100th Anniversary Exhibition

The Paper Trail to the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act.

This project, which our Military Museum led the development, commemorates the 100^th anniversary of the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act with both a major exhibition and a national archive. This law, which was in effect for almost a quarter century, led to the darkest and, for some, the most despairing period for Chinese in Canada.

The Exclusion Act was a last-ditch effort to block all immigration from China after four decades of charging ever-increasing head taxes failed to stop the flow of Chinese migration.

The 1923 Act also resulted in Canadian-born Chinese children being issued an “immigration card” containing the words “this certificate does not establish legal status in Canada.” Through this card, a form of exclusion was symbolically passed on to the next generation of Chinese born on Canadian soil.

These children would become the generation that enlisted in Canada’s war effort despite the lack of full status in this country. Some even lost their lives in combat, such as Quan Louie of Vancouver who died in bomber command over the skies of Germany.

Come visit this major exhibition, on now at the Chinese Canadian Museum in Vancouver until June 30, 2024.  Learn more about this important project and how you can include your ancestors in commemorating this largely forgotten period of Canadian history. Click here.

Exhibition opened on October 5, 2016 and marked the 75th anniversary of the invasion of Hong Kong.

The Defence of Hong Kong was the first battle of the Second World War in which Canadians fought. It involved two under-prepared Canadian battalions with little to no fighting experience.

The fight ended in 18 days … but the nightmare would last almost four more years.

In September 1941, Hong Kong was still a British Colony. But it was now surrounded by the Japanese who occupied key areas of China.

After a request from British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, Canada offered up two infantry battalions (1,975 personnel) to serve as a deterrent against a possible Japanese invasion of the territory.

The Royal Rifles of Canada (from Quebec) and the Winnipeg Grenadiers (from Manitoba) were untested in battle. Their leaders were led to believe there would be time to prepare. Some of the soldiers thought they were simply going to do garrison duty. One man even brought his golf clubs.

On December 8, 1941, a few hours after Pearl Harbor was bombed, the Japanese attacked Hong Kong.

Although the Canadians stood alongside British and Indian soldiers, as well as members of the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps, the defenders were out numbered four-to-one and were poorly equipped. The fighting was fierce, and each day the Allies were pushed back and eventually were cornered on Hong Kong Island. Approximately 290 Canadian soldiers died in the fighting.

Many soldiers were executed by the Japanese even after they had surrendered their posts. Civilians, medics and even hospital patients were massacred and raped as the Japanese stormed the territory.

The fighting ended on Christmas Day, when the Governor of Hong Kong finally surrendered the colony after much bloodshed.

Thus began another battle – the fight to simply survive the extraordinarily harsh conditions in Japanese prisoner-of-war camps and Japanese occupation in general. Almost 1,700 Canadians spent the next four years as POWs. They were joined by thousands of other Allied soldiers and residents of Hong Kong. The POWs endured starvation; beatings; manipulation; back-breaking work for up to 12 hours a day; diseases that went untreated (such as malaria, diphtheria and infections); and filthy living conditions. During incarceration, another 264 Canadians died.

Of the 1,975 Canadian personnel who came to assist Hong Kong, approximately 1,050 either died or were wounded by the time the war ended: a 50 per cent casualty rate.

BILL CHONG (AGENT 50)

William “Bill” Gun Chong was born in Vancouver in 1911. He happened to be in Hong Kong, dealing with his late father’s estate, when the Japanese invaded.

Chong was enraged by the atrocities and killings he witnessed as the Japanese took control of the colony. He was determined to fight back.

Bill Chong (BAAG Agent 50)

Escaping to China, Chong initially sought to become a guerrilla fighter. Instead, he was persuaded to join the British Army Aid Group (BAAG) of the British Military Intelligence Section, MI-9. He became a spy and was assigned the code name “Agent 50.”

Chong spent five years gathering intelligence; relaying messages; ferrying much-needed medical supplies to secret field hospitals; and helping downed airmen and POWs escape. He usually worked alone, and would often walk 50-80 kilometres a day dressed as a Chinese peasant and wearing straw shoes. He did not sleep in a real bed for almost four years.

He also lived in constant fear of being discovered. He was captured three times and narrowly escaped each time. Despite those close calls, Chong continued to risk his life and today is credited with saving the lives of hundreds of Allied airmen and POWs.

DR. RAYMOND LEE

Born in 1911 in Toishan, China, but raised in Canada, Dr. Raymond Lee had recently completed his medical degree at Hong Kong University when the invasion happened. The Japanese needed his medical expertise and desperately tried to recruit him, but Lee refused and escaped to free China. There, Lee was invited by Colonel Lindsay Ride to join BAAG and become their lead physician in charge of establishing and operating medical outposts. (Ride, an Australian who had escaped a POW camp, had been an associate of Lee’s at Hong Kong University.)

