World War II was over. (Really. Truly.) But a group of Japanese soldiers stationed on Lubang Island in the Philippines weren’t convinced. They didn’t believe that Japan had surrendered. So they kept fighting. They terrorized locals. They evaded capture. Over the course of several years, Japanese officials made multiple attempts to convince the soldiers that the war had ended. Each time, Hiroo Onoda dismissed those attempts as enemy propaganda.

Allyra Crowdfunding. “Donation Page by Searching For Onoda.” https://searchingforonodadoc.allyrafundraising.com/campaigns/9769.

“Bushido and Japanese Atrocities in World War II.” Michael Fassbender, May 2, 2015. https://michaeltfassbender.com/nonfiction/the-world-wars/big-picture/bushido-and-japanese-atrocities-in-world-war-ii/.

“Domitable Myth: Three Depictions of Japanese Holdout Soldier Hiroo Onoda | International Documentary Association.” May 17, 2023. https://www.documentary.org/online-feature/domitable-myth-three-depictions-japanese-holdout-soldier-hiroo-onoda.

New York Times. “Hiroo Onoda, Soldier Who Hid in Jungle for Decades, Dies at 91” March 28, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/18/world/asia/hiroo-onoda-imperial-japanese-army-officer-dies-at-91.html.

Onoda, Hiroo. No Surrender: My Thirty-Year War. Naval Institute Press, 1999.

“Onoda: The Man Who Hid in the Jungle for 30 Years.” April 14, 2022. https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20220413-onoda-the-man-who-hid-in-the-jungle-for-30-years.

Sims, Watson. “You’re a Better Man, Hiroo.” Battle Creek Enquirer, March 17, 1974.

The Record (New Jersey). “‘I Have Done My Best,’ Japanese Holdout Says.” March 11, 1974.

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