"The Last Japanese Soldier" (Documentary by Howie Severino)

Episode on May 31, 2010 Monday after Saksi! “The Last Japanese Soldier" Documentary by Howie Severino Japan surrendered in 1945, ending World War II. But the war continued for another 29 years in the mind of Hiroo Onoda, a Japanese intelligence officer assigned to Lubang Island off Mindoro . When he finally emerged from the jungle in 1974 and returned to Japan , he was celebrated as a devoted soldier. Howie Severino and his I-Witness team retrace some of Onoda's steps in the rugged forest of Lubang and imagine his life in the wild. But they also discover some ugly truths about what he did to survive and persist in his mission. When the Allied Forces returned to Lubang Island in 1945, the Japanese military had no choice but to retreat. Hoping for a Japanese counterattack, Onoda and his men did everything to survive in the jungle and prepared themselves to fight till the end. Surrender was not an option. For many years since World War II, Lt. Hiroo Onoda and his three Japanese soldiers lived off the resources of the jungle and of the residents of Lubang Island – armed with warrior instincts of survival, force and intimidation. For 29 years, going to the jungle was no easy task for the residents because somewhere in that expanse was Lt. Onoda, the lone surviving Japanese guerrilla who continued to carryout his military orders. For 29 years, some Filipino lives were lost for a war that no longer existed. Howie Severino and outdoorsman David Tajan enter the jungles of Lubang Island to retrace the trails of Lt. Onoda. How did this environment define the hero that Lt. Onoda now is? And where do the casualties of war, the Lubang residents, fit in a war that is only imagined? I-Witness’ “The Last Japanese Soldier" airs on Monday May 31, 2010 after Saksi.

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“Ang Huling Sundalong Hapon" May 31, 2010 Taong 1945 nang sumuko ang bansang Hapon at natapos ang World War II. Pero sa isipan ng isang sundalong Hapon na si Hiroo Onoda, nagpatuloy pa ang giyera. 29 taon siyang nagtago sa isla ng Lubang sa Mindoro , umaasa ng saklolo mula sa kaniyang mga kasama. Nang bumalik ang Allied Forces sa Lubang Island noong 1945, walang nagawa ang natitirang puwersang Hapon kundi magtago sa kagubatan. Sa pag-asang makakaganti pa ang kanilang puwersa, ginawa nila ang lahat upang makaraos sa loob ng gubat at inahanda ang kanilang mga sarili na lumaban hanggang katapusan. Hindi sila handang sumuko. Sa matagal na panahon mula noong World War II, namuhay sina Lt. Hiroo Onoda at tatlong mga kasamang sundalo sa kayamanan ng gubat at sa kabuhayan ng mga residente ng Lubang Island . Bihasa sila sa paggamit ng puwersa at dahas upang manatiling buhay. Sa loob ng 29 taon, hindi naging madali para sa mga residente ng Lubang ang pumasok sa gubat, dahil naroroon si Lt. Onoda, ang natitirang gerilyang Hapon na patuloy sa pakikipaglaban. Sa loob ng 29 taon, ilang buhay ng Pilipino ang nakitil para sa isang giyera na matagal nang natukdukan. Pinasok ni Howie Severino, kasama ang outdoorsman na si David Tajan, ang kagubatan ng Lubang Island upang balikan ang mga bakas ni Lt. Onoda. Sinubukan ni Howie ang kapaligirang binagayan ni Lt. Onoda – matatarik na bundok, mga halamang nakakasugat, iba't-ibang uri ng langgam, kakarampot na pagkain at gamit pang-camping. Mula sa gubat na ito, paano naging isang bayani si Lt. Onoda? At paano naman ang mga residente ng Lubang, na naging mga biktima ng isang digmaang guni-guni lamang? Bagtasin ang mga yapak ng huling sundalong Hapon ngayong Lunes sa I-Witness.