[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 31, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S204-S205]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                          HONORING JOSE BUNDA

 Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, our veterans protected our 
country. They have also helped to spread the ideals for which it stands 
and have made great sacrifices for our Nation throughout its history. 
We thank these patriots for the selflessness and courage they have 
exhibited under the most daunting circumstances.
  The heroic tales of survival and commitment to service depicted in 
the history books are a reality for the men and women who served in our 
Nation's

[[Page S205]]

uniform while fighting to protect our interests and spread democracy 
worldwide.
  While many of these patriots gave their lives on the battlefield, 
survivors such as Jose Bunda lived to tell some of the horrific events 
he endured. His firsthand accounts show the realities of WWII. They are 
gut-wrenching but show the human will to survive.
  Today I wish to recognize the service and sacrifice of one of our 
veterans from the `Greatest Generation' who stood in the face of 
danger: Jose Bunda. He is a true American hero who lived through the 
worst days of war and told his heroic story of survival.
  Mr. Bunda grew up in the Philippines and joined the U.S. Army after 
graduating from high school when he was 18. When the Japanese attacked 
Pearl Harbor, Mr. Bunda was stationed on Corregidor Island.
  In 1942, Mr. Bunda was defending the island against the Japanese and 
although his squad was able to hold its ground, he and his comrades 
were forced to surrender.
  The realities of war Mr. Bunda experienced is something he always 
remembered. Almost 60 years after he was taken prisoner he recalled it 
as one of the worst times of his life in a story published in the Times 
Record.
  Mr. Bunda detailed how he was piled into a boxcar for a ride that 
lasted 18 hours. Once the train stopped at Camp Duo he was forced on 
the infamous Bataan Death March where he walked day and night with no 
food.
  ``Once you fall down, they shoot you or chop off your head,'' Mr. 
Bunda said in a 1999 interview saying it was a miracle that he 
survived.
  He was a prisoner of war for 2 years, working in a Japanese labor 
camp but escaped and joined a guerrilla unit until the end of the war.
  Mr. Bunda's will to survive triumphed over the atrocities he was put 
through in WWII. Despite all the hardships, violence and massacres he 
witnessed, he remained committed to the military and continued his 
service in the Korean War.
  Mr. Bunda and his wife Rosario came to the United States in 1957 when 
he was stationed at Fort Chaffee. Although his career required him to 
move to other military bases, the couple moved back to Arkansas in 1962 
once he retired from the military after 30 years of service.
  In 2000, Mr. Bunda received many of the medals, awards and 
recognitions he deserved for his heroics and service. Of his 16 medals, 
he said he was proudest of his Silver Star and the Prisoner of War 
medals.
  A veteran, a POW and a member of Disabled American Veterans, Mr. 
Bunda lived his life as a loving husband, devoted father and an 
inspirational grandfather. Today we honor the life and legacy Mr. Bunda 
leaves behind. His heroic tales of survival and commitment to service 
have ensured he will be remembered with the highest regard as a great 
American hero. His sacrifices made to secure victory and peace for all 
freedom loving people of the world will never be forgotten.

                          ____________________