Far East prisoners of war is a term used in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

to describe former

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

held in the

Far East The Far East is the geographical region that encompasses the easternmost portion of the Asian continent, including North Asia, North, East Asia, East and Southeast Asia. South Asia is sometimes also included in the definition of the term. In mod ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The term is also used as the

initialism An acronym is a type of abbreviation consisting of a phrase whose only pronounced elements are the initial letters or initial sounds of words inside that phrase. Acronyms are often spelled with the initial letter of each word in all caps wi ...

FEPOW, or as the

abbreviation An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening (linguistics), shortening, contraction (grammar), contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened for ...

Far East POWs.

Compensation scheme

Since 2000, following a campaign led by the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. Membership Service in th ...

, former Far East POWs are eligible for UK Government compensation for their suffering in POW and internment camps operated by the Japanese during the War. Compensation may be payable to any member of all British Groups imprisoned by the Japanese in the Second World War. It is therefore available to British civilians and merchant seamen as well as members of British and Commonwealth forces. An amendment of the scheme in 2002 extended compensation to former Gurkha soldiers. An application may be made by either a former POW or their family or

estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representativ ...

. A successful FEPOW applicant is entitled to an ''

ex gratia (; also spelled ''ex-gratia'') is Latin for "by favor", and is most often used in a legal context. When something has been done ''ex gratia'', it has been done voluntarily, out of kindness or grace. In law, an ''ex gratia payment'' is a payment ...

'' payment of £10,000. The scheme is currently administered by the

Veterans Agency The Veterans Agency was an Executive Agency of the UK government's Ministry of Defence (MoD). It was amalgamated into the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency (SPVA) on 2 April 2007 under the brand ''Veterans-UK''. It was formerly known as ...

Clubs and organisations

The National Federation of Far East Prisoner of War Clubs and Associations (NFFCA) acts as an umbrella organisation for over 60 autonomous FEPOW Clubs and Associations in the UK. Th
FEPOW Community
has been set up to research loved ones who suffered under Japanese captivity during World War II. It does incorporate a free group, with its members helping each other in research. The Roll-of-Honour
Roll of Honour
has every death of service personnel and civilians mentioned in the site, most having a page of their own. The Far Eastern Heroes
Far Eastern Heroes
covers stories from the FEPOWs themselves, with a special page which promote
FEPOW Day
as 15 August, the day Japan surrendered. Children and Families of the Far East Prisoners of War (COFEPOW) was founded in 1997 by Carol Cooper in

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

after a chance reading of a newspaper article about the discovery of a diary of a soldier who had died working on the

Burma Railway The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam–Burma Railway, Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand, and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). It was built from 1940 to 1943 ...

. It emerged that the soldier was her father. In 1999 it became a registered charity. Today it comprises a membership of children and siblings of those who died as POWs and campaigns to raise awareness, raises funds for the creation of memorials both in the UK and the Far East, and offers resources for research. In 2005, it established the Far East Prisoners of War Memorial Building at the

National Memorial Arboretum The National Memorial Arboretum is a British site of national remembrance at Alrewas, near Lichfield, Staffordshire, England. Its objective is to honour the fallen, recognise service and sacrifice, and foster pride in the British Armed Forces and ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, England. Within the building an exhibition tells the story of those captured by the Japanese during the Second World War. In the same area of the Arboretum are memorials for those prisoners of war who suffered and died building the Burma and Sumatra Railways. See Inside and explore the Museu
here

FEPOW War Artists

Life in the POW camps was recorded at great risk to themselves by artists such as

Jack Bridger Chalker Jack Bridger Chalker (10 October 1918 – 15 November 2014), was a British artist and teacher best known for his work recording the lives of the prisoners of war building the Burma Railway during World War II. Biography Chalker was born in Lond ...

Philip Meninsky Philip Meninsky (1919 in Fulham, England – 2007) was the son of Bernard Meninsky. Despite an early passion for art, at his father's wish, he initially trained as an accountant, before being called up for National Service. After a first posting ...

Ashley George Old Ashley George Old (born 1913, d. 2001) was an artist best known for documenting the lives of prisoners of war forced to construct the Thailand-Burma Railway. During World War II he was stationed in Singapore, and when it fell to the Japanese in ...

and

Ronald Searle Ronald William Fordham Searle (3 March 1920 – 30 December 2011) was an English artist and satirical cartoonist, comics artist, sculptor, medal designer and illustrator. He is perhaps best remembered as the creator of St Trinian's School and f ...

. Human hair was often used for brushes, plant juices and blood for paint, and toilet paper as the "canvas". Some of their works were used as evidence in the trials of Japanese war criminals. The

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine The Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) is a post-graduate teaching and research institution based in Liverpool, England, established in 1898. It was the first institution in the world dedicated to the study of tropical medicine. LSTM ...

undertook a study of British Far East POW medical art subsequent to a FEPOW oral history. An exhibition 'Secret Art of Survival - Creativity and ingenuity of British Far East prisoners of war, 1942 - 1945' was held at Victoria Gallery and Museum,

University of Liverpool The University of Liverpool (abbreviated UOL) is a Public university, public research university in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1881 as University College Liverpool, Victoria University (United Kingdom), Victoria University, it received Ro ...

from 25 October 2019 - 20 June 2020.

FEPOW Memorial Church

Wymondham Catholic Church and FEPOW memorial - geograph

Our Lady & St Thomas of Canterbury in

Wymondham Wymondham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Norfolk district of Norfolk, England. It lies on the River Tiffey, south-west of Norwich and just off the A11 road (England), A11 road to London. The pari ...

, England was completed in 1952 on the initiative of Father Malcolm Cowin - former Roman Catholic

Chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

to the

2nd Cambridgeshire Regiment The Cambridgeshire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army, and was part of the Territorial Army. Originating in units of rifle volunteers formed in 1860, the regiment served in the Second Anglo-Boer War and the First and Second W ...

and who himself had spent 3½ years in Japanese POW camps. The site and a fund to build the church had been provided by Irish labourers and

USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

personnel in the area. While a prisoner he helped construct three chapels in different camps and determined that on his return to the UK he would build a church in memory of those who died in Japanese POW and internment camps. It serves as a parish church for the local Roman Catholic community as well as a focal point for the wider FEPOW community. There is a FEPOW shrine and an annual FEPOW memorial service held on the nearest Sunday to 14 May, the anniversary of the relief of Rangoon.

Wisbech FEPOW Memorial

St Peter and St Paul's Church, Wisbech contains a FEPOW memorial dedicated to those who lost their lives in the Far East. Designed by Brian Krill the memorial is in the style of a bamboo prisoner of war hut. An exhibition to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Singapore campaign was held February to April, 2022 in the nearby

Wisbech & Fenland Museum The Wisbech & Fenland Museum, located in the town of Wisbech in the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, is one of the oldest purpose-built museums in the United Kingdom. The museum logo is W&F. History Initially a member-based organisation, ...

References

{{Reflist

External links

The FEPOW Community is for those researching ''Far East Prisoners of War''

Far Eastern Heroes are stories by ''Far East Prisoners of War''

Roll of Honour for ''Far East Prisoners of War''

FEPOW memorial church

A FEPOW research site

A Java FEPOW veterans club
Aftermath of World War II in the United Kingdom Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in World War II South-East Asian theatre of World War II Japanese war crimes World War II crimes against prisoners of war Veterans' affairs in the United Kingdom World War II prisoners of war held by Japan