Children sank into the sea to talk about the tragedy of the Tsushima Maru, which was a “top secret” August 11, 9:04

Do you know the Tsushima Maru Incident?

A ship used to evacuate children sank after being attacked by an American submarine.

1484 people were killed, including many children.

At the time, the fact that the victims were involved in the incident was a top secret.

There is a storyteller who uncovers the tragedy and tells it with his own art.

80% of passengers died Tsushima Maru tragedy

“It took 27 hours and 30 minutes to set sail. After 10:00 pm on the 22nd, it was torpedoed by the American submarine Bowfin and was sunk in the sea in 10 minutes. They were targeted.”

A solo performance at the National Bunraku Theater in Osaka on August 7, when the end of the war is approaching.

Nansho Kyokudo, a storyteller based in Osaka, performed a program created based on the "Tsushima Maru incident".

In July 1944, one year before the end of the war, Saipan fell after being attacked by American forces.

As the ravages of war loomed over Okinawa, it was decided that young children should not become a hindrance, so they were evacuated as a group outside the prefecture.

The ship at that time was "Tsushima Maru".

On August 21, the Tsushima Maru departed Naha for Nagasaki with 1,788 people on board.

However, the next night, while sailing near Akusekijima in Kagoshima Prefecture, she was hit by a torpedo fired by an American submarine and sank.

“People who were thrown into the pitch-black, endless sea clung to the raft and said,

``Sensei,

I'm scared

. Some people were

swallowed by the high waves that accompanied the approach, and

some were swept away to Amami Oshima.”

1,484 people, more than 80% of the passengers, died.

More than half of them were children who were evacuated from school.

The husband of the teacher who was on the Tsushima Maru

Why did Mr. Nansho from Osaka choose the Tsushima Maru for the play?

The reason for this was Mr. Michiko Takara, a former elementary school teacher of Mr. Nansho, who was born in Okinawa.

Even after graduating, we kept in contact with each other, such as going to her teacher's house.

I learned about the Tsushima Maru Incident at a class reunion about 10 years ago.

Her husband Masakatsu, who was with Michiko-sensei, heard that she was on the Tsushima Maru and was one of the survivors.

Masakatsu Takara is now 82 years old.

At the age of four, he boarded the Tsushima Maru with his family and lost nine of his parents and siblings.

She has no recollection of before or after the ship sank, but she remembers being caught by something after being thrown out to sea, waiting for rescue.

At first, Masakatsu thought he was lucky enough to survive.

But it wasn't.

Masakatsu Takara:

“I was clinging to a raft or something.

When the ship in which Masakatsu was rescued arrived at the port, his older brother, who was living in Kagoshima at the time, was there, and he left a letter describing the situation at that time.

My brother met Masakatsu again three days after the ship sank.

According to the rescuer, Masakatsu was being held by his father when he was rescued.

It is believed that his father supported him in the rough seas until he was rescued.

His father entrusted Masakatsu to the crew of a rescue ship, but the rope on his raft broke and he died.

Masakatsu's clothes were torn by the waves, and his skin was tanned and darkened, revealing the bones around his back.

"Top secret"

My brother's letter ended like this:

Do not let your neighbors know a single line.

Top secret.

I can't talk about the fact that it is inconvenient for the country to sink it.

It is a word that conveys the heaviness of wartime when speech was strictly controlled.

Mr. Nansho, who had begun researching the Tsushima Maru, was shocked to see this letter and decided to convey it as a storytelling.

Mr. Nansho Kyokudo

"It's abnormal after all, isn't it? I thought it was an abnormal world, including the fact that the correct thing wasn't conveyed. I really felt like my heart was shaking. There are times in life when we encounter absurdities, but if we can convey something.”

50th anniversary of reversion to Japan: Tsushima Maru from Okinawa to all over Japan

For Nansho, who became a storyteller after turning 50, "Tsushimamaru" was his first creation.

It was completed eight years ago and has been performed four or five times a year.

In mid-June, before Okinawa's "Memorial Day", Masakatsu visited various places in Okinawa Prefecture and performed storytelling.

“Never tell anyone about the sinking of the Tsushima Maru. A strict gag order was issued. No detailed investigation was conducted, and correct information was not conveyed to the family left behind in Okinawa.”

The light blue kimono that Nanteru-san wears in storytelling is Michiko-sensei's memento.

Michiko-sensei passed away six years ago.

When Tsushimamaru's performance was completed, I was so weak that I couldn't speak, but after watching the performance, he told me through the keyboard, "Keep working hard."

Michiko-sensei also appears in Nansho-san's storytelling.

“Michiko-sensei taught those of us who didn't know about war how grateful we were for peace to study. That's why it was tough. No matter how hard the wartime was, we still had dreams.

Inheriting Michiko's thoughts, Nansho wants to convey the tragedy of the Tsushima Maru to elementary and junior high school students of the same age as the victims.

Ms. Nansho Kyokudo:

"For a child of my age to leave their parents' home and evacuate is something that should not be experienced. I think that there are things that can be accepted only by children, so I'm going to write storytelling. I would like to hear from you."

Mr. Masakatsu, who also served as the director of the Tsushima Maru Memorial Hall, gave a speech as a representative of the Okinawan people at the 50th anniversary ceremony of Okinawa's reversion to mainland Japan.

Through Nansho's storytelling, he hopes that as many people as possible will learn about the tragedy of the Tsushima Maru.

Masakatsu Takara:

“It was great to have people realize that the war affected not only the soldiers, but also the general public and children. War is about children who should be protected. I want to appeal to everyone that sacrifices will come even to

This content will also be reported on the news program "Hot Kansai" for Kansai from 6:00 pm on Friday, August 12th.

Osaka Broadcasting Station Reporter

Takumi Kato

Joined the station in 2011 After working at the Nagano and Kobe stations, the Osaka station

Experienced the tragedy of the Tsushima Maru Incident through reporting without knowing the circumstances and background.