[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 17658-17659]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 65TH ANNIVERSARY OF LIBERATION OF GUAM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Guam (Ms. Bordallo) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, the events of World War II seem to be 
lost in translation, interpreted as events that occurred rather than 
events that affect. For many, the events of the past no longer shape 
our views of the future. For this reason, I come to the Chamber this 
morning to speak about an important chapter in American history. A 
chapter that too few Americans know.
  Early this morning, Congressman Sablan and I were joined by the 
Honorable David Hayes, Deputy Secretary of the Interior, Major General 
Donald Goldhorn, former Congressman Ben Blaz, Congressman Joe Wilson, 
and friends of Guam in laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown 
Soldier in Arlington. We honored the soldiers, the sailors, the airmen, 
the marines, and Coast Guardsmen who participated in the battle in the 
liberation of Guam and the Northern Marianas during World War II.
  Our ceremony also honored the liberated, the Chamorros, the 
indigenous people of Guam, who remained steadfast in their loyalty to 
the United States during the war and who endured enemy occupation.
  Tuesday, July 21, 2009, marks the 65th anniversary of the liberation 
of Guam. Guam was attacked by the Imperial Japanese forces on December 
8, 1941, at the same time that Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attacked, the 
different dates owing to the international dateline. Guam was 
subsequently invaded by the Imperial Japanese forces on December 10, 
1941, and occupied until liberation on July 21, 1944.
  The story of the people of Guam and the campaign to liberate them 
from occupation is an American story of courage and sacrifice. It is an 
important part of American history, and one of pride and determination 
in the face of overwhelming obstacles, barriers constructed by the 
Japanese war machine in the form of forced labor, forced marches, 
internment and public executions, and a true test of loyalty, a test 
that had not been asked but for a very few civilian communities under 
the American flag in the 20th century.

[[Page 17659]]

  So I come to the floor today to bring honor to the Chamorros who were 
occupied, and to the servicemen who liberated them. The liberation of 
Guam from enemy occupation during World War II marked a pivotal point 
in Guam's history and was a key battle for the Allied Forces in ending 
the war in the Pacific.
  The liberation of Guam by the United States Armed Forces from the 
Imperial Japanese Empire allowed for the first time the installation of 
air bases that would house land-based aerial bombers, putting them in 
reach of the main island of Japan. The air offenses launched from the 
Mariana Islands were effective in subduing the Imperial Japanese war 
effort, bringing the war to an end and saving the lives of many.
  Prior to the Japanese invasion, Guam Armed Forces consisted of 153 
marines, 271 U.S. Navy personnel, 134 civilian construction workers, 
and 247 Chamorro members of the Insular Guard. The Insular Guard 
protected the community on Guam during the invasion. During the 
occupation, the Imperial Japanese Forces attempted to turn the Chamorro 
people against the United States. But the Chamorro people remained 
steadfastly loyal to the United States through the 32-month occupation.
  On the eve of the American landings on the island in 1944, all 22,000 
Chamorro inhabitants of Guam were forced to march to Mannengon Hills 
and other locations to be interned in concentration camps to maintain 
control of the population in fear of an uprising.
  This is a true story of American courage. The Chamorro people of Guam 
were loyal Americans at the time, and it was the first time that a 
foreign power invaded U.S. soil since the War of 1812. Despite fear of 
their captors and their will, the Chamorro people remained steadfast in 
their loyalty, and were brave in providing aid to the American soldiers 
hiding from enemy capture. These acts of courage were punishable by 
death. Some experienced horrific events, massacres at Malesso' and 
Tinta and Faha' where Japanese soldiers herded families into caves and 
threw hand grenades and delivered small arms fire until dozens lay 
dead. Their loyalty was put to the extreme test of sacrifice.
  So as we approach Liberation Day next week on Guam, we remember our 
elders who lived through the occupation and also the several thousand 
members of the U.S. Armed Forces who gave their lives while defending 
and liberating Guam.

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