Barnaby Phillips: Burma Boy
Barnaby Phillips goes in search of an important but largely ignored piece of 20th century history.
They are amongst the forgotten heroes of the Second World War; some 100,000 African soldiers, taken from the British colonies to fight against the Japanese in the jungles of Burma (now Myanmar).
Al Jazeera correspondent Barnaby Phillips has long been interested in their story and, in this film, went in search of a unique, first-hand account of what it was like to be a ‘Burma Boy’.
“These men and their story is so forgotten. People don’t know the very brave things [these men did] and the very difficult circumstances they fought under some 60 or 70 years ago,” he explains.
“The main challenge in making this film was finding people who were still alive who were able to take us back in history to that period.
“What we really wanted was an authentic African voice who could tell us from their point of view why they volunteered to fight for the British and what it was like fighting against the Japanese.”
Al Jazeera Correspondent airs each week at the following times GMT: Thursday: 2000; Friday: 1200; Saturday: 0100; Sunday: 0600; Monday: 2000; Tuesday: 1200; Wednesday: 0100; Thursday: 0600. Click here for more on Al Jazeera Correspondent. |
