JA MIS VETERANS TO DISCUSS MILITARY SERVICE MARCH 6

A panel discussion with Japanese American Military Intelligence Service (MIS) veterans from World War II and the Korean War will discuss their experiences at a special public program set for Sunday, March 6, beginning at 2 p.m., at the Japanese American National Museum.

The program, "The History of the Japanese American Military Intelligence Service", provides an opportunity for these veterans to discuss their tours of duty. Unlike their Nikkei counterparts who served as part of the 100th Infantry Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat Team and other units in the European Theater and whose World War II heroic exploits are well known, members of the MIS were often ordered to not discuss their experiences for years after their service. This continued into the Korean War.

Yet, they played an enormous role in winning the war in the Pacific during World War II and as part of the Korean War. Trained at the Military Intelligence Service Language School, the Nisei, some who were Kibei (born in the U.S., educated in Japan), were used as translators, interrogators and decipherers. Crucial to gathering intelligence was their ability to translate captured enemy documents, including maps, battle plans and orders. Some of the Japanese American MIS soldiers were assigned to specific units, such as Merrill’s Marauders in Burma.

When the war ended, the Japanese American MIS soldiers’ skills were needed for the occupation of Japan. Once more, they served as interpreters and translators, but were now crucial to the war crimes trials and essential to the occupation government in Japan. An estimated 6,000 Japanese Americans served in the MIS during and after World War II.

Major General Charles Willoughby, intelligence chief to General MacArthur, proclaimed, "The Nisei saved a million lives and shortened the war by two years."

The panel will include Bruce Kaji, Hitoshi Sameshima, Roy Shiraga, Robert Shuji Miyasaki and Tohoru Isobe. Kaji, the National Museum’s Founding President, interrogated POWs in the Philippines. Sameshima was a translator for the war crimes trials. Shiraga worked as a translator in Sapporo and wound up fighting as part of the Korean War. Isobe also served as a translator during the Korean War. Moderating the panel will be Patricia Wakida, curator for the National Museum.

This program was organized by the Japanese American Living Legacy group. It is free to National Museum members or with admission.