An Aboriginal member of the Japanese Imperial Army survived alone in the jungles of Indonesia for 30 years before returning to an unfamiliar homeland
Taipei Times
Date: Jan 03, 2016
By: Han Cheung / Staff reporter
On Jan. 8, 1975, nearly 30 years after the end of World War II, former Imperial
Suniuo after returning to Taiwan. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Japanese Army soldier Nakamura Teruo finally returned home.
It was a different place from what he had known. His native land was no longer part of Japan. His son, who was an infant when he left, was now a father of four children, and his wife had remarried. Everyone was calling him Lee Kuang-hui (李光輝) — a name he had never even heard of when he departed for Indonesia with the Takasago Volunteer Unit in 1944.
A member of the Amis people, Western reports have his Aboriginal name as Attun Palalin, while local sources call him Suniuo, which is what this article will go with.
Even though the Takasago were a volunteer army in name, Suniuo says he was forced to enlist. Shortly after he landed on Morotai Island in Indonesia, the Allies arrived and secured it as a base. Suniuo lost contact with his group during this time. [FULL STORY]