Bloody Highway
| Bloody Highway သွေးထွက်သံယိုအဝေးပြေး | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Asianna and the Pacific Campaign of the Second Europan War | |
| Location | Central Highlands Region, Quenmin |
| Date | 24 May – 23 July 1945 |
| Target | Civilians |
| Deaths | 5,084 – 5,754 |
| Perpetrators | Free Bethausian Army of the East |
| Motive | Retaliation for crimes against the Bethausian populace |
| Accused | |
| Convicted | |
Bloody Highway (Barmian: သွေးထွက်သံယိုအဝေးပြေး; Swayhtwatsanyo Aawayypyay) is a name given to a series of mass murders and pogroms committed by the Free Bethausian Army of the East during the Central Highlands Campaign. Spanning from 24 May to 3 July 1945, Bethausian soldiers massacred the Quenminese civilian populations throughout their advance into the Quenminese homeland. The final total of fatalities varies, but an approximate range is applied, counting from 981 to 1,203.
The extent of the crimes was met with severe condemnation and outrage from the Allies. The Army's general staff, including Zaw Sein Arkar, were court-martialed, with one general Sein Khine being revoked of his position and incarcerated.
Background
During Imperial Quenminese and East Europan joint-rule of Bethausia, a substantial amount of crimes against humanity emerged throughout the countryside.
What was to become one of the primary motivations for the violent reprisal situated itself in the Bethausian town of Kawingyi. On 21 July 1943, the Quenminese and East Europans released quantities of Brynyl upon the town in order to test the effects of the gas. When uncovered in mid-1944, a wave of anger surged through the Free Bethausian troops, even among the General Staff. Escalating this further were the native Bethausian volunteers who heeded the call of Arkar to join them on an invasion of the Quenminese homeland.
Arkar made note of this in his interview with Wai Htut Thurein in 1977:
We were outraged, angry. What the Imperials did to our fellow countrymen and women was unforgivable. We were eager to return a favor to them, and the invasion of the Quenminese homeland added fuel to that fire.
Massacres and Pogroms
Long Xuyên Massacre
Quy Cái Massacre
Bloody Paddies
Thanh Nhon and Thái Giang Massacres
Phan Lãnh Massacre
Pathway of Arms
The Pathway of Arms is a name given to premeditated war crimes upon Quenminese towns that are known to produce chemical weapons. Justification for the targets originates from the Kawingyi bombing. According to Colonel Myo Aung, a participant, an armless person is supposed to be a "symbolism for the cost of the deep wound they have inflicted upon their families for their work," and the subsequent agony is supposed to represent the "pain they [the inhabitants of Kawingyi] suffered, but for a lifetime."
Throughout the campaign of violence, Bethausian troops hacked off the arms via machete of any Quenminese citizen, scientist and miliary official they could find.
Other Pogroms
Summer Strife
The strife refers to infighting between Free Quenminese and Bethausian units. Horrified at the massacres, the Free Quenminese troops opened fire on the perpetrators at the risk of their integrity.
The largest battle occurred in Phan Trì, where it ended with the intervention of the Imperial Quenminese Army and relief by the Allies.
Reactions
Allies
Free Bethausia
The heads of state, William Edwardius I and Juit Valpuri Yadanar, condemned the crimes of the Army of the East. The Grand Duchess stated that they "have become just as atrocious as the Imperial Quenminese Army, and they must answer for this unbridled demeanor."
On the Free Bethausian Army, reactions were mixed, with some personnel expressing their regret or condemnation, or their justifications for committing such atrocities:
"Horrible act. I hope this army will never reach this level of barbarity again." - General Zaw Sein Arkar
"I once went through a village where it was completely rank. I had to vomit." - General Yarzar Htun Tun Yaza
"We really did go on a killing spree." - Colonel Khine Wai Thet Hein, responsible for the Phan Lãnh Massacre.
"They killed our people. We returned the favor." - Brigadier General Nyan Zeyar, responsible for the Thanh Nhon and Thái Giang Massacres
"We gunned down every single one of them. Every bullet." - Major Thant Nyan Thawda, responsible for the Quy Cái Massacre
Commonwealth
"I ordered the General Arkar to march ahead of us to secure the perimeter. What I never expected was this gruesome killing. I have wash my hands of this." - Field Marshal Archibald Sugiyama
"I heard from a Sergeant reporting to me that as our troops marched forward, they saw bodies and bloody everywhere. How savage could this get." - Tsukuyo Kushineda
"When I marched along with my troops in our sector, the Bethausians were marching ahead of us. Just a few miles later, we started to see dead Quenminese bodies, blood, and empty bullet casings. Some of my boys also saw grenade pins by the ground. We bare saw any wounded men. One of the men tried to save a wounded man but he had died when he got into the hospital truck. How gruesome they could get. " - Brian Regnitz
"I often wonder how much more Quens we can fight when the Bethausians have done the fighting for us often." - Friedrich O'Connelly
"A saw a wounded Quenminese soldier trying to crawl to us before he was out of breath. As we looked around, there were bodies and bullet casings everywhere. These Bethausians kill at least 5,000 Quenminese soldier per day." - Elliot Testarossa
Other Allied Countries
"A grave and shameful act. The murders were ruthless than our previous civil war." - Ferdinand Franco
Imperial Quenminese
Word of the crimes gravely shocked the Quenminese populace, and inflicted two effects: eagerness to fight for revenge and increased demoralization from their current situation.