While Lee’s original assignment was to focus on medical treatment for escaped POWs and British Army and BAAG personnel, it did not take long before his patient list ballooned. As war raged on, Lee expanded his services to Chinese army personnel (both nationalists and communist guerrillas). As well, each day his team would treat hundreds of ordinary Chinese residents who were sick from disease and starvation or were badly injured in the frequent air raid bombings.

Dr. Raymond Lee (5th from left) with members of his medical team. Third from left is Bill Chong.

Besides running medical outposts, Lee also established several congee kitchens to help address the severe malnutrition of civilians.  Despite working in sometimes crude conditions, and with many untrained staff, Lee’s medical expertise and leadership skills helped saved thousands of lives.

WILLIAM LORE

William K. Lore, born in Victoria in 1909, was the first Chinese officer in the Royal Canadian Navy. In fact, he was the first officer of Chinese descent to serve in any of the navies of the Commonwealth.

Late in the war, Lore was assigned to British Pacific Fleet. Pulling into Hong Kong Harbour aboard the Swiftsure on August 30, 1945, Lore was handpicked by Rear Admiral Cecil Harcourt to be the first British Officer to step ashore onto liberated Hong Kong soil. The next day, Lore was tasked to liberate the notorious Sham Shui Po POW camp. After a short, intense stand-off with the Japanese guards at the prison gates, Lore found his way into a dirty, ramshackle barrack, housing dozens of sick and emaciated Canadians. It was a reunion that would be forever etched into Lore’s memory.

William Lore circa 1943

In his diary, Lore described the scene:

I could see 20 or 30 officers in ragged remains of uniforms looking at me … without a sound. I then walked a few steps towards them and said “I am a Canadian naval officer, and I am here to liberate you guys. Aren’t you glad to see me?”

A few came towards me … gazed at my cap badge …and then exclaimed “You are real! We are saved!”

Then came a rush towards me, with tears and shouts, which brought further POWs down rickety wooden stairs from the upper floor of the building. 

I have never seen so many men in tears together. But they were “happy tears.” In fact, I was in tears myself because they were like skeletons and I realized that the young happy-go-lucky boys of less than four years ago, had now become old men…

William Lore, August 31, 1945.

WILLIAM POY

Born in Australia in 1907, William Poy ventured north to the British colony of Hong Kong while still in his 20s.

He adapted quickly to his new home. Poy became a successful amateur jockey and, through participation in the “sport of kings,” was introduced into British Colonial Society.  He joined the Freemasons and eventually became Right Worshipful Master of his chapter lodge in Hong Kong. He also married, had two children and began a promising career at the Canadian Trade Commission.

When Japan attacked the colony, Poy volunteered to be a motorcycle dispatch rider for the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps. He traversed dangerous roads — dodging bombs, shelling and mortar fire — in order to deliver vital communiques. Poy survived his missions and was later decorated by the British for his courage and tenacity.

Photo courtesy of Lore family

Photo courtesy of Lore family

Months after Hong Kong fell, the warring governments negotiated an exchange of Allied for Japanese nationals. Just hours before the Red Cross ship with Allied nationals was to set sail, Poy got word that he, his wife and two young children were on the list to leave for Canada. They were accepted into Canada despite the fact the Chinese Exclusion Act was still in effect. (This Act, instituted in 1923, essentially banned immigration of Chinese into Canada.)

“Rumble in the Jungle: The Story of Force 136” was a tribute to the Chinese Canadians who signed up for this dangerous and secretive mission in Southeast Asia during the Second World War. Launched on Saturday, May 14, 2016 were fortunate that some members of this elite group were still alive, and nine of them managed to make it to the opening.

The reason for Force 136.

In late 1941, Japan had entered the Second World War. It quickly invaded and occupied large swathes of Southeast Asia. Many of these areas had once been British, French and Dutch colonies.

Britain was desperately looking for a way to infiltrate the region. They had had some success in occupied Europe when Special Operations Executive (i.e., British intelligence) trained and dropped secret agents into France, Belgium, Holland, etc. The role of these agents was to organize and support local resistance fighters, and help with espionage and sabotage of infrastructure and German supply lines and equipment.

Map of Japanese occupied areas of Asia during WWII

However, Southeast Asia presented some unique challenges to SOE. It was a vast area to cover, with many islands, challenging physical terrain and very diverse populations and languages.

