From Chandrasekaran Ponnusamy

Dear Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Anwar Ibrahim,

Your upcoming engagement with the Indian diaspora in Kuala Lumpur is a novel and much-anticipated event.

Due to the short notice, we regret not being able to put forth this request earlier. Nevertheless, we trust you may find room in your good hearts for some flexibility to consider a matter of historic significance on behalf of hundreds of thousands of voiceless victims long neglected.

The Death Railway Interest Group Malaysia humbly requests your consideration of a joint undertaking to:

• Give serious attention to the plight of the survivors and families of the forgotten victims of the Death Railway, primarily from Malaysia and India, and the other Southeast Asian countries, and​
• Jointly collaborate with the Thai government to establish a fitting monument and information centre at one of the mass grave sites along the railway, where countless Asian victims, predominantly Tamil plantation workers from Malaya, remain forgotten for over eight decades.

This would go some way towards restoring their recognition and rightful place in history, long denied to them.

The Siam–Burma Railway, or the Death Railway, was built during World War II between 1942 and 1943 by the Japanese Imperial Army in a record time of just over a year as a supply line for their troops in Burma.

Upon its completion, the railway was also used to mobilise troops to Burma and ultimately to invade and free India from British rule, with the help of Indian troops who had surrendered to the Japanese, along with young Indian civilians recruited primarily from Malaya and the rest of Southeast Asia.

Malaya, being one of the closest neighbours, supplied much of the manpower and materials for the railway project, including hundreds of miles of railway tracts and signalling equipment taken from Malayan Railways.

It is estimated that half of the 300,000 Asian forced labourers died of disease, malnutrition and poor sanitation in the harsh conditions of the tropical jungles between Siam (now Thailand) and Burma during the railway’s construction. The deaths among Indians alone are estimated at 100,000.

After the war, the British Indian Army coordinated its return to Malaya, from where thousands were repatriated to India. None, whether in Malaya or India, received further assistance, let alone compensation for their suffering and loss of life.

Hence, Malaysia and India, as principal stakeholders, should undertake to address the injustice.

With the prime ministers of both countries participating in a joint community event, there is no better opportunity to provide some consolation and a ray of hope as a measure of closure to this dark chapter.

Thank you for your consideration.

Chandrasekaran Ponnusamy is the president of the Death Railway Interest Group.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.