2 Brothers are Oldest Living WWII Filipino Veterans

(PNA) — Two brothers — 107 and 105 years old, respectively — are the oldest living World War II Filipino veterans who saw action in Bataan 73 years ago and survived to tell their tales.

President Benigno S. Aquino III will lead the nation in the 73rd “Araw ng Kagitingan” (Day of Valor) observance on Thursday to honor World War II veterans, both Filipinos and Americans, who fought during the Second World War.

Now in the twilight of their lives, Capt. Fernando P. Javier, 107, and his younger brother, Capt. Jose P. Javier, 105, a retired doctor, thanked God for His infinite mercy for sparing their lives during the war, especially during the bloody battle in Bataan against the invading Japanese forces from Jan. 7 to April 9, 1942.

The ferocious fighting left 10,000 killed on the side of the American and Filipino forces while the Japanese suffered 7,000 dead during the three months and two days mortal combat, according to military historical record.

In addition, allied forces suffered 20,000 wounded and while the Japanese sustained 12,000.

A total of 75,000 Filipino and American soldiers were held prisoners of war and forced to participate in the infamous Bataan Death March that left thousands dead due to exhaustion and lack of food and medicines.

In an interview with this reporter Wednesday morning, Mrs. Filomena Javier, 89, said her husband Jose is still active, walking around the house as a light exercise but does not forget to pray the Holy Rosary thrice a day.

“My husband is always reminding me about the importance of praying the Rosary because he believes it was prayer that saved his life and that of his brother during the war,” Mrs. Javier said.

“His memory is still sharp and he talks with a loud voice during our conversation, apparently to emphasize what he says,” she added.

“However, he only talks if he wants to, otherwise he just sits on the chair and closes his eyes most of the time but does not forget to take his breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner,” Mrs. Javier said.

“When my husband celebrated his 105th birthday last Feb. 19, I did not prepare a birthday bash but when a friend of ours, Mrs. Cherry Lopez Cavistani, came for a visit, he told me to prepare something,” she said.

“Mrs. Cavistani said she is thankful to my husband for saving her life when she was gravely ill while my husband was still a practicing doctor,” Mrs. Javier said.

Mrs. Javier also said that during her husband’s birthday, he insisted to hear Mass at Christ the King Seminary in Quezon City, the first time in many months since because of old age, he could not attend Mass every Sunday.

“People who knew him were happy to see my husband going to Mass and greeted him happy birthday,” she said. “My husband was stricken ill of pneumonia recently. We brought him to St. Luke’s Medical Center and he recovered.”

Javier, a member of the Philippine Scouts, is one of the few living WWII veterans who have breached the century mark. His elder brother, Fernando, 107, resides in Baguio City.

Though older by two years, Fernando still walks around. He is physically healthier and stronger than Jose.

In his memoirs “A Century’s Journey,” Capt. Javier said that as a member of the medical corps, he was not armed and to crawl to reach and treat wounded Filipino and American soldiers in the middle of the fighting was doubly more dangerous and risky.

He wrote: “Our troops dug in and fought from their foxholes. Our cannons fired continuously day and night. But the Japanese could not be stopped. Their advance could only be delayed. There were periods when all was quiet at the front… Then they would attack again. Only Japanese planes were flying in the sky. Fortunately, they did not do much damage to the troops who were not their main targets, except for occasional strafing. Their main targets were our artillery which were wreaking havoc on their troops.

“However, their frequent sorties with no friendly planes to challenge them were very demoralizing to us. News from the U.S. received by clandestine radio reported that reinforcements promised by President Roosevelt were on their way. That buoyed us up. But one month passed. Two months. three months, and still, no reinforcements. Several times, overpowered by the enemy, we retreated to a pre-determined line of defense which our troops could hold at all cost. ‘No more retreat’ was the order. But our troops could only hold for a period of time. Finally, we were pushed to the foot of Mt. Samat.”

He said the Death March was “day and night without any stop, without food or water.” But civilians along the way gave them water in cans, he said.

“We helped ourselves when not seen by the guards who did not want us to get out of the column. I chanced upon Dr. Fernando Tinio of the Clearing Company. He had thrown away his shoes because his feet were all blisters, and he wrapped his feet with towels. I walked slowly with him for a while at the rear of the column. Fortunately, the guard was not cruel. He just prodded us to walk faster to catch up with the rest.”

Javier said that after five days and nights of walking, he reached San Fernando, Pampanga but it took longer for others.

He said the Japanese dug a hog pit where the POWs relieved themselves. “It was nauseating,” Javier said.

In his memoirs on the Death March, Javier said: “It is estimated that at least 600 Americans and between 5,000 and 10,000 Filipinos lost their lives during the march.”

For Javier it was a hell of experience he will never forget all his life, particularly when he was captured, together with thousands of his comrades in arms following the fall of Bataan to the Japanese occupational forces and the “Death March” from the town of Mariveles, Bataan to San Fernando, Pampanga in April 1942.

As a prisoner of war (POW), Javier who was then a 32-year-old doctor, did not lose and kept his faith in God all the more.

“I prayed the Holy Rosary with intensity,” Javier said, his voice still strong despite being a centenarian. “My prayers were answered because I was not wounded, even a scratch and I did not get sick during the long march under the blazing heat of the sun.”

He said that weeks before Filipino and American forces surrendered to the Japanese on April 9, 1942, their food supplies were running low.

“We have to eat limited rice and canned foods during those trying times of our lives,” Javier said.

“The fighting in Bataan was one-sided as we had no planes and the Japanese had plenty, although we had our artillery to fight the advancing enemy,” Javier added, his voice trembling.

“We pounded Japanese position at Mount Samat a few kilometers away from where we were,” he said. “Supporting our unit was the artillery pieces in nearby Corregidor Island which had big guns at its disposal hitting Japanese forces trying to break our defenses.”

“However, when Japanese planes destroyed the artillery in Corregidor, that was the beginning of the end for Bataan to surrender,” he said.

“After we surrendered, the Japanese told us that we were going home,” he said. He was happy to hear that, thinking “there was no point of escaping because we were going home anyway and escaping was never my plan.”

He learned later that the Japanese deceived them as the POWs found themselves in concentration camps.

“Those who tried to escape were bayoneted to death,” Javier said.

Javier said that through prayers and perseverance under the most difficult times in his life, he was among those who were released from prison but was made as a “kargador” or carrier of sacks of rice for their Japanese captors.

“Some of my comrades were tasked as houseboys and cooks,” he said.

“Then the Japanese brought me to Zambales before I was sent to Bacolod City in Negros Occidental where my captors told me to prod the people to side with them (Japanese) but no amount of prodding could convince our people,” Javier said.

Javier was brought back to Manila and “in August of 1942 I was released as POWs.”

He was reunited with his parents in 1943 and they went to their home province in Ilocos Sur where he waited for the opportunity to join the guerrilla movement in northern Luzon. That opportunity came in 1944 and they fought the Japanese until liberation came in 1945.

It was only after the war that Capt. Javier decided to have a family and married Filomena. They were blessed with nine children. (PNA) SCS/RBC/EBP