SOE soon realized that Caucasian agents would stand out too much and would struggle to gain local trust. After all, most of the residents of the region held little good will towards their former colonizers.

The British would need an alternative agent. And an alternative strategy to build guerrilla groups.

Scattered throughout the region was a sizeable population of Chinese. Many were vehemently opposed to Japanese occupation and were angry about Japanese aggression in China. The question was how to contact and organize them?

The answer, of course, lay with Chinese Canadians. They could easily blend in to the population. They could speak Cantonese. And there were lots of these men waiting for an assignment.

In the early years of the war, many young Chinese Canadian men had walked into recruitment offices and offered their names. Generally, they were told “we can take your name, but you are not likely to be called up because you are Chinese.” They were shown the door.

Suddenly, they were the perfect recruit and their services were needed. But in a way that would require them to swear to secrecy and face a 50-50 chance of being killed.

Chinese Canadian recruits

Between 1944 and 1945 about 150 Chinese Canadians were recruited and quietly seconded to the British SOE in Southeast Asia. They became known as members of Force 136.

No ordinary training:

The mission of Force 136 members was simple. Get dropped behind Japanese lines; survive in the jungle in small teams with no outside support; seek out and train local resistance fighters; and work with those guerrilla groups to sabotage Japanese equipment and supply lines and conduct espionage.

To do this kind of work would require much more than their basic army training. The men would need to learn commando warfare techniques. Over the course of several months they learned such skills as: stalking; silent killing; demolition; jungle travel and survival (including how to swing from tree to tree); wireless operations; espionage; parachuting; interpretation; and silent swimming.

Swimming was one of their biggest challenges as most Chinese were banned from public pools at the time, so few knew how to swim.

John KoBong and Tom Lock learning to swim silently loaded down with gear.

Besides their gruelling training, the men would have to fight off illnesses (like malaria, dysentery and broken bones), and endure incredible heat, humidity and monsoons.

Ed Lee recalls some of his training.

Eventually, each recruit became a specialist: in demolition, wireless operations or interpretation. In the field, teams were small and generally consisted of no more than eight men: first and second commanders, two demolition experts, a wireless operator, a coder/decoder and two Gurkha scouts.

The First Recruits:

The first group to be formed were 13 hand-picked men who were assigned to a mission with the ominous title: Operation Oblivion. Their initial goal was to go into China, but the Americans vetoed those plans.

First of the Force 136 recruits, also known as the Operation Oblivion group.

They endured three-months of exhausting training at a secret, temporary camp at Commando Bay on Okanagan Lake. Training continued in Australia on Fraser Island where the men were attached to the Australian Army.

Later Recruits:

By January 1945, the remaining Chinese Canadians had been recruited. The first of these men were shipped to India via England. Others followed them to India over the next few months. About 15 men were selected to go to Australia to join the Operation Oblivion group.

Chinese Canadians of Force 136 training near Poona, India

The Operations:

Most recruits were not fully deployed before Japan officially surrendered on August 15, 1945. Some had had the chance to do short trips into occupied territory.

One young Force 136 member in India, Neill Chan of Vancouver, described one of these short missions which was, nevertheless, nerve wracking for him.

About 14 men found themselves operating behind Japanese lines for several months in Burma, Borneo, Malay and Singapore. Most stayed in the field well into the Autumn of 1945.

They served in missions with codenames such as Operation Galvanic, Operation Humour, Operation Tideway Green, Operation Snooper and Operation Sargeant.

Ernie Louie recalls his days trekking through the jungle

The goals and the resistance groups they contacted varied. Generally, missions ranged from supporting and training local fighters in sabotage activities; to forcing Japanese units to surrender; finding and liberating prisoner-of-war camps; and maintaining order and security post surrender.

Five Force 136 men spent several months behind enemy lines in Borneo. (Clockwise from top left): Capt. Roger Cheng; Norman Low; Louey King; James Shiu and Roy Chan.

Captain Roger Cheng took in the very first group of Force 136 Chinese Canadian men. In March, 1945 he was sent into Borneo with Roy Chan, Louey King, Norman Low and James Shiu.

Their mission included: Contact and befriend Dyak headhunters; provide equipment and training; assist with sabotage; locate isolated Japanese units and force them to surrender; find POW camps; organize tribesmen into local security forces; patrol rivers; and prevent revenge massacres of Japanese troops and suspected collaborators.

They all survived their mission in the jungle and returned home to Canada in February, 1946, as seen in this photo taken by the Vancouver Sun newspaper. Later that year, Low, King, Chan and Shiu were awarded the Military Medal for their efforts.

