PHL marks 69th anniversary of Bessang Pass victory on Saturday

From the Philippine News Agency (Jun 13): PHL marks 69th anniversary of Bessang Pass victory on Saturday

Little is known on the historical importance of the glorious battle at Bessang Pass in Cervantes, Ilocos Sur, but it is the biggest victory scored by Filipino guerrillas against the Japanese during World War II that hastened the surrender of Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, known as the “Tiger of Malaya”.

On Saturday, the town of Cervantes, Ilocos Sur will be center of celebration of the 69th anniversary of the victory at Bessang Pass.

Retired Lt. Gen. Ernesto G. Carolina, administrator of the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office (PVAO), is expected to grace the occasion to honor the fallen heroes of Bessang Pass.

Few surviving Bessang Pass guerrillas are now in the late 80s or mid 90s like retired Brig. Gen. Arnulfo D. Banez, Alejando Puguon, Raymundo G. Gadgad, Belino W. Alumno, Jose F. Tadifa, Cdr. Ricardo B. Madayag, Jose M. Martinez and Gregorio Hufano.

Former Defense Secretary Fortunato U. Abat, who at a tender age of 15, then joined the guerrilla movement and was assigned in the town of Kiangan near Bessang Pass during the war where Yamashita surrendered to Filipino guerrillas.

Sad to say, Gen. Narcise, the commander of Company “L” that waved the Philippine flag when they conquered Bessang Pass, died last May 12. He was 94.

To correct historical facts, Yamashita surrendered to guerrilla forces before his formal surrender to the Americans in Baguio on Sept. 2, 1945.

The epic battle at Bessang Pass on June 14, 1945 was the defining moment of the Filipino guerrilla fighters in crushing the once formidable Japanese Imperial Army in the Philippines in World War II.

Bessang Pass, a mountain fortress in northern Philippines, fell into the hands of the Filipino guerrillas after a bloody fighting that lasted almost six months from January 1 to June 14, 1945.

It was an all-Filipino guerrillas, who fought the ground battle at Bessang Pass with the Americans providing the air support and artillery fire.

It was a sweet victory for the resistance fighters who surrendered to the Japanese forces when Bataan fell on April 9, 1942, but not after putting up a gallant stand for four months that delayed the timetable of the Imperil Army of conquering the Philippines in a blitzkrieg-like offensive.

The Filipino and American soldiers who fought in Bataan showed their tenacity in warding off repeated searing attacks by the invading Japanese forces.

It was in Bessang Pass, the last stronghold of the Japanese invaders, that Filipino guerrillas again displayed their raw courage in mortal combat that earned the praise of Gen. Douglas MacArthur and other top military American officials.

Bessang Pass is part of the town of Cervantes, Ilocos Sur more than 250 kilometers north of Manila.Following the fall of Bataan, the Japanese converted Bessang Pass into a virtual impregnable mountain fortress in the “sky” because of its natural obstacles. Its panoramic view of the lowlands makes Bessang Pass a strategic stronghold in northern Philippines. Its triangular-shaped natural barrier makes it unique.

Potential attackers had to contend with the tortuous terrain in the so-called Villaverde Trail and Balete Pass up north where they can be easily spotted by Japanese outposts strewed along strategic pathways before reaching Bessang Pass.

But in spite of being a heavily fortified mountain, Bessang Pass became the Waterloo of Gen. Yamashita, the commander of Japanese troops in the Philippines. The Japanese’s debacle at Bessang Pass not only forced Yamashita, who was hiding in nearby Kiangan area to raise the white flag hastily, but also nipped the last straw of Japanese military might in the Philippines.

Filipino guerrillas with the help of the Americans, especially during the waning days of the war exacted a sweet revenge against the Japanese during the historic battle of Bessang Pass. It took almost half a year to capture the fortress. One crucial advantage the Filipino guerrillas was that they had mastered the terrain around the battle area, compensating the shortfall of weapons and other logistics.

It was the unit of Col. Russel Volckman, commander of the United States Armed Forces in the Philippines (USIFP-NL), mostly composed of Filipino guerrillas and a group of Americans, bore the brunt in the battle of Bessang Pass, tagged as one of the bloodiest fighting during the Pacific War.

The secret landing of an American submarine USS Gar carrying tons of weapons and ammunition for Filipino and American guerrillas in the latter part of 1944 re-ignited the dream of the ragtag underground forces to assault Bessang Pass.

The offensive fell on the hands of the 15th, the 66th, the 121st Battalions and the Provisional Infantry Regiments whose men saw extensive actions in Bataan and Corregidor.

Their experience in combat proved to be an asset during the final assault of Bessang Pass which was defended by the elite units of the Japanese Imperial Forces such as the 73rd Tora Division, the 79th Brigade and the 357th Battalion under the command of Lt. Gen. Yoshibaru Osaki. They were the main Japanese blocking forces that collided head-on with the guerrilla offensive that attacked the stronghold of Gen. Yamashita.

The start of the offensive was in January 1945 and its momentum was sustained the following months. As planned, the guerrillas simultaneously attacked the towns of Cervantes and Tagudin in Ilocos Sur and other areas up north, and the province of Abra where there was heavy concentration of Japanese troops who had moved from Manila after the enemy was routed by US and Philippine forces. US warplanes provided the air cover while American artillery bases fired their howitzers at Japanese forces stationed around Bessang Pass and blasted them to kingdom come.

One of the units that figured prominently in the fighting was Company “L” of Capt. Narcise. The company overran a Japanese garrison in the village of Bitalag. For Capt. Narcise, it was a significant victory. His group repeated this feat when Company L recaptured the town of Cervantes on March 13, 1945. Cervantes, a strategic area, was under Japanese occupation since December 1941.

But soon after, Capt. Narcise’s unit found itself in a dilemma as it was under artillery fire by the Japanese. Reinforcement was sent to the beleaguered unit but the bombardment continued forcing the guerrillas to retreat.

In the later part of March 1945, the Filipino guerrillas sustained their offensive that lasted till the fourth week of May of the same year. It was during this period that the guerrillas had a hard time battling the Japanese who fought ferociously spearheaded by the famed 73rd Infantry, the 19th Division and the 357th Infantry. It was a hell of a fight as both sides try to outsmart each other. Intense fighting at the west of Bessang Pass lasted for more than a month with the 121st Infantry at the forefront.

It was towards the end of April 1945 that the guerrillas reached the strategic Lower Cadsu Ridge. It was during this crucial time of the war that the guerrillas had finally gotten the badly needed artillery fire support from the First Field Artillery Battalion, United States Armed Forces in the Philippines - Northern Luzon. It was a dramatic turn of event in the fighting, steadily tilting in favor to the advancing Filipino guerrilla fighters which finally conquered the once impregnable mountain fortress occupied by the Japanese Imperial Forces for over three years.

The victory at Bessang Pass redeemed our defeat in Bataan and Corregidor.

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