. 

It is an atomic bomb. It is a harnessing of the basic power of the universe. The force from which the sun draws its power has been loosed against those who brought war to the Far East.  

We are now prepared to obliterate more rapidly and completely every productive enterprise the Japanese have above ground in any city. We shall destroy their docks, their factories, and their communications. Let there be no mistake; we shall completely destroy Japan's power to make war. 

The OWI received orders on 7 August to institute a PSYOP campaign with the Atomic Bomb as its focal point. They would drop 3,600,000 leaflets daily for 9 days on Japanese cities having a population of more than 100,000 persons. A Japanese prisoner-of-war recorded the leaflet text for Saipan radio for broadcast to Japan starting at 1830 on 8 August. These broadcasts continued half hourly until the evening of 10 August. The plan called for daily delivery for 9 days of 75 M-16 bomb cases, each containing 32,000 leaflets. The first delivery of leaflet bombs was on 9 August. Such a grand campaign was not required. On the night of 10 August, the Japanese government first expressed its willingness to discuss peace negotiations. Part of the leaflet and broadcast text is:  

TO JAPANESE PEOPLE: 

America asks that you take immediate heed of what we say on this leaflet. We are in possession of the most destructive explosive ever devised by man. A single one of our newly developed atomic bombs is actually the equivalent in explosive power to what 2,000 of our giant B-29's can carry on a single mission. This awful fact is one for you to ponder and we solemnly assure you it is grimly accurate. We have just begun to use this weapon against your homeland. If you still have any doubt, ask what happened to Hiroshima when just one atomic bomb fell on that city. Before using this bomb to destroy every resource of the military by which they are prolonging this useless war, we ask that you now petition the Emperor to end the war. Our President has outlined for you the thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender: We urge that you accept these consequences and begin the work of building a new, better, and peace loving Japan. You should take steps now to cease military resistance. Otherwise, we shall resolutely employ this bomb and all our other superior weapons to promptly and forcefully end the war.

After the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, all but the most fanatical diehard militarists knew that Japan had lost the war. However, those militarists still held power and controlled the means of communication to the Japanese people. They also had the will and the ability to take the Emperor hostage and carry on the hopeless war. In order to disarm these leaders and inform the people that peace talks secret peace talks were in discussion, the OWI prepared two leaflets for the Japanese people. One leaflet informed them of current negotiations with the Allies. The second announced the surrender of Japan. They were premature, but printed and held in reserve for the proper moment of dissemination. Both leaflets would be all text, prepared quickly and used as needed. Perhaps because of the nature of the message, the second leaflet stating that the war was over was 2116, while the first leaflet mentioning the talks was 2117.

Leaflet 2115 was prepared as a special “extra” edition of the weekly newspaper Mariana News. It points out that Japanese military leaders have rejected a call for peace and that the Soviet Union has entered the war against Japan.

Leaflet 2117 

We will discuss leaflet 2117 first because it is the pre-surrender message. It informs the Japanese people of the surrender negotiations. Since The Japanese people believed from the government-controlled radio and press that they were winning the war, this must have come as quite a shock. The leaflet is 4 x 5-inches, black text on white paper. Washington prepared the message and sent the text by telephone to Honolulu. The translated text was forwarded to Saipan by Radiophoto on 12 August. By midnight, 750,000 leaflets were printed, four to a sheet. The leaflets were immediately placed in leaflet bombs and dropped over Japan on 13 August. Additional raids on 14 and 15 August brought the total count of leaflets disseminated up to 5,200,000. The text is extensive, so I have translated just a few pertinent paragraphs:

To the Japanese People 

These American planes are not dropping bombs on you today. American planes are dropping leaflets instead because the Japanese Government has offered to surrender and every Japanese has a right to know the terms of that offer and the reply made to it by the United States Government on the behalf of itself, the British, Chinese, and the Russian Government. Your government now has a chance to end the war immediately. You will see how the war can end by reading the two following official statements. 

