Piece of history: Monument management committee secretary Khiah Hock Leong speaking to students at the Air Itam War Memorial Park during World Remembrance Day yesterday. — CHAN BOON KAI/The Star
GEORGE TOWN: Hidden in plain sight at the centre of Penang's busiest junctions – the Air Itam roundabout – stands a stark, white sentinel. Thousands of motorists rush past this monument every day, unaware of the significance it holds.
Erected in 1951, it is one of Penang’s earliest public reminders of the sufferings during the earlier Japanese occupation of Malaya.
As a reminder of that part of our nation's history, a ceremony was held at the memorial yesterday to commemorate 80 years since the end of World War II in 1945, with wreaths laid and a two-minute silence observed.
Among those present were Penang tourism and creative economy committee chairman Wong Hon Wai, who represented Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow; Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying; MPs; state assemblymen; representatives of political parties and local associations; and MCA vice-president Datuk Tan Teik Cheng.
Wong said the memorial reminded people of the cost of war and the bitter experiences of those caught in a global conflict.
He said the hardship endured and the mass killings under Japanese rule were lessons that should never be forgotten.
“Peace did not come easily. Remembering how it was taken away helps us understand why it must always be safeguarded,” he said.
The Air Itam War Memorial was built to honour Chinese residents of Penang who were killed during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) and the occupation of Malaya.
Beneath the 15m-high monument lie the ashes of about 800 victims of the Sook Ching purge, exhumed from mass graves on the island and cremated after the war.
Community groups under the Penang China Relief Fund raised funds for the memorial soon after the Japanese surrender.
Many families still gather there each year in remembrance of relatives who never came home.
The monument stands on seven steps, to mark July 7, 1937, the date commonly regarded as the start of the war in China.
The small chamber beneath the structure acts as a crypt for those who lost their identities in the chaos of the war years.
In 2011, the site was upgraded into a memorial park.
Sculptures and reliefs were added to highlight the role of Penangites who joined the Malayan Chinese Transport Volunteers, a group that served on the Burma–Yunnan supply route moving equipment, fuel and supplies to Chinese forces resisting Japan.
Records show that 3,200 volunteers from Malaya took part, including 358 from Penang, many of whom died.
Heritage groups have proposed strengthening the site's position within Penang's heritage trail network.
Despite its central location, the memorial is often overlooked by both residents and visitors.
Remembrance ceremonies were once held here every Nov 11, with survivors of the occupation and families of volunteers coming to light incense and offer prayers, but the gatherings have grown smaller.
