The Korean War Week 101 - Another Week, Another POW Riot - May 26, 1952

Added: 2026-05-26

[00:00:00]Wait, so they sent in who? The Filipinos. Well, how did it go?

[00:00:07]10 points for the Filipinos. You know, you forget they're here sometimes.

[00:00:10]That's not good. Yeah. All right.

[00:00:16]May 26, 1952.

[00:00:19]Over the course of the war, we've seen the field actions of troops from a variety of UN nations. Turks, the Dutch, Canadians, the Belgians, and many more.

[00:00:28]And this week, the Filipinos go into action.

[00:00:38]I'm Indie Naidell and this is the Korean War. Last week came a series of allegations by the communists that the US has been engaging in bacterialological warfare based on the forced confessions of captured airmen.

[00:00:50]There was fallout from the Coojo P drama two weeks ago and Mark Clark settled in as new UN commander. There's still plenty of fallout repercussions and echoes from the goings on at Cooji Doe when prisoners kidnapped the camp common General Francis Dodd and managed to get a few demands agreed to for his release in Busan at P enclosure number two for hospital cases. There are 3,500 men remaining among the patients and work details of compounds 1, 2, and three that have not yet been screened to see if they would violently resist repatriation to North Korea or China after an armistice. John Bostik, the camp commandant, wants to prevent any group actions like at Cooji Do. So, he tells the prisoners that food and water is only available in the new segregated quarters after screening. Compound 3 tries to negotiate conditions under which they'll allow themselves to be screened, but Bostik won't talk with them. Compounds one and two just sort of ignore him and the two infantry battalions he has in position around the compounds. Well, they ignore them that night, which was actually back on the 11th. The next day, the 12th, they sing patriotic songs, wave flags and signs, and though the infantry fixes bayonets, and a couple of tanks turn up, no one tries to go in and start screening, and the prisoners don't come out. That night, compound 3 sets up sandbags, although there is no violence. On the 13th, loudspeakers blare the UN orders and offers of hot food and cigarettes in the new compounds, but no takers. On the 14th, some rocks are thrown at the guards and a few shots ring out, but nothing major happens to end the standoff. Compound one says, "Can we talk to some people from the Red Cross?"

[00:02:39]US 8th Army Commander Jim Van Fleet says, "Sure, they can interview you."

[00:02:44]And the other two compounds want to do that, too. So that happens, but still no one is ready to obey Bostic's orders. On the 15th, Paul Y from second logistical command gets VanFleet's approval to shift the focus from screening to control. With the unregistered PS to remain unregistered until there is an armistice settlement at Pan Wanja. After this, a settlement is reached with compound one and without screening, the prisoners peacefully go to their new compound. However, any hopes the other two compounds would follow suit were soon dashed. So on the 19th, Vanfleet authorizes force to clear them. There is a morning announcement that this is the last chance for them to obey. And then the infantry is sent into compound 3.

[00:03:30]The prisoners resist. Armed with stones, knives, sharpened tentpoles, whatever they can get their hands on, and the infantry uses tear gas and concussion grenades. They herd the prisoners together and then force them to the new compounds. One prisoner is killed and 29 more wounded and one American is wounded. Compound 2 evidently takes a lesson from this action because on the 21st they allow the infantry to move them without incident.

[00:03:56]Since the kidnapping of General Dodd screening has taken a backseat to the issue of security. Vanfleet really prioritizes getting full control back in all the P camps. Last week his staff did a study of things and on the 16th sent him three alternatives to get it. The first is simply remove all prisoners from Korea. The second is to disperse them all over Korea. And the third is to do both. Remove some from the country and spread the others out. Vanfleet actually prefers the first one. I mean, if all PS held were out of the country, Eighth Army would not have any rear security issues like Coojo and he could concentrate on his primary mission of fighting the war. Alternative three would at least lessen the problem, too.

