Surrender of the Second Japanese Army address delivered by General Sir Thomas Blamey in Morotai

"SURRENDER OF JAPANESE FORCES / Address DELIVERED BY / COMMANDER – in – CHIEF, AUSTRALIAN MILITARY FORCES / GENERAL SIR THOMAS BLAMEY / to / Lt-General Teshima, Commander Second Japanese Army / On the occasion of the signing of their surrender / MOROTAI, 9th SEPTEMBER, 1945 / LIEUT. GENERAL TESHIMS, COMMANDER SECOND JAPANESE ARMY: / “The Japanese Navy has been destroyed. The Japanese Merchant / Fleet has been reduced to a mere fraction. The Japanese Air Force has been / driven from the sky. The Japanese armies have been defeated everywhere / and all that remained for them was to await their inevitable total destruction. / Japanese cities lie in waste and Japanese industry has been destroyed. Never / before in history has so numerous a nation been so completely defeated. / “To escape the complete destruction of the nation, the Emperor of / Japan has yielded to the Allied Forces and an instrument of total surrender / has been signed in his name. he has charged you to obey the orders which / I shall give you. / “In carrying out these orders, the Japanese Army and Navy organisa- / tion will be retained for convenience. Instructions will be issued by the / designated Australian Commanders to the Commanders of the respective / Japanese Forces, placing upon you and your subordinate Commanders the / responsibility for carrying out your Emperor’s direction to obey all orders / given to you by me. / “You will ensure that all Allied Personnel, prisoner of war or / internees in Japanese hands are safeguarded and nourished and delivered / over to the Allied Commanders. / “You will collect, lay down and safeguard all arms, ammunition and / instruments of war until such time as they are taken over by the designated / Commanders. You will be given adequate time to carry this out. An official / date will be named and any Japanese found in possession after that date of / any arms. Ammunition or instrument of war of any kind will be dealt with / summarily by the Australian Commander on the spot. / “Orders will be given for these and other matters as I consider neces- / sary and you will ensure the obedience to all such orders without delay / “In receiving your surrender I do not recognise you as an honourable / and gallant foe, but you will be treated with due but severe courtesy in all / matters. / “I recall the treacherous attack on upon our ally, China, in 1938. I recall / the treacherous attack made on the British Empire and upon the United / States of America in December 1941, at a time when your authorities were / making the pretence of ensuring peace. / “I recall the atrocities inflicted upon the persons of our nationals as / prisoners of war and internees, designed to reduce them by punishment and starvation to slavery. / In the light of these evils, I will enforce most rigorously all orders / issued to you, so let there be no delay or hesitation in their fulfilment at / your peril.”