Testimony of Catalina Vale of San Jose, Batangas on Japanese Atrocities Witnessed at Bo. Lapulapu I in 1945

This page contains the testimony of one Catalina Vale of San Jose, Batangas on atrocities committed by the Japanese in the barrio of Lapulapu I. The pages contained herein are now declassified and were part of compiled documentation¹ of war crimes trials conducted by the United States Military Commission after the conclusion of World War II. Most of the testimonies were translated from Tagalog and have been corrected for grammar by Batangas History, Culture and Folklore where possible. The pagination is as it was contained in the original document for citation purposes.

The ruined Municipal Building in San Jose in 1945.  Image credit:  United States National Archives.

[p. 19]

R E S T R I C T E D

Q Please state your full name, age, address and nationality.
A Catalina Vale, 64 years old, Lapulapu I, San Jose, Batangas Province, P. I., Filipino.

Q What is your occupation?
A Housekeeper.

Q Do you intend to remain at your present address, and if not, how can your whereabouts in the future be ascertained?
A I intend to remain at my present address.

Q Do you know of any atrocity committed by the Japanese in Lapulapu I sometime in February 1945?
A Yes.

Q Please relate in your own words what happened?
A On February 14, 1945, Wednesday afternoon, 3 o’clock, we saw 15 Japanese. Four of them went upstairs and found my brother-in-law Trobio Vale, aged 57, sitting on the floor near the door of our house in Lapulapu I. One of the Japanese, who was carrying a long saber, spoke something which I did not understand. Then, the others made signs to Trobio to stand. Hardly had he stood when two of the Japanese took hold of him by his clothes and dragged him to a place opposite ours with three Japanese standing on guard. When the two Japanese came out, no one was with them.

This time, there were already many, the exact number I cannot remember, Japanese on the street. These Japanese dispersed. About ten of them went north and met three persons, Anselmo Alabastro, aged 45; Eutiquio Alabastro, aged 20; and Felipe Alabastro, aged 18, and took them to the house of Herman Baliwag, which was about 50 meters from our house. These three men were then tied with their hands behind their backs to the posts of the house. There feet, too, were tied. Then, the house was burned and these three were burned alive. I could hear their screams while the house was burning.

Next day, about daybreak, I went to the house of my son, Delfin Ona, aged 22, about 50 meters, too, north of our house. It was burned. I found the body of my son tied to a post near the door, his body was burned also with the head cut off.

Q Do you know the names of any of the Japanese responsible for the burning of these houses and killing of the people you mentioned?
A No.

Q Can you describe any of them?
A All I know was that they had khaki uniforms and two of them had nets over their bodies which I was informed were used for camouflage.

Q Can you describe their insignia?
A No.

Q You know what unit they belonged to?
A No.

Q What do you think provoked those Japanese to burn the house and kill the people in Lapulapu I?

[p. 20]

A I do know know. We were all peaceful citizens.

Q Have you anything further to add to your statement?
A No.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES

PROVINCE OF BATANGAS

TOWN OF SAN JOSE

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES

PROVINCE OF BATANGAS

TOWN OF SAN JOSE

[p. 21]

R E S T R I C T E D

Municipal Bldg., San Jose, Batangas Province, P.I.

/s/ Allen H. Peoples /t/ ALLEN H. PEOPLES, Capt., CAC

29 October 1945

/s/ Charles C. Thompson /t/ CHARLES C. THOMPSON, Capt., TC

Notes and references:
¹ “Documents Pertaining to the Testimony of Catalina Vale in U.S.A. v Tomoyuki Yamashita,” part of the U.S. Military Commission compilation of war crimes documentation, online at the Internet Archive.