There was Really no Defence

I think that was one of the biggest mistakes the Canadian Government made, to send us there. When you look at the, there was really no defence. The equipment of defence there was rotten. There was no artillery or no nothing to really keep the Japs out. It was ridiculous. Just one, if you look at the map, and you can see that there was absolutely, there was no Allied forces anywheres near, that it was hopeless. I haven’t got no hard feelings against them. The Japanese citizens now, it’s an altogether different society there the same as it is here. In fact, I know some, I met some Japanese people here. I talked to them, some of them. I see them quite often. They live in Calgary and they’re related to a friend of, a lady friend of mine. And even their parents, that Japanese couples’ parents were here from Japan. But they were, even they were young. They didn’t know very much about the war. But no, I got no hard feelings. There’s no sense having hard feelings against them now.

Mr. Peters reflects on the decision by Canada to reinforce Hong Kong, as well as his thoughts on the Japanese.

Abraham Peters

Abe Peters, one of six children, was born in Lowe Farm, Manitoba, on November 12, 1919. His father was a farmer. Mr. Peters worked on the family farm, and was entrusted with the care of the horses. He left school after completing Grade eight to become a farm labourer. His parents were very upset to learn that he had enlisted in the Royal Winnipeg Rifles in June, 1940. Mr. Peters took basic training at Shiloh, Manitoba and Debert, Nova Scotia. He was ill in hospital when the Rifles shipped overseas to Europe, and once healthy, was sent to reinforce the Winnipeg Grenadiers, with whom he was sent to Hong Kong. As with other survivors of the Hong Kong theatre, Mr. Peters experienced poor training, inferior weaponry, capitulation and a life of misery in the Japanese POW and labour camps. He agrees with many of his comrades that it was a hopeless deployment.