SPECIAL FEATURE

“JUEZ DE CUCHILLO” IN BATAN

When there is a war, just or unjust, between and among nations, soldiers die, innocent civilians get killed, government and private properties damaged and destroyed. People undergo untold sufferings and miseries.

The following story as we revisit October 18 and 19, 1942, 68 years ago, describes the ruthless mass murder of the 74 Batangnons in the cruel hands of the foreign invaders, the Japanese. This is the story of the cruelties and ruthlessness of human beings to their fellow beings; the inhumanity to humanity, motivated by greed of power and imperialism of a strong nation over a weak one, the Philippines.

It was a tranquil and sunny afternoon of October 18, 1942. Although it was wartime, the people of Batan, particularly in Poblacion, were on their routine daily tasks of wartime living, enjoying the unusually peaceful day. The children were in the streets playing while the older ones grouped themselves in street corners chatting.Nobody expected any enemy invasion or any event that would cost human blood and human lives. But all of a sudden, news from barangay Mandong reach the Poblacion saying that a Japanese ship was sighted about a kilometre off-shore of Mandong. The ship was raising a white flag as it moved to the direction of Batan bay. The residents of the Poblacion were not alarmed by the coming Japanese ship. Perhaps the residents understood the message of the white flag to mean peace. Nobody understood that the white flag would mean that the people should prepare to surrender.While the ship was nearing the delta of the Batan Bay, it raised a red flag. This time, the residents got fearfully alarmed. The message was clear that something bloody would happen. Quickly, the people of the Poblacion bundled out things they could carry in peace half-running and left the Poblacion to seek safe hiding places. Some crossed the Sugod River for the mangroves, others hide in thick bushes far from the road sides, still others submerged themselves with their heads aboved the water at river banks sheltered with thick branches. However, some daring residents waited for a while and observed the movements of the ship and at what direction of the Japanese soldiers would land. The ship was nearing the shore of the Poblacion while a black flag was raised. The message was massacre or Juez de Cuchillo, some local tellers put it.
This time, the last minute-observers left the Poblacion running. They were in panic looking for places to hide. At this time, any hiding place far from the road side was safe enough because the Japanese soldiers captured the civilians they met on the way.

It was about 4:00 o’clock in the afternoon of October 18, 1942 when the Japanese soldiers touch the shore of the Poblacion. Upon landing the soldiers formed into three groups. One group went to the direction of Amboloong, the second group towards Mandong and the third group passed to the trail to sitio Batuan of Mandong. For about two hours, all civilians that the Japanese met were captured and brought to the Poblacion. It was about six o’clock in the afternoon that the Japanese brought their captives to the Poblacion. The reason perhaps was if the soldiers prolong their search, they would be caught by the dark and it would be difficult to manage the captives. The estimated numbers of soldiers were about 25.

The captives were brought to the Poblacion just before sunset. At the Poblacion, there was a big residential building owned by Pedro Salazar and on the ground floor there were three vacant commercial stores. The captured civilians were imprisoned there. Presently the location of the building owned by Pedro Salazar is where the residential building of Eduard Delfin stood.

For about ten agonizing hours, the captured civilians were held captives not exactly sure of what the soldiers would do. But during these ten agonizing hours of captivity, the victims were preparing for their impending death. From the testimonies of 3 survivors, Ana L. Lacion,PobBautista, Hermina Cortez and Lydia Cortez, they heard moaning from the prisoners at the other rooms. Some able bodied male prisoners were tortured by the soldiers. At about 2:00 o’clock on Octobr 19, 1942, the two catholic priests, Rev. Father Francisco Bolivar and Rev. Father Bartholome Conanan talked to the prisoners on their impending execution. The prisoners were told to pray the act of contrition and the two priests administered the general absolution. At this point before death, what is important is eternity. The prisoners in many similar ways had the deaths of martyrs who offered their suffering before death of Almighty God. Contrition and absolution before death were the grace the victims received.

At about 4:00 o’clock in the morning of October 19, 1942, the prisoners were told to form a single line. Then the prisoners walked to form a single line. Then the prisoners walked to the execution room across the street at the ground floor of the building owned by Sixto Laurente, presently the site of the Batan Rural Bank. The prisoners, calm and resigned to the will of God were beheaded. When the Japanese soldiers left about 5:00 o’clock that morning, Dikoy Bautista crawled out from the pile of dead bodies. He survived the beheading. There were five other survivors who escaped through the back door few minutes before the execution. They were Anna L. Bautista, Marcelina Paner and her small son, Benjamin and Menang Cortes with her small daughter.

The dead bodies were buried at the execution site by civilian volunteers on the same day that the Japanese soldiers left. The remains of the victims of Juez de Cuchillo were later transferred to the municipal cemetery after the war.

From Batan on October 19, 1942, the Japanese soldiers went to Kalibo through Altavas, Balete and Banga. At sitio Bangkerohan, Linayasan, Altavas, the soldiers killed a number of civilians. Then at Balete, civilians were also killed and thrown to Balete River. At Banga Poblacion, October 21, 1942, civilians were called to gather at the junction of the public market. Without any warning, civilians were fired at by a machine gun. Presently, at the plaza of Banga a marker was erected to honor the memory of 223 victims of the Japanese atrocities.

It was 68 years ago, and our hearts still ache when we remember the Juez de Cuchillo in Batan.

Victims of Juez de Cuchillo

1. Baltazar, Doroteo
2. Baltazar, Liberato
3. Bautista, Agustin
4. Bautista, Concepcion
5. Bautista, Federico
6. Bautista, Jose
7. Bautista, Santos
8. Bolivar, Francisco (Rev. Fr.)
9. Bolivar, Loder
10. Bolivar, Serafin
11. Candelario, Melecio
12. Cleope, Ester Cortes
13. Cleope, Felomino
14. Cleope, Gloria
15. Cleope, Marilyn
16. Conanan, Bartolome (Rev. Fr.)
17. Conanan, Blandina
18. Conanan, Jesus
19. Cortes, Felecitas
20. Cortes, Graciano
21. Cortes, Jose
22. Cortes, Mecing
23. Daivd, Jose
24. David, Martina Gipti
25. David, Profiteza
26. David, Salome
27. Delfin, Mary Jane
28. Delfin, Sinforiana
29. Delos Reyes, Ester
30. Doroteo, Alfonso
31. Doroteo, Hilario
32. Gipti, Felicitas
33. Hilario, Agnes
34. Hilario, Concepcion
35. Hilario, Gregorio
36. Hilario, Liberato
37. Hilario, Marcelina
38. Igos, Honorio
39. Igus, Juana
40. Laurente, Raul
41. Lauz, Baby Rufina
42. Lauz, Herminio
43. Lauz, Rufina S.
44. Magbanua, Jesus
45. Maliclag, Francisco
46. Maria (Ambolong)
47. Oquendo, Geminiano
48. Oquendo, Lober
49. Oquendo, Vicente
50. Padios, Regina
51. Panado, Epifania
52. Paner, Marcela
53. Paner, Octavio
54. Parco, Cristuta
55. Perlas, Isidro
56. Perlas, Ramon
57. Piquero, Flora
58. Piquero, Rica
59. Rebase, Antonio
60. Rebase, Iluminada
61. Rebase, Tomas
62. Salazar, Ana Lauz
63. Salazar, Angeles
64. Salazar, Baby Ana
65. Salazar, Candido
66. Salazar, Conrado
67. Salazar, Ma. Lourdes
68. Salazar, Placida
69. Salazar, Sabas
70. Sorilla, Ernesto
71. Sorilla, Iluminada
72. Sorilla, Jimmy
73. Sorilla, Jurita
74. Sorilla, Lonie/TE

TO THE VICTIMS OF “JUEZ DE CUCHILLO”
by: Maria S. Placer

To you victims of greed for power
Who gave your lives in great surrender;
May your names be inscribe here
In our hearts deepest chamber.

The pains you endured together,
Showed your love for one another,
Soldier’s rudeness deepened the injury,
You received them with good humility.

Beloved brother’s and sisters brave,
Hear the emphatic hurrahs we gave
See the light that brightens eternity;
Smell the flowers perfumed on the way

Hear our prayers for you dear
Hear our praises loud and clear;
Hear of laughter though froth with pain;
The blood you shed is not in vain.