Shigematsu Sakaibara | |
|---|---|
 Sakaibara reads his final statement before being sentenced for ordering the Wake Island massacre (December 27, 1945) | |
| Born | (1898-12-28)December 28, 1898 |
| Died | June 19, 1947(1947-06-19) (aged 48)[1] |
| Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
| Known for | Wake Island massacre |
| Criminal status | Executed |
| Conviction | War crimes |
| Criminal penalty | Death |
| Details | |
| Victims | 98 |
| Date | October 7, 1943 |
| Location | Wake Island |
| Target | American civilians |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance |  Empire of Japan |
| Service |  Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Years of service | 1918–1945 |
| Rank |  Rear Admiral |
| Commands | 65th Base Garrison (Wake Island) |
| Battles / wars | |
Shigematsu Sakaibara (酒井原 繁松,Sakaibara Shigematsu, December 28, 1898 – June 19, 1947) was an admiral in theImperial Japanese Navy, the Japanese garrison commander onWake Island duringWorld War II, and a convictedwar criminal. He was responsible for ordering theWake Island massacre, in which 98 American civilians were murdered by Japanese soldiers. Following Japan's surrender, Sakaibara was tried for war crimes and executed for his involvement.
A native ofYamagata prefecture in northern Japan, Sakaibara was a graduate of the 46th class of theImperial Japanese Navy Academy in 1918, placing 36th in a class of 124. He served hismidshipman tour on thecruiserTokiwa, and after his commission as anensign, was assigned toHirado. He later served on thedestroyerKaba andbattleshipMutsu.
As a sub-lieutenant, he served on theIwate and after his promotion tolieutenant on December 1, 1924, he was assigned to theHiei,Yura, andSendai. He was chief gunnery officer on theTatsuta. Promoted tolieutenant commander in 1930, he served as chief gunnery officer onTakao in 1934, followed byMutsu in 1935. He wasexecutive officer onChikuma in 1939. After his promotion to captain in 1940, he served in a number of staff positions.
After theBattle of Wake Island on December 23, 1941, Sakaibara was appointed the garrison commander of the Japanese occupation force. Fearing an imminent attempt by American forces to retake the island, Sakaibara put 98 American civilians they had captured to work building a series of bunkers and fortifications in preparation for a suspectedamphibious invasion.
On October 5, 1943, aircraft fromUSSYorktown bombed Wake Island. Two days later, Sakaibara ordered the beheading of an American civilian worker who was caught stealing. Fearing an invasion, Sakaibara ordered the rest of them to be killed. They were taken to the northern end of the island, blindfolded and machine-gunned. One prisoner (whose name has never been discovered) escaped, carved a message into a rock about the incident but was then recaptured and personallybeheaded by Sakaibara.[2]
However, despite the massive assembly, the attack never came. Instead theUnited States Navy established asubmarine blockade, causing the Japanese garrison to starve. United States forces bombed the island periodically from 1942 until Japan's surrender in 1945.
Sakaibara was promoted torear admiral a year later, on October 15, 1944. The Japanese garrison on Wake Island formally surrendered to the United States on September 4, 1945.
After the war, Sakaibara, his subordinate, Lieutenant Commander Shoichi Tachibana, and Toraji Ito, were taken into custody by theAmerican occupation authorities. They initially claimed that the victims were killed in a bombing raid by U.S. forces, but later confessed to the massacre.
Sakaibara, Tachibana, and Ito were extradited toKwajalein Island, where they were tried for war crimes by a U.S. military commission. Ito killed himself in custody. Sakaibara and Tachibana were both found guilty and sentenced to death in December 1945. Tachibana's sentence was commuted to life in prison, and he was sent toSugamo Prison to serve out his sentence. Sakaibara was extradited toGuam for execution.[3][4]
Just before he was sentenced, Sakaibara read out a final statement to the commission. He admitted that what he did was wrong and said he wished that he had never heard of Wake Island. However, Sakaibara also claimed that the United States had no moral authority to try him or others after using nuclear weapons on Japan. With that statement, many people in Sakaibara's hometown saw him as a victim ofvictor's justice.[5]
Sakaibara washanged in Guam on June 19, 1947. Until the end, he maintained, "I think my trial was entirely unfair and the proceeding unfair, and the sentence too harsh, but I obey with pleasure."[6]
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