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THE oldest recorded survivor of the infamous Death Railway project in World War II (WWII) died at the age of 97 in Seremban, Negri Sembilan.
Arumugam Kandasamy passed on months after accompanying the Death Railway Interest Group - a non-governmental organisation set up to champion the cause of the victims, who were believed to be mainly Malaysian Indians back to the site in the Kanchanaburi province in Thailand - bordering Myanmar.
His son, A. Sudhagaran, 45, said his father died at 3.26 am on Saturday after receiving treatment at a private hospital here with the cause believed to be old age.
"His passing all deeply saddens us. He was a loving father and grandfather to his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was our hero.
"Since the passing of our mother (Kalayanee) 16 years ago, our father continued to care for us as best as he could. I am grateful for the upbringing provided by both my parents, as all of us have succeeded in our careers, including our grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We will miss him dearly," the son posted.
Sudhagaran described his father as a cheerful and healthy man, despite being nearly 100 years old and had been invited to give talks to students at several schools in the state about his gruesome experiences at the Death Railway site.
Historically, it was reportedly that more than 90,000 Southeast Asian civilians died building the Death Railway including Malays, Indians, and Chinese from then Malaya.
The exact number of deaths is unknown, but estimates suggest that about 100,000 Malaysians of Indian descent died together with scores of the Allied prisoners of war, namely the Brits and Australians.
They were brought over to construct the railway line to link the Japanese Imperial Army through Myanmar where they could prepare for an attack on the British colonial crown of India but before the plan could begin, the Allied Forces defeated the Japanese in WWII in the Pacific theatre.
Arumugam survived the ordeal, came home, got married and had 13 children with 38 grandchildren and 21 great grandchildren.
Family members and acquaintances paid their last respects at the family home at Rumah Rakyat, Linggi, Port Dickson, and the man will be cremated later today.
Interest group coordinator P. Chandrasekaran said that Arumugam went without witnessing plans to erect a proper memorial at the site for the victims, while some quarters were seeking compensation from the relevant authorities.
Japan has since apologised for the atrocities committed during the last grand war.
Chandrasekaran organises almost annual trips to the death railway site to spruce up the memorial and to pay respects to those who lost their lives there. - November 10, 2024.
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