Message from the Japanese Government:

In obedience to the gracious command of His Majesty the Emperor, who ever anxious to enhance the cause of world peace desires earnestly to bring about an early termination of hostilities with a view to saving mankind from the calamities to be imposed upon them by the further continuation of the war, the Japanese Government several weeks ago asked the Soviet Government, with which neutral relations then prevailed, to render good offices in restoring peace vis-à-vis the enemy powers...  

The Japanese government is ready to accept the terms enumerated in the joint declaration which was issued at Potsdam on 26 July 1945 by the heads of government of the United States, Great Britain and China, and later subscribed to by the Soviet Union…

Message from the United States Government: 

...From the moment of surrender, the authority of the Emperor and the Japanese Government to rule the state shall be subject to the supreme commander of the Allied powers who will take such steps as he deems proper to effect the surrender terms.  

The Emperor will be required to authorize and insure the signature of the Government of Japan and the Japanese Imperial general headquarters of the surrender terms necessary to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration, and shall issue his commands to all the Japanese military, naval and air authorities and all of the forces under their control wherever located to cease active operations and to surrender their arms, and to issue such orders as the supreme commander may require to give effect to the surrender terms.... 

After the war, Mr. Kawagucki of the Home Ministry said that leaflet 2117 was one of the most effective single pieces of American propaganda dropped on Japan.A handwritten note by the Saipan OWI Chief of Station Richard Hubert says simply:

This leaflet ended the war.

Secretary of State James F. Byrnes thanked the staff in a 17 August 1945 dispatch sent through OWI Honolulu:

I am requested by Secretary Byrnes to send appreciation to everyone concerned for the magnificent work done in lettering, translating, printing, sending and distributing the important leaflet directly before the surrender of Japan. It is the belief of Secretary Byrnes as well as we in this office that the factor which helped to bring about the final surrender was this leaflet.

Leaflet 2116 

Even as leaflet 2117 was in bombs inside the B-29s, the OWI started production on leaflet 2116. They printed 200,000 leaflets announcing the Japanese surrender, which were crated and ready for use when the final surrender occurred. The B29s were in radio contact and ready to turn around and bring leaflet 2117 back to Saipan if the story of the surrender was announced.

B-29s of the 73rd Wing were at the disposal of the OWI now and MPs stood by, ready to provide escort to the trucks ready to rush the new leaflets 10 miles to the Isley Field.

On 15 August, the OWI print shop received orders to stop printing 2117 and concentrate on 2116. Instead of dropping leaflet bombs from 20,000 feet, the new leaflets would be dropped in bundles from 4000 feet. The OWI requested the cessation of all Japanese radio jamming so that Japanese anti-aircraft units would know that the war was over and not fire on the low-flying bombers. There were some reports of Japanese units continuing to fight and ignoring the ceasefire order from Tokyo. B-29 crew would have little chance of survival if hit at 4,000 feet. As a result, although ordered to drop the leaflets, the OWI on Saipan made a decision not to put the aircrews in danger. It was apparent that the Japanese now knew of the surrender through their own newspapers and radios, and there was no reason to risk the lives of American military personnel on a redundant mission.   

Leaflet 2116 is once again a small 4 x 5-inch black and white all-text leaflet. It was prepared to inform the Japanese people of the surrender terms accepted by the Japanese Government. The text is extensive so I have only translated a few pertinent paragraphs: 

THE WAR IS OVER - JAPAN ACCEPTS ALLIED TERMS 

The United States, The United Kingdom, China and the Soviet Union have accepted the Japanese offer of surrender, with the provision that, "The authority of the Emperor and the Japanese government to rule the state shall be subject to the Supreme Commander of the Allied powers who will take such steps as he deems necessary to effectuate the surrender terms."

 In accepting the terms, the Allied powers laid down the following conditions:

"The Emperor will be required to authorize and insure the signature of the Government of Japan and the Japanese Imperial general headquarters of the surrender terms necessary to carry out the provisions of the Potsdam Declaration, and shall issue his commands to all the Japanese military, naval and air authorities and all of the forces under their control wherever located to cease active operations and to surrender their arms, and to issue such orders as the supreme commander may require to give effect to the surrender terms. Immediately upon the surrender, the Japanese Government shall transport prisoners of war and civilian internees to places of safety, as selected, where they can quickly be placed aboard Allied transports.

