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| Evidence for the Prosecution |
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| Brigadier Glyn Hughes
(cont.) |
In the huts
themselves the floors were covered, and the people in the top bunks who could
not get out just poured it on to the bunks below.
What was the general
state of nutrition of people in the camp? — Extreme emaciation and
complete malnutrition of all those who had been there for any length of time at
all. Only those admitted within the last week were in a reasonable state of
health.
Having taken a general picture of the camp, I would like you to
go through the compounds in more detail? — No. 1 Compound in the
men’s quarters was a smallish compound and conditions were exactly the
same as I have described already, except that perhaps the typhus there had
begun to decline. No. 2 was the worst of the men’s compounds. I think
there were about 8000 there and conditions were very bad. The worst I have
described equalled it and typhus was rife. No. 3 was the last of the men’s
compounds and was much smaller and had fewer men in it. I think it had only
begun to fill up and conditions were better.
Now take the women’s
compound? — No. 2 was on the same side as those three I have described, to
the left of the camp. This, although small, had about 6000 in it. The
conditions here were infinitely worse. They were absolutely frightful. No. 1
Compound was very large and contained between 22 and 23,000 women. The huts
were set amongst trees and conditions here were frightful, but perhaps not
quite as bad as No. 2 Women’s Compound. In this compound there was a very
large pile of corpses.
Was there any particular hut in that compound
which you could describe? — In Hut No. 208, which was close to the pile of
corpses, there were dead women lying in the passage, which was so full that no
women could lie down straight. The main room on the left of the passage was one
mass of bodies and you could not get another into it. The inmates were in a
state of extreme emaciation and women were dying frequently.
Out of
23,000 how many were acutely ill? — I7,000 required to be in hospital
immediately if they were to be saved, and of these a large number were so ill
they had no chance of recovery.
For those 17,000 acutely ill women how
many bunks were there? — 474 in the huts which were supposedly set aside
as a hospital, organized by the internees themselves.
Had there been
the slightest attempt by the camp staff to organize anything for these sick
people? — I saw none, except that in the administrative area there was a
store of drugs and medicines. They were not supplied in adequate numbers.
Were there any children in or about this compound? — There was a
small compound of children who were in fairly good condition, and obviously the
women internees had sacrificed themselves to look after |
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