Aerial photograph of the 32nd Army Command bunker from the Shuri Kanashiro Town.The fifth pit is located near the right end of the central miscellaneous forest = November 2021, Naha City (photographed by Hiroya Shimoji with a small unmanned unit)
[Successed 32 -to -32 bunker] (1) Shuri Castle is under construction for the restoration of the Battle of Okinawa, which is talked about by the first part of the bunker. From there, walk south on foot and about 10 minutes. In one corner of the slope where the houses are lined up, there is a miscellaneous wooden forest. [Photo] Cutting limbs "Student, please boil it." A 17 -year -old girl mobilized. 。 The surroundings are dim, and the cool air flows. This is the entrance to the former Japanese army "32nd Army Command bunker", which led the Battle of Okinawa. It is the fifth hung mouth. 77 years after the war. Four of the five entrances have already been filled, and only the fifth pit can now be checked. There are many places where the state is unknown in the trench, but the fifth pit and the fifth tunnel leading inside are already investigated, and the possibility of preservation and release is high compared to other places. Here is one question. Houses are crowded around the miscellaneous forest. Why did you remain only here? Did you dare to leave it? On the west side, large -scale condominiums are constructed. On the north side, another real estate agent has acquired land and is sandwiched between development sites. Miscellaneous forests are private land. Will it be sold? I asked the landowner. ◇ ◇ Misami, Masanaga Nagamine (84), who lives nearby from an early age. This land has been inherited from its ancestors for generations, and has been consistently owned since the war. The former Japanese army was wondering why Nagamine's private land was used. It is possible that the landowner's consent was ambiguous due to the struggle during the war. ■ There were few clues to know the trench, and the clues for the land used by the military were scarce. Mr. Nagamine is 7 years old during the war in Okinawa. I lived in Shuri, but I have no memory of the trench. His father died on Bougainville, and no trunk material was left at home. Immediately after the end of the war, I don't know what the bunker or the fifth pit was like. After escaping to Itoman and helping him, he returned to Shuri, but no one was talking about the trench. Nagamine noticed the existence of a trench only after the age of 20. An acquaintance was informed that he was the owner of the miscellaneous forest, and entered the forest and found the entrance. Later, Naha City, who investigated, was told that it was a commander bunker and was surprised. I also asked an old man (85), who has lived for over 60 years nearby. "About 15 years after the war, the road above the trench broke, and the number of platforms has fallen one after another. I thought it was strange, but I don't think there is a trench below." Mr. Eiki Sena (93), the chairman of the party seeking the preservation and release of the trench, said, "The location of the command bunker was confidential information, and the local residents did not know." "The research of the war against Okinawa, which had been severely damaged, took a long time. The mystery is that the damage of the Battle of Okinawa was too great. ◇ around 1960, a trench was repeatedly investigated for tourism development. It was implemented five times from 58 to 1968, but the preservation and release did not progress due to the fall in the trench. ■ Shuri Castle was forgotten, and after returning to Japan in 1972, the restoration project on the upper Shuri Castle proceeded, but the 32nd Army Command bunker did not stand out. It became "gradually forgotten" (Nagamine), but Mr. Nagamine has continued to have land, assuming that there is a possibility of preservation and release. The bunker is an important battlefield based on the center of the Japanese army that led the Battle of Okinawa. It should be used in history verification and peace education. It is not convinced that it has been left unattended for 77 years. ■ When I asked to the secretary -general of Makoto Nakamura (66) of the Prefectural Peace Prayer Memorial Museum Friends (66), who is familiar with the 32nd Army Command bunker, I heard this opinion came back. "Even after returning, there were many issues related to the lives and lives of residents, including the US military base issue. Nagamine who has continued to have land. The growing public opinion calling for preservation and release has also supported the judgment. "I refused when a real estate agent came to buy two years ago. I sometimes want to sell it, but I've been waiting so far. I want you to connect to the preservation and release this time." Mutsu) ◇ ◇ The 32nd Army of the former Japanese army is considering the preservation and release of the prefecture. Why is it necessary to preserve and release? From the time of the war to Okinawa to the after the war, and from the present. Reporters searched for the history and status of the trench, and searched for the significance and possibilities of preservation and release.