The ultimate form of Government of Japan shall, in accordance with the Potsdam Declaration, be established by the freely-expressed will of the Japanese people. The armed forces of the Allied powers shall remain in Japan until the purposes set forth in the Potsdam Declaration are achieved."

Leaflet 2118
The Last OWI Leaflet Dropped on Japan 

What may be the final OWI leaflet of WWII was numbered 2118. The official title of this leaflet is, "Imperial Rescript to all Subjects" on the front, and "Imperial Rescript to the Ministers of War and Navy" on the back. This leaflet informed all Japanese military forces and civilians at home and abroad of the Emperor’s two Imperial Recripts concerning Japan’s surrender. The leaflet is all text and mentions the brave efforts of Japan’s fighting forces, the "cruel" atomic bomb, and the need for millions of Japanese citizens to survive the war. He warns against rebellion and outbursts of emotion and asks the people to realize that Japan will never perish and to accept defeat in good faith. Some of the text is:

To our good and loyal subjects…We have ordered our government to communicate to the governments of the United States, Great Britain, China and the Soviet Union that our empire accepts the provisions of their joint declaration…

But now the war has lasted for nearly four years. Despite the best that has been done by everyone, the gallant fighting of the military and naval forces...and the devoted service of one hundred million people, the war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan’s advantage, while the general trends of the world have all turned against her interests.

Moreover, the enemy has begun to employ a new and most cruel bomb, the power of which to do damage is indeed incalculable, taking a toll of many innocent lives.

Should we continue to fight, it would not only result in the ultimate collapse and obliteration of the Japanese nation, but it would also lead to the total extinction of human civilization...

Let the entire nation continue as one family from generation to generation, ever firm in its faith in the imperishableness of its divine land, and mindful of its heavy burden of responsibilities, and the long road before it….

CM-129

The OWI ended the war with dozens of different leaflets sent to all the Japanese-occupied territories; China, Korea, Formosa, etc., telling the people that the war was over. An example of these leaflets is CM-129 dated 12 August 1945 targeting all the people of China. The leaflet bears the United States and Chinese flags and says in part:

Chinese friends,

Japan has surrendered! She has accepted the surrender terms imposed by the United States, Great Britain, China and the Soviet Union. The hostilities will cease at once. The gloomy and painful days you suffered for eight painful years are over and the dawn glows now…Thus, Chinese friends, the final victory is here. You are happy. We are happy too…

PK20

We should point out that other Allied nations also produced “end of the war” leaflets. For example, Australians FELO leaflet PK20 to the occupied peoples of New Guinea depicts a native symbol and the Pidgin-English text in part:

ALL NATIVES HEAR THIS TALK

The Emperor of Japan has said that he has enough of this war. The war is finished. We have beaten them completely. Very soon all of the men of Japan will be in prison. You look out. The Japanese will be very cross with you. Keep away from them. If you see any Japanese, tell our soldiers.

THE GOVERNMENT TALKS

On August 17 the Saipan transmitter KSAI went off the air. It had run day and night continuously for four months and seventeen days. On 7 September 1945 the oversight of forward area (Saipan) was transferred from the Office of War Information to the U.S. Information Services. On 31 October 1945 the Office of War Information offices in Honolulu closed. On 12 March 1946 the Office of War Information offices in Washington D.C. closed. As we stated earlier, the majority of information in this article comes directly from The O.W.I. Saipan Operation: An account of operations on Saipan from March 3, 1945 to February 15, 1946 with notes on the period July 1944 to March 2, 1945 by Richard S. R. Hubert. The report was written by Hubert in Honolulu and as he was returning to the United States from Saipan. I thank his daughter Josette for her kindness in letting me study through these rare and valuable historical files. 

This concludes our study of the wartime training of the Pacific area OWI agent. Readers with comments are encouraged to write to the author at sgmbert@hotmail.com.

© January 22, 2005