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Liberation Plaque Memorial
The Liberation Plaque Memorial was dedicated in MacArthur Square on 1 April 2006. Attended by more than 100 people and 13 former internees and
liberators of the Japanese Internment Camps in the Philippines, rain threatened but held off long enough for the ceremony
to take place.
In his autobiography Reminiscences, Douglas MacArthur said that the liberation of the Santo
Tomas, Bilibid, and Los Banos Internment Camps in the Philippines, February, 1945, were his proudest moments in World War
II. He could not remember a more moving spectacle in his whole life of amazing events than his entrance into the liberated
Santo Tomas camp. He proclaimed, "It was a wonderful and never-to-be-forgotten moment - to be a life saver, not a life taker."
How much different the fate of the civilian internees of the Japanese might have been had there been no Douglas MacArthur. It
was MacArthur who pushed incessantly for the liberation of the Philippines, a goal which most Allied strategists rejected. Had
MacArthur not pushed so hard and the Philippines been bypassed, then the story and memory honored at the MacArthur Memorial
on April 1, would never have occurred.
In late January 1945, MacArthur sent a small force to Manila with orders to bypass Japanese strong points and secure Santo Tomas
Internment Camp and hold it until the rest of Sixth Army made its way to the city. If MacArthur had not pressed his forces in
the drive to Manila in January 1945, against the better and correct judgment of his Sixth Army Commander, Lieutenant General
Walter Krueger, the fate of the Bilibid and Santo Tomas internees might have been different.
As there is a special bond between the Baguio internees of Bilibid Prison and their 37th Division
liberators; the Santo Tomas internees and their liberators of the 1st Cavalry Division, 44th Tank Battalion,
and Philippine guerrilla forces; the Los Banos internees and their 11th Airborne Division, 672nd Amphibious
Tractor Battalion, and Philippine guerrilla liberators; there is a special bond between all of them and Douglas MacArthur.
In MacArthur Memorial Square there are not many memorials like the Liberation Plaque Memorial. As the years go
by there won’t be many more, but this one is special and one MacArthur would have most appreciated for it was given
to his Memorial by all those he helped save. In perpetuity the memories of MacArthur and the 7,000 or more liberated
internees will be honored together by this plaque. Long after we are all gone, the relationship between the
internees, their liberators, and Douglas MacArthur will be one of the first stories to treat visitors to the MacArthur
Memorial.
As there is a special bond between the Baguio internees of Bilibid Prison and their 37th Division liberators; the Santo Tomas
internees and their liberators of the 1st Cavalry Division, 44th Tank Battalion, and Philippine guerrilla forces; the Los Banos internees and their 11th Airborne Division, 672nd Amphibious Tractor Battalion, and Philippine guerrilla liberators; there is a special bond between all of them and Douglas MacArthur.
Victims of Circumstance Premiere at the MacArthur Memorial
Following the dedication of the Liberation Plaque Memorial on April 1, 2006, the guests were treated to the new documentary film
by Lou Gopal, Victims of Circumstance. The film tells the story of the horror lived by 3,700 American and Allied civilians who were
incarcerated in Manila’s Santo Tomas Internment Camp following the fall of the Philippines to Imperial Japan in 1942. The American
presence in the Philippine Islands at the outset of World War II stranded businessmen, housewives, school children - whole families,
who through no fault or plan of their own, were thrown into a set of circumstances which would lead many to sickness, starvation and
even death. They were forced to leave their homes and belongings; forced to leave their friends and way of life to live under the
domination and whims of the mighty Imperial Forces of Japan. They were interned within the walls of an old university now known as
the Santo Tomas Internment Camp. Their poignant saga is a celebration of the human spirit and the will to organize and survive.
Presented through the personal recollections and eyewitness accounts by those who lived through three years and one month under
Japanese control, the film included original photographs from personal collections as well as old film footage and photos from
the National Archives and MacArthur Memorial.
The film was a great success as judged by all those who attended the event. Some of those in the audience were former internees
who were interviewed for the film. Even those who knew nothing about the Santo Tomas experience found the film to be an
extremely interesting documentary.
Lou Gopal and his wife Michelle were present for the screening and were available for questions about the film and the process of
making it. The MacArthur Memorial wishes to thank the Gopals for choosing to screen their film at the MacArthur Memorial on the
special occasion of the dedication of the Liberation Plaque Memorial. The film Victims of Circumstance is available in the MacArthur
Memorial Gift Shop. Please contact the MacArthur Memorial for copies of this fine film.
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