Awarded the military medal in September 1946: Louie King (L) and Norman Low celebrate in the hospital where Low was recovering from complications due to malaria. Because Low had previously been sworn to secrecy, he could not divulge his mission and consequently his doctors were initially skeptical that he had malaria. Low never fully regained his health and died at the age of 37.

The Long Journey Home.

On August 15, 1945 Japan officially surrendered. For many Chinese Canadians in Force 136, it meant it was time to get ready to return home.

Others stayed in the field for a few more months to find and disarm isolated Japanese troops and to help maintain order during the post-war transition period.

Force 136 member Gordon Wong returns home from the war to Vancouver. The Vancouver Sun newspaper captured his warm greeting from his sisters Violet (L) and Mabel.

Force 136 men who had been stationed in Australia, were forced to find work on cargo ships in order to earn their passage home to Canada.

Force 136 men (who were stationed in India) await in England for repatriation to Canada.

Learn more about the story Force 136 from this article published on War History Online.

Our Exhibition Launch:

We were fortunate that some members of this elite group were still alive on May 14, 2016, the day of our launch. Nine of them managed to make it to the opening: Neill Chan, Chong Joe, Charlie Lee, Ronald Lee, Gordon Quan, Gordon Wong, Hank Wong, Tommyc CG Wong and Victor E. Wong.

Below are photos from exhibition launch event. Photos courtesy of Steve Ko and Vincent L. Chan.

Exhibition Supporter:

Exhibition Partner:

2015 marks 70 years since the end of the largest conflict in human history. 

To commemorate this milestone, our museum hosted a special gala on October 24, 2015. About 360 people attending and we used the occasion to say “thank you” to the few remaining Second World War veterans still with us. And the evening was also a chance to help families honour and remember those who have passed on.

The occasion was made all the more special by the presence of LGen (Ret’d) the Hon. Roméo Dallaire, who provided the audience with a moving keynote speech. We were also delighted that the Lt. Gov of British Columbia, the Honorable Judith Guichon joined us for the evening.

VIDEO: We started by playing a tribute video called “Faces to Remember” – a look at the faces of those who served but have passed on. Please click the image below to view the VIDEO.

We then followed with an acknowledgement of the service of each of the 17 veterans in the room that evening. It was moving to see these men and women, all in their 90s, come out for this special tribute.

Army, SOE, Force 136

Army, Artillery. Served in Normandy and also in the liberation of Holland.

RCAF Bomber Command

Navy

Royal Engineers, Indian Army

RCAF coastal command

Served on the homefront with an all-Chinese St. Johns Ambulance brigade.

Army, SOE, Force 136

Navy

Navy

Army, SOE, Force 136

Navy

Navy

Expert marksman who was being trained for the Tiger Force – the invasion of Japan.

One of the first Chinese Canadians to be accepted into the RCAF.

Army, SOE, Force 136

Army, SOE, Force 136

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of the war in Europe, on May 9, 2015 we unveiled a refreshed museum with new exhibits and stories. Stories of courage, intrigue, perseverance, anguish and pain. Stories of individuals and stories of families and how the war shaped their lives.

Our goal is to research, collect and share with visitors the unique stories of the more 600 Chinese Canadians who fought in the Second World War. It was their sacrifices and loyalty to Canada that won all Chinese Canadians full citizenship.

• Read the story on navigator Jim Gen Lee who was killed just six weeks before the end of the war in Europe.

The Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, the Honourable Judith Guichon, was on hand to cut the ribbon on our refurbished museum.

Museum President King Wan, Carol Lee, Lt. Governor Judith Guichon, MLA John Yap, Museum founder Howe Lee, and MLA Richard Lee.

Lieutenant Governor, the Honourable Judith Guichon, addresses the guests at the Museum opening.

Curator and exhibition designer Catherine Clement chats with WWII veteran Neill Chan.

Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon speaks with museum historian Larry Wong.

WWII veteran Tommy CG Wong meets Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon while another WWII veteran, Peggy Lee, looks on.

Chinese Cultural Centre board chair Fred Kwok, chats with William Kwok and Christine Faron Chan about one of the new exhibits.

Military historian and museum member Trevor Sam explains the story behind a model to family members. Trevor’s father — Douglas Sam — served in bomber command during the war. 

To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of WWI and to celebrate the 70th anniversary of D-Day, we unveiled a new exhibit at the museum for Asian Heritage Month.

The launch event was on May 14, 2015 and included a panel discussion with leading historians and a special screening of the documentary Operation Oblivion.

Panelists included: Dr. Henry Yu (UBC), Dr. Richard Vedan (UBC), Dr. John Price (Univ of Victoria) and Mr. Naveen Girn.