Statue of WWI Western Japan POW Camp Head Unveiled

June 2, 2018

Naruto, Tokushima Pref.- A statue of the head of a World War I camp in Naruto, Tokushima Prefecture, for German prisoners was unveiled in the western Japan city on Friday.

Born in Aizuwakamatsu in the northeastern prefecture of Fukushima in 1872, Toyohisa Matsue, the head of the "Bando Furyo Shuyojo" camp, was known for his humanitarian treatment of prisoners of war.

POWs in the Bando camp were allowed to interact with local residents, bake bread and play music. Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 is believed to have been played for the first time in Asia by Bando camp POWs.

Matsue's statue, which is 2.1 meters tall, was created as part of an event to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the classic music performance.

Participants in the unveiling ceremony included some 20 descendants of the German POWs and their family members.

The statue suggests Matsue "was a very nice person," Naruto Mayor Michihiko Izumi said.

Aizuwakamatsu Mayor Shohei Muroi said in a message to the ceremony that he takes the "humane historical fact as shared property" for his city and Naruto and hopes to "further deepen" the two cities' relationship. Jiji Press