War Victims of Iriomote Island, Okinawa The site of the Noda Coal Mine of forced labor called "Hell of Iriomote" in the center of the island

Deep in the jungle of Iriomote Island, at the southernmost tip of the Ryukyu Islands, there was a coal mine. At the time of the Pacific War, coal miners from the mainland, Korea, and Taiwan were forced to work in the Noda Coal Mine, where they were confined in prison-like octopus cells. The death toll from the harsh labor and lynching continued to rise, and many of the survivors were crippled. Even if they escaped, they were captured and sent back to the "hell room" where lynching to death awaited them. Locals called it "the hell of Iriomote," and people stayed away from it. They were finally liberated after the defeat in the war, but were not allowed to take a single step out of the jungle for as long as eight to ten years after that. The Taiwanese and Koreans, whose family registers were erased and who could not return to their hometowns or countries, and whose nationality was unknown, are still living in secret. What significance does the "reversion of Okinawa" on May 15 have for these people? February 27, 1972 issue Cut from p. 146