CHINA - BURMA - INDIA THEATER
The MIS intelligence
work was indispensable and extensively used in the China-Burma-India
(CBI) theater and several different areas. Not only did they work
as interpreters and translators, but some also saw action on the
battlefield as riflemen. Others also worked at the Southeast Asia
Translation and Interrogation Center (SEATIC) located in New Delhi,
India; Office
of War Information (OWI) in Burma; and the Office
of Strategic Services (OSS) in Calcutta, India. The MIS worked
with the American command units, the Merrill’s Marauders
and Mars Task Force, and participated in some of the most notable
actions in the CBI theater.
Merrill’s Marauders
A group of 3,000 men including 14 MIS soldiers volunteered for
a “dangerous and hazardous” mission under the leadership
of Brigadier General Frank Merrill. With the Japanese occupying
Burma from the beginning of the war, there was no land route for
supplies to China. The only way to secure a supply route was to
reopen Burma Road and destroy Japanese communications and supply
lines in the process. The newly formed 5307 Composite Unit (Provisional)
was put to task. From February to August 1944, the Merrill’s
Marauders, as they were later dubbed, played a part in the operations.
Its main goal was to clear the north Burma area of Japanese troops
and capture the town of Myitkyina and its airstrip.
Trained in jungle warfare, the Marauders trekked through more
than 700 miles of dense Burma jungle for seven months. All together,
the soldiers participated in five major and 30 minor engagements.
Along the way, the Marauders were met with enemy fire and attacked
by monsoons and tropical diseases. By the time the Marauders had
captured the town of Myitkyina and defeated the Japanese troops,
it had been reduced to 15 percent of its original size. The Merrill’s
Marauders were awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) in
July 1944 and disbanded in August of that year. In 1966, the DUC
was redesignated to Presidential
Unit Citation.
All 14 MIS soldiers were fortunate to have all survived the
ordeal and received Bronze
Stars and Combat Infantryman’s Badges. They included:
| Howard Furumoto |
Edward Mistukado |
| Henry Gosho |
Herbert Miyasaki |
| Grant Hirabayashi |
Roy T. Nakada |
| Robert T. Honda |
Ben S. Sugeta |
| Calvin Kobata |
Thomas K. Tsubota |
| Russell K. Kono |
Jimmy Yamaguchi |
| Roy Matsumoto |
Akiji Yoshimura |
These men are the only intelligence servicemen fully recognized
for their work. General Merrill commended the MIS when he said,
“as for the value of the Nisei
I couldn’t have gotten along without them.”
Among the Marauders, Master Sergeant Roy Matsumoto had an incomparable
experience and is known for his heroism in Burma. On March 4,
1944 Matsumoto crept within distance to eavesdrop on a Japanese
unit conversing and obtained vital information on a future attack.
Matsumoto immediately informed his commander and prepared an ambush.
As the Japanese soldiers prepared for their assault, Matsumoto
courageously shouted an order in Japanese. The Japanese soldiers
responded and prematurely attacked. This resulted in 54 Japanese
casualties while the Marauders suffered none. For his daring actions,
Matsumoto was awarded the Legion of Merit medal.
In another incident with the Marauders, Matsumoto again displayed
his courage. In the middle of an assault at Nphum Ga, Burma, Matsumoto
posed as a Japanese officer and ordered an all out “banzai”
attack into the heart of the Marauders position. With this action,
Matsumoto saved the lives of the Marauders. When asked why he
wasn’t considered for the Medal
of Honor, Lieutenant Colonel George McGee replied, “he
was only an enlisted man doing his duty.”
Mars Task Force
The 5332nd Brigade (Provisional), otherwise known as the Mars
Task Force, replaced Merrill’s Marauders in August 1944.
The Mars Task Force was comprised of two regiments -- the 475th
Infantry and the 124th Cavalry – with 12 MIS linguists
were attached to each regiment. The mission of the Mars Task Force,
similar to that of the Merrill’s Marauders, was to operate
around and behind enemy lines, cut off supplies and reinforcements,
and clear the Burma Road.
The MIS soldiers served both as interpreters and riflemen, however
one of its most important tasks was to eavesdrop on Japanese soldiers.
Linguists were responsible for obtaining information from Japanese
soldiers who conversed loudly around the defense perimeter. They
gathered intelligence on ammunition dumps, enemy positions and
movements. The Mars Task Force served in the CBI theater until
February of 1945.
MIS who participated in the Mars Task Force included:
| James Araki |
James Okita |
| Herbert Hamaguchi |
Benji Shirayama |
| George Harada |
Kan Tagami |
| Takeshi Angel Hirano |
Toma Tasaki |
| Kazuo Komoto |
Frank Tokubo |
| Paul Miwa |
Sadao Toyama |
| Arthur Morimitsu |
Tom Tsunoda |
| Gilbert Nagata |
Tom Tsuruda |
| Yutaka Nakahata |
Tony Umemoto |
| Hiroshi Nakamura |
|
China
MIS linguists served in Chungking, China under Chiang Kai-Shek
in July 1944. Five MIS Nisei participated in an American mission
to Yenan, which operated as Mao Tse Tung’s headquarters.
The servicemen nicknamed this mission the “Dixie Mission”
because it was in “rebel” territory.
The MIS interrogated Japanese POWs to extract intelligence information
on the Japanese units as well as wrote propaganda leaflets distributed
among the prisoners and intercepted communications. The MIS worked
diligently day and night to gather vital information.
MIS soldiers who served in China included:
| Koji Ariyoshi |
Shoso Nomura |
| Jack Ishii |
Toshio Uesato |
| George I. Nakamura |
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