PEKANBARU DEATH RAILWAY

Captain Ryohei Miyazaki was responsible for the camps along the railway. The Medan prosecutor charged that Miyazaki had failed to uphold the 1929 Geneva Convention's requirement that all pow's were to be treated humanely and that they were to be protected from harm. Since he had not provided sufficient food, clothing, and medical supplies for the men working on the railway, they had died. Moreover, their deaths were foreseeable, given the heavy labour being required.

 

After looking at all evedence the military tribunal concluded that there was insufficiet evidence upon which to find Miyazaki guilty for the deaths. The court had recognised that there was a short supply of food, clothing, and medicine as well as determining that it was Miyazaki's superiors who determined the quantity of supplies delivered to the pow camps.

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He did not however escape responsibility for the brutal mistreatment of pow's in his camps by Korean guards. the court took into account many affidavits from ex pow's, who reported beatings from the Koreans, including being struck in the face, head, torso, and legs with bamboo canes, iron bars, rifle butts, and whips. the injuries were sever with some pow's dying as result of these beatings. Miyazaki denied knowing that his Korean guards were beating the pow's however the tribunal rejected this claim as unbelievable given the mistreatment was wide spread and resulted in death. 

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On May 30, 1948, Miyazaki was found guilty for the mistreatment of pow's and sentenced to death. The sentence was carried out 

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Miyazaki petitioned Lt. Governor General van Mook to spare his life as well as writing a letter to KNIL. Major van de Lande whom he hoped would intervene with the authorities on his behalf. This letter can be seen below. His petitions in the end were unsuccessful and he was executed in June 1948.