BY: Presented to: Mrs. Prova to ENG 2 A 0-04 Wednesday December 8, 1993 Dear: The International Red Cross am writing a letter to you today to mention how the prisoners of war were treated throughout the second world war. If you have never been a Prisoner of War (POW), you are extremely lucky. The prisoners of war during the World War II, (1939-1945) were treated poorly with no respect or consideration and were given the living conditions worse than animals. It was an extremely bad situation that no human being could survive. They were mistreated, manhandled, beat and even shot defending their country.
No one wanted to go to war, but for those men who did, and for those who survived as POWs will always regret it. The Prisoners of War were kept in concentration camps, where it was day to day constant dying and suffering and separation of the family with unconditional weather. 1 They had no real shelter, and kept busy by working, and the odd time even got a chance to play baseball, soccer or some athletic game to stay in shape. 2 They were surrounded by twenty-four hour guard surveillance in the middle of nowhere, so it would be quite useless to attempt to escape, especially at the risk of being gunned down at any given time. The POW were always having to turn their back and keep an eye out for one another. They were considered to be ‘hostages’ and were treated like the enemy.
The concentration camps were not very large but were numerous. They contained about 500-600 warriors and were divided into groups of under sixteen, older than sixteen, and of course by gender (Male and Female). 3 This caused many problems with the POWs as they were split from their families, and in a lot of cases, never saw one another again. The Prisoners of War were killed by the hundreds as malnutrition and hygiene eventually caught up with them.
They were put to work for lengthy periods of time, and we treated harshly for volunteering to go to war. Once caught, they were taken and placed in a camp, and it was the beginning of the end for the ally. It is not like a prisoner in today’s society. The prisoners had to live with leftover scraps of food, dirty water, and no hope of exiting, plus the constant shooting. They were not prisoner whom had committed a crime, rather brave warriors whom stood up to defend us. 4 It is a life no one wants to encounter, and we pray no one does, and we remember how they were abused and how they suffered to protect us.
This special day is called Remembrance Day and is celebrated the eleventh day of the eleventh month. BIBLIOGRAPHY WORLD WAR II, ‘Prisoners’ Marshall Cavendish Ltd, New York, Vol VIII. 940. 53 WORLD WAR II, ‘Prisoners of War’ Marshall Cavendish Ltd, New York, Vol III. 940. 53 WORLD WAR II, ‘Prisoners of War’ Marshall Cavendish Ltd, New York, Vol X.
940. 53 Gosselin, Luc. PRISONS IN CANADA, Montreal, Quebec: Black Rose Books, 1982.