ABSTRACT
The accused interpreters at British military trials were mostly charged for being “(together) concerned in” the ill-treatment and torture of local civilians and prisoners of war, resulting in the deaths of victims in some cases. The term “(together) concerned in” was used to indicate that the accused took part together with other members of their units in the alleged crimes. The substance and degree of the “part” they took was addressed during the trials. Evidence from the prosecution indicated that the accused interpreters were present and physically involved in the alleged crimes, playing leading roles in some cases. Some defendants practically admitted to the charges but qualified that they had been acting on the orders of their superiors. Others completely or partially denied the allegations. The defence pointed to the prosecution witnesses’ “mistaken impression” of the role of the interpreters because of the interpreters’ high visibility and the nature of messages they had to deliver. Some interpreter defendants gave incriminating evidence against their former superiors and other members of their units, while several local interpreters who used to work for the Japanese military testified for the prosecution as eyewitnesses of Japanese war crimes in the trials against the accused interpreters.
