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Mervyn Scott-Lindslay
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Conditions at North Point
Conditions at North Point
After his capture the Japanese forces took Mervyn Scott-Lindslay to North Point prisoner of war camp located in the northern part of Hong Kong Island. At least 200 men were crammed into each accommodation hut and, because of a shortage of beds, prisoners were forced to sleep on the floor using books for pillows. The site, badly damaged by fighting during the war, meant that many of the roofs leaked. There was little plumbing in the camp and conditions were extremely unhealthy. To make matters worse, at the east end of the site, the Japanese had left mounds of rotting, dead animals swarming with flies.
Illustration by Mervyn Scott-Lindslay of the accommodation huts at North Point (RNM)
Japanese prisoners of war began their day by taking part in Tenko, the name given by the Japanese to the daily roll call, where the guards counted the captives. Physical training (PT) followed, consisting of exercises such as bending knees, star jumps and running. During these exercises the captors often kicked and prodded some of the slower prisoners with sticks. As very few of the Japanese guards spoke English the captives felt it in their best interest to learn Japanese in order to understand the commands the captors gave them.
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