[00:04:44]Dispersal around Korea would allow for better control, but would also require more administrative and logistical work and security personnel. UN Commander Mark Clark, however, does not want any of the PS taken out of the country. So, he tells Vanfleet, "Get busy with alternative 2, just dispersal." He's happy to send in the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team to help out and tank support if necessary. So, what is Van Fleet's plan then? Well, there will be new enclosures on the islands Kojido and Jedju. And he wants 22 enclosures on the mainland, each holding just 4,000 PS. Compounds in the enclosures would be strictly limited to 500 men each with concertina wire and double fencing between them for real separation. When the new camps were finished, Van Fleet was going to try to use the prisoners representatives to induce them to move voluntarily. But if resistance developed, as he expected it would, food and water would be withheld and the prisoners would receive these only at the new compounds. As a last resort, he would employ force. Both Clark and his superiors agree that although the plan might incur unfavorable publicity and had to be handled carefully, the communist control of Coojido had to be broken. They recommend to Vanfleet that he use Red Cross assistance as much as possible and that personnel from other UN countries involved in Korea be added to that at Coojido. The Netherlands battalion is actually already there and he'll send a Greek, a British and a Canadian company over. Moving the prisoners is going to be a difficult job and vanfleet decides that US second division assistant commander Bull Bner is the man for it and makes him the new commandant of Kojido. Botner moves 6,000 civilians off the island. Then starts working his men in 12-hour shifts to build the smaller, stronger new enclosures.

[00:06:46]You know what? Another word or three about Botner actually, which I read in TR Farenbox, this kind of war. He went to Tokyo for RNR and back on the 11th was sitting in the Tokyo main PX when he was paged and told to go to general headquarters, the Dichi. There he got the news from the assistant G1 personnel officer that he's been assigned to Coojid do. This is literally the day after General Dodd is released by his capttors. So, it's in all the papers. He asks how he can get out of it and is told he can't. And furthermore, a plane is going to take him there in an hour.

[00:07:20]Before that, he is to see Mark Clark, the new FCOM commander who's taking over right during all the Cooji Do hoo-ha.

[00:07:28]Clark was absolutely flabbergasted by what had happened at Coojo. He told Bolner he felt the American army had been disgraced. He had just visited the island with the departing Ridgeway and he had been horrified at the lack of discipline and control over the rioting PS.

[00:07:45]Bner tells him the way things are there, it will take bloodshed to restore control. Clark says he expects that and supports him. Botner is a smart guy. So he asks for a law officer who is thoroughly familiar with the Geneva Convention. So Clark says he will get one. Then Bner goes to Clark's chief of staff, Doyle Hickeyi, and tells him of his talk with Clark and makes sure he understands that Botner has been authorized to use violence. then goes to the next two guys down the command list, General Sheepard and Ryan, to make sure they too are on record that Botner has been so authorized. I will talk more about Botner and how he plans to sort out things over the next few weeks. I mentioned last week that the Coulson letter to the Ps who kidnapped Dodd answering their demands had an effect on the goings on at Panwanjam where the peace talks have been held for many months now. The UN delegates submitted a peace package, supposedly the UN's final one, April 28th, and they didn't pay much attention to the dog thing at first when it happened a week and a half later, since they were busy trying to convince the other side that it is not just an interim position, but a real final offer. However, when the letter came out, they really began to learn the impact of the incident for the enemy.

[00:09:06]The riots at Kojido and the Coulson letter provided a custom-made weapon to discredit the basic stand of the United Nations command on the only issue that remained, repatriation. The communists eagerly seized the opportunity to weaken the UNC position in the eyes of the world and in the process too strengthen their own case of the repatriation of all prisoners of war. The repatriation issue really is the only thing standing in the way of an armistice just now after the past few weeks since the net result of the peace proposal eliminated the airfield rebuilding issue and the USSR being on any supervisory committee issue. Thing is when it was given former UN commander Matt Rididgeway wanted strong backing from both Washington and the other UN nations fighting in Korea.

[00:09:56]He wanted everyone to issue strong blunt statements telling the communists that this really was the final offer.

[00:10:04]However, neither the State Department, the military bigwigs, nor the UN allies would go quite that far. They'll issue messages of support and things that imply that it's a final offer, but no ultimatums. If the talks break off, they still all want it to be the fault of the communist side. The communists were holding firm that they wanted to exchange the 12,000 military PS they hold for the 132,000 the UN holds in an all forall exchange. Ridgeway and UN chief delegate Turner Joy thought there was no longer any reason for holding executive sessions. Back on the sixth, Joy told NAM illness and they agreed to go back to open sessions. This had no effect whatsoever on the proceedings.

[00:10:50]But of course, a few days later came the General Dodd incident on the 16th. NAM had this to say at the plenary conference.

[00:10:58]>> As long as your side does not change this preemptary attitude and give up your unreasonable proposal, our side will continue to expose at these conferences the absurdity of your proposal. The so-called screening is totally absurd and impermissible. The so-called result of your so-called screening is doubly absurd and wholly concocted by your side. The commonant of your prisoner of war camp has already declared to the whole world the utter bankruptcy of your proposition.

[00:11:22]>> A few moments later.

[00:11:24]>> The unshakable fact is that our captured personnel would rather die than yield to your design of retaining them as your cannon foder. The unshakable fact is that public confessions of your commandant of your prisoner of war camp have killed and buried the myth that our captured personnel refused to be repatriated. In spite of all your threats and violence, our captured personnel rose in heroic and just resistance against your forced screening. The commandant of your prisoner of war camp could not but confess before the whole world your inhumane treatment and murderous violence against our captured personnel and the criminal and unlawful acts committed by your side in screening and rearming war prisoners by force. I have to say the damage done to the UN stance on screening and repatriation is pretty considerable globally. They can't really say much to refute NM. And the communists begin taking things further, making new charges like like N charges that UN planes bombed a communist P camp, injuring a number of their own troops who were PS there. He tells Joy that the very next day, supply trucks heading for Panujang were strafed. The UN is able to deny most of these new charges, but they are kept on the defensive by the relentless accusations. Hey, this week Turner Joyy's time as chief UN delegate comes to its end. Uh-huh. For real. On May 22nd, he gives a speech of his own, his farewell speech. It's partly quoted in that Walter Hermes book. Joy managed to strike back at the enemy, recalling that on the 10th of July 1951, he had stressed that the success or failure of the negotiations begun here today depends directly upon the good faith of the delegations present. He pointed out that hope had proven to be forlone. The communists had cavalled over procedural matters, manufactured spurious issues, denied agreements, and indulged in abuse and invective when all else failed. The admiral charged comparing the records of the two sides, he noted that they are as different as night and day. No amount of propaganda, however off repeated, can hide your ignoble record. Joy urged the acceptance of the package proposal, then concluded, "After 10 months and 12 days, I feel there is nothing more for me to do. There's nothing left to negotiate. I now turn over the unenviable job of further dealings with you to Major General William K. Harrison, who succeeds me as senior delegate of the United Nations Command delegation. May God be with him."

[00:13:52]Joy has done a pretty good job showing a good deal of restraint and they have sorted every issue except the one of repatriation and let's face it the discussions on that are over as well.

[00:14:04]One side or the other will have to concede for an armistice to be signed.

[00:14:10]That's it. Joy is well aware of that.

[00:14:13]But that deadlock is not his responsibility. There are other personnel changes at the talks too.

[00:14:18]Harrison taking over means Frank McConnell takes over as army rep. On the other side, Lee Han Lim takes over from Uch Hung as ROK rep. Rok's South Koreans. All changes are personnel of lower rank taking over from superior officers. Perhaps because there is not a whole lot for them to do really.

[00:14:40]It's not just the North Koreans and the Chinese that the UN has issues with though. I mentioned two months ago that Matt Rididgeway and US ambassador to Korea John Muio wanted to send a highlevel mission over from DC to really try to sort out the South Korean UNC relations which as we've seen have grown more and more strained over the past months. Clarence Meyer was named chief of that mission. Well, this week comes the result of the mission. On the 24th, an agreement is signed between the unified command and the ROK. When you think of how much has been talked about national sovereignty and all the political and economic turmoil this year so far, it's a pretty fair deal. A combined economic board is set up with one UN and one ROK member to promote economic cooperation or effective coordination. This board will make binding recommendations on the use of all foreign exchange and will integrate this into UN assistance programs.

[00:15:42]Remember, the Rock really did not want the UN controlling its foreign exchange, but Ridgeway had wanted at least some control of it in exchange for the huge monthly payments the UN was making. As for those payments, those one advances, one is the local currency. The UNC agrees that all advances from January 1st, 1952 to May 31st shall be settled at the rate of 6,0001 to the dollar.

[00:16:08]Older claims from 1950 1951 are deferred to some later date and claims for future months after this one will be paid at a more realistic rate than 6,000 to1 which would likely be more than twice that.

[00:16:21]They basically agree to pay $75 million for January through May. 10% of the advances each month will be written off as the ROK contribution to the war effort. The RO government also agrees to take measures to control inflation and the UN will try and get Juan out of the market by bringing in as much stuff to sell as possible if both sides made sincere efforts to carry out the terms of this agreement. The economic situation in Korea could improve considerably in the near future. Whether this might also have a favorable influence upon the political and armistice problems was another matter.

[00:16:59]By May 1952, the armistice negotiations had again reached a stalemate. An RO agitation against the truth had subsided, but President Rey's internal conflict with his fellow politicians threatened to build up into another crisis. In any case, the UN command might only have adjusted the economic differences in time to be dragged into the political arena, but at least one thorn in the rock UNC relations had been amicably removed. There is field action this week at Hill Erie. Last week, the 20th Philippine Battalion Combat Team launched a series of raids against the Chinese in the region. This week on the 21st, the Filipinos prepare their final assault on the PVA Chinese positions. It is the second recon platoon, 44 men who get the call. They are led by a young second lieutenant named Fidel Ramos.

[00:17:51]That name seems like the kind of name the president of the Philippines might one day have decades from now. Anyhow, Ramos splits his force into four groups and they head out just after 4:00 a.m.

[00:18:04]crawling through rice patties for a couple hours until they reach an irrigation ditch. This is like like 400 m from the crest of the hill and they wait while half a dozen or so saber jets hit the Chinese position with napong and then the artillery softens them up too.

[00:18:20]After that, Ramos' guys find a hole in the barbed wire and occupy the front part of the enemy trench network.

[00:18:28]Scattered close quarters fighting follows, and the Filipinos gain the upper hand over the disorganized Chinese. A sniper team holds off enemy support from another nearby hill. By 7:30 a.m., the Chinese bunkers have been destroyed on Erie, and the Filipinos withdraw so that tanks can blast the position. Ramos's men suffer one injury while the Chinese take casualties estimated in the hundreds mainly from the air strikes, artillery, napal, and tank blasts. And there I will leave you for this week of the war. As does Turner Joy with P issues still dictating the course of the war and success for the Philippine battalion.

[00:19:06]Here's a little more about Bull Botner and the Coulson letter to end today.

[00:19:11]After Bner is told of his new posting, he first goes to Busan and then to Koji Do where he meets the whole cast of characters I mentioned the past couple weeks. Paul Yang from Second Logistical Command, Frank Dodd, of course, and finally Charlie Coulson, who was sent in to sort out the situation when Dodd was kidnapped. It turns out Coulson is totally unaware that his actions are under scrutiny from above in both Tokyo and Washington. Boner though has just been in the thick of the Tokyo media frenzy and he tells him Mark Clark is mad as hell at him and Coulson asks why.

[00:19:48]Boner says because of the agreement he made with the communist PS. Coulson says well Clark approved it. How can he be mad about it? Bner is stunned and asks if Coulson can prove that and Coulson says sure. He's got the stenographic notes of their conversation. He has them right here. Bner says they don't officially prove Clark's approval, but Coulson better bring them with him to Tokyo cuz he's in big trouble. TR Ferenbach writes, "It was certain that Charlie Coulson never realized he was under any criticism or fire whatever.

[00:20:23]And whatever this said for his judgment, many people including Bull Botner regarded his subsequent demotion to colonel and retirement to verge on the criminal. In democratic societies as well as totalitarian, it never pays to embarrass the powers that be.

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[00:20:53]Yeah, timego.tv or patreon.com. These are the newest commissioned officers in the army, and Matthew Edgar is the army member of the week here. Do not forget to subscribe